Florida Prepares To Execute Robert Waterhouse on February 15

The State of Florida has set sixty-five-year-old Robert Waterhouse’s execution date for February 18, 2012. Robert has been on Florida’s death row for 32 years. Waterhouse was convicted of the rape and murder of 29-year-old Deborah Kamerer of St. Petersburg. Waterhouse was initially scheduled be executed in 1985; however, his appeals won him a new trial stopping the scheduled execution. He was tried again in 1990 and once again was found guilty and sentenced to death. On January 24, Waterhouse filed an appeal with the Florida Supreme court claiming a new witness came forward, after 29 years that can prove his innocence. A lower court has already rejected this claim.

Waterhouse is from Long Island, New York, where he was born and grew up. And where, in 1966, at the age of 19, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. He spent the next 9 years of his life at Auburn State Prison before being released on life parole. Upon release from prison he returned to Long Island, moved to Louisiana, finally settling in Florida in 1978. The people who raised him from age six retired to St. Petersburg, Florida.

Robert has spent most of his life in prison for murder. Nine years in Auburn State Prison in New York for a murder he admitted to committing. Thirty-two years at Florida State Penitentiary’s death row for a murder he claims he did not commit. Please pray for Robert. Pray for salvation if unsaved, peace if saved, and if innocent that it be revealed before Florida executes Robert Waterhouse.

A Carpenter's Tools

Friday as we worked in our new office in Charlottesville, and arranged our office furniture, we are ready to do God’s work.  But we need your help to complete the office to be able to work effectively for the Lord.  We have listed our equipment needs to date. 

As the Lord has used TFF to share the Gospel around the world, we realize that we need the power tools to complete the Lord’s work as He guides us.  Some may ask why we need this type of equipment. 

The Mac Mini-Computer (includes all accessories) is needed for the website work.  We’re sure that you have noticed how some of our postings on the website are not properly aligned or we have giant white

spaces.  We also need to add more Bible lessons and teachings.  People are hungry for the Lord’s teaching and just like a carpenter who needs power tools to build his house, TFF needs the right tools to build and maintain the website to provide the teaching of God’s Word.  We have discovered that our current website has lots of limitations.  We need audio and video capabilities for those with disabilities.  Since we are not experts in this field and there are so many choices, a supporter of TFF, introduced us to a professional man in this field, who has a heart for God’s work and understands our needs as he reviewed our website and our ministry. 

Our need for a High Volume Printer is urgent!  We print 3,351 letters monthly for the death row inmates.  We also write monthly newsletters, monthly letters to former death row inmates whose sentence has been commuted to life without parole, monthly letters to family members of inmates upon request and letters to non-death row inmates upon request.  The list continues to grow.  When we compared the costs of printers and the needed toner for these printers to complete our monthly mailings, the Lexmark XS796de (includes all options) is by far the most economical choice.  While the upfront costs are greater, the long-term costs are much less.  When you do high volume printing you need a printer than can print thousands of copies without over-heating and shutting down and eventually burn up the printer.  We also examined the costs of the toner.  Some printers, the toner costs are extremely high due to the low volume of pages per toner cartridge.  Trying to be good stewards, we researched the operating costs and the longevity of the printers.  The high volume printer, Lexmark XS796de will actually cost less to operate in 1 year period than a cheaper printer.  We have diligently shopped to find the best possible prices for our needed services and needed equipment.

A carpenter can build a house with basic tools:  a hammer and a saw; but it would require a lot of labor and a great amount of time.  This carpenter would be lucky if he could complete one home in a year.  TFF began as the simple carpenter years ago with the basic tools.  Today’s carpenter, with today’s power tools:  a power nailer and a power saw; can build several homes in a year’s time.  We need to be a carpenter of today with the power tools to share the Gospel to the world.  Mark 16:15  “He (Jesus) said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (NIV).  2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (ESV).

USA: Prayer for Families of Victims of and the Families of the Men Executed In 2012

Two men have been executed so far this year. I thought it would be good to pray for the families of the men executed so far this year and to pray for the families of the victims of the crime for which the following men have been executed for committing.

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The Lord's Prayer Lesson 1, Relationship and Worship

The Lord’s Prayer

                                                                                                  The Model Prayer

Matthew 6:9-13

Lesson 1

Relationship and Worship

     Our first lesson on the Lord’s Prayer is limited to verse 9 because the verse needs to be meditated and reflected upon. This verse identifies God and establishes the relationship between God and the person praying. Do you view God as your heavenly Father or are they just words you recite? Has the Lord’s Prayer become a convenience for you, allowing the words, like so many memorized recitals, to pass through your mind without a conscious thought of their true meaning?

     The non-believer who is following the lessons regarding the Lord’s Prayer will find that God reveals Himself, many aspects of His personality, through this prayer.  The Lord’s Prayer or model prayer is a good introduction to God.  

     (9) Pray then like this:  Our Father in heaven; hallowed be your name. (10) Your kingdom come, your will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. (11) Give us this day our daily bread, (12) and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.  (13) And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Matthew 6:9-14 (ESV)

     The Lord’s Prayer is found in the Bible at the 6^th chapter, starting at verse 9, after the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray.  Some scholars refer to this prayer as the model prayer and not the Lord’s Prayer because it teaches the elements of prayer and is not considered by them to be a prayer of our Lord. They consider it to be instruction on how to pray.

       Let’s start by looking at verse 9 of Matthew 6. Pray like this:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.  Jesus’ first lesson in prayer is simple, call out to God, “Our Father in heaven.”  Some believe that God is universal. This is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that God is triune:  Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In prayer it is important to call out to the living God, because the others won’t hear because they do not exist.  In these first few words, God is called upon and the word, “Father” reveals the personal nature of the relationship God has with those who call upon his name. We are his children and He is our Father.  Father is a word of comfort that assures us that God cares about us, listens to our prayers, and gets personally involved with our lives.   

       Verse 9 continues, “hallowed be your name.”  Holy is your name.  Holy is your name. Holy is your name.  An incredible contrast from the intimate beginning of the verse, “Father in heaven,” to the worship filled phrase, “hallowed be your name.”  Although we are to strive for a personal relationship with God, He demands that we grant Him the reverence due Him and acknowledge Him as creator and Lord of all.

      Verse 9 instructs us to acknowledge  God and state our relationship with Him. It identifies God, as the God of heaven; it speaks to His personal relationship with the believer, and identifies his total authority over all things. You can use your own words to address God, the point that Jesus was making to the disciples was to address their prayer to the only true God, to have comfort in His desire to have a personal relationship with each of us while acknowledging Him as creator and ruler over all things created.

      I encourage you to meditate on verse 10 because getting to know God, to whom you are praying, will help you understand the remaining verses of the Lord’s Prayer which will be covered in our next lessons.  Your thoughts and comments are welcome at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .