What's The Big Deal About The KJV? (part two)

There are so many different versions of the Bible out there. What one is God's Word? The King James isn't copyrighted, however, the new versions are- to have a copyright on a book it must be 75% different from anything else. If all the new versions are 75% different from the KJV and each other, how could they all possibly be the same? And wouldn't that get confusing? Is there a verse in the Bible that talks about confusion?

Healthy Minute- Ear Candles

The first time I heard of ear candles it made me think of a birthday cake on my head. Well, it's not too far off! Ear candles are long hollow tubes that are usually made of muslin and either paraffin wax or beeswax.

These lovely tubes are inserted into the ear on one side and the other side is lit like a candle. As the top burns down, smoke funnels down the tube and into the ear canal. The warmth of the smoke melts ear wax and sucks it up into the funnel of the ear candle. Once the smoke starts to come out the top of the ear candle, past the flame, you blow out the flame and cut off the burnt part into a cup off water. Then you thump the sides of the ear candle so the stuff inside comes out.

I usually blow it out and cut the top off and thump it out about 3 times for each ear candle. I prefer the beeswax ear candles because they pull the wax out better- in my opinion.

It sounds pretty scary, but if you do it right there's nothing to fear. While the flame is going you hear crackling and snapping in your ear. You will feel a warmth in your ear and sometimes a tickling or itching. For further protection, you can buy an aluminum pie pan and cut a hole in the center for the ear candle to slip thru. Now, as the candle burns, if anything falls off it will be caught in the pie pan.

The below video is a demonstration of how to use an ear candle.

Ear candles can help out with ear infections, swimmers ear, and wax build up. There are people out there who say that ear candles don't work, but I'll leave that up to you to find out for yourself!

Why Christians Get Sick (book review)

This is a wonderful book, and a real eye opener for me. It was not what I expected. It is a very small book- I read through it in one night, and I'm not much of a reader. It has tons of scripture and it's very well written. It also includes a lot of information on nutrition.
Why do Christians get sick? Why do they fall ill when they seem to be doing the Lord's will and many are getting saved? Why doesn't God heal them when people pray fervently for their healing?
Rev. George Makmus had similar questions on his mind when, at age 42, he was diagnosed with colon cancer. "How could this be?" he asked the Lord. "How can a Christian get cancer?" And this began the journey that led to this book being written.
Many times we blame God for things that He has nothing to do with. Example: My marriage is failing and I keep praying that God fixes it, but nothing! Did you follow God's will about whom you married? Example: I am so sick and yet I've prayed for God to heal me and he hasn't! Are you sick because God wants you to learn something, or are you sick because you didn't take care of your body?
Not everything that goes wrong in our lives are because of God. Many times they are the consequences to our own actions. If our health is failing because we aren't taking care of our bodies or eating properly, we can't expect God to work a miracle so we can go on destroying our body thru poor nutrition and/or hygiene.

Savoury Shepherd's Pie recipe

2 lbs ground beef
1 chopped onion
4 cloves minced garlic
2 TBS Dale's Seasoning
1 cup beef bone broth
2 TBS worchestershire sauce
2 TBS Bragg's liquid amino's
Brown Gravy Mix
1 lb sliced carrots
2 lbs diced potatoes
chicken bone stock
1/2 stick butter
half-n-half
Shredded cheese of your choice

Cook round beef with onion and garlic.
Add Dale's, beef stock, wochestershire sauce, amino's and gravy mix.
Put into the bottom of a baking dish and sprinkle with shredded cheese.
In a separate pot, cook the carrots until tender.
Drain the water and put them on top of the meat in the baking dish.
Sprinkle with cheese.
Preheat the oven to 350*.
Cook the potatoes in chicken stock until tender.
Drain and add butter and half-n-half and make into mashed potatoes.
Spread mashed potatoes over carrots, and sprinkle with cheese.
Bake at 350* for 10 minutes.

NOTE: You can salt this along the way to your taste.

What Do I Do Now? (video sermon)

What is God's will for my life? Many times Christians get messed up by trying to figure out what God's will is. God makes his will very clear when you get your nose in the Bible. He tells you certain things that are His will in the Bible. But, what about the ones that God hasn't written in His Word? Who do I marry? How do I serve God? Where does God want me to go? Evangelist Brian DelGrande will hopefully help you to understand the will of God that isn't so clear sometimes.

Warfare (prose)

She is empty , and void, and waste;

She hath no strong rod to be a sceptre.

Then I saw that she was defiled,

For her blood is in the midst of her.

She hath rebelled against the Lord, her God,

She obeyed not his voice;

She received not correction;

She trusted not in the Lord;

Shame shall cover her that is mine enemy.

He stretcheth out his hand with scorners.

Strangers have devoured his strength,

And he knoweth it not. He daily increaseth lies.

He is a merchant, the balances of deceipt

Are in his hands: He loveth to oppress.

He shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.

He uttereth his mischievious desire.

He is a proud man, who enlargeth his desire as hell.

Woe to him! He will come as an eagle against the house of the Lord.

Keep the munition, watch the way,

Make thy loins strong, fortify thy power mightly.

I will stand upon my watch,

And we will watch to see what he will say.

For the vision is yet for an appointed time,

But at the end it shall speak, and not lie;

Who is wise and he shall understand these things?

The Lord shall go forth and fight!

God is jealous, and the Lord revengeth;

He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry.

The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt.

Who can stand before his indignation?

He that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself;

And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away.

Seek the Lord, and ye shall live.

And he will teach us of his ways, and

We will walk in his paths.

-JCT

Funny Happenings- Answers From My Kids

This is the age my children were when I asked them these questions. I was a stay-at-home mom with a homebased business where I sold dog food and facial masks. At the time I was 29 years old.
LeeAnn- 11
Katie-8
Christian-6

1. What is something mom always says to you?
LeeAnn- Patience is a virtue.
Katie-Haste makes waste.
Christian- Do that nice and neat.

2. What makes mom happy?
LeeAnn- Chocolate
Katie- Coffee
Christian- Vinegar water

3. What makes mom sad?
LeeAnn- Daddy not paying attention to your hard work.
Katie-When we don't do our school work.
Christian- Us doing bad.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
LeeAnn- When Is say "grapefruit".
Katie- Saying and doing funny stuff.
Christian- tickling us.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
LeeAnn- I don't know.
Katie- I love chocolate!
Christian- She cleaned.

6. How old is your mom?
LeeAnn- 30 or 31
Katie- 30
Christian- 10

7. How tall is your mom?
LeeAnn- 6' 4"
Katie- I don't know.
Christian- big

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
LeeAnn- Tease Uncle Jon and Daddy.
Katie- Eat Chocolate and drink coffee.
Christian- Feed the dogs.

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
LeeAnn- Eats as much hot tamales and chocolate as she can.
Katie- Watches her TV shows
Christian- Tries to find me.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
LeeAnn- Singing.
Katie- selling dog food.
Christian- Kick me out of the house.

11. What is your mom really good at?
LeeAnn- Taking care of us.
Katie- Riding her bike.
Christian- Singing.

12. What is your mom not very good at?
LeeAnn- I don't know anything you're not good at.
Katie- climbing trees
Christian- cleaning

13. What does your mom do for her job?
LeeAnn- Taking care of us.
Katie- Sells Clay.
Christian- Sells dog food.

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
LeeAnn- Italian.
Katie- Chocolate and coffee.
Christian- Spicy.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
LeeAnn- She's a good cook.
Katie- She takes us on bike rides.
Christian- She lets us swim.

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
LeeAnn- Belle, Disney Princess
Katie- Piglet, From Winnie the Pooh
Christian- Asoka (Anakin's padawan), From Star Wars Clone Wars

17. What do you and your mom do together?
LeeAnn- Cook, when we can
Katie- Clean up
Christian- clean up

18. How are you and your mom the same?
LeeAnn- We look so much alike.
Katie- Because I like chocolate and coffee.
Christian- We have the same eyes.

19. How are you and your mom different?
LeeAnn- You're older.
Katie- I have short hair.
Christian- I'm a boy.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
LeeAnn- You haven't put us in an orphanage yet.
Katie- You kiss us.
Christian- Because she loves me and I love her.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
LeeAnn- That he loves you for you.
Katie- That he goes to church.
Christian- That he loves you.

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
LeeAnn- Italian restaurants
Katie- The store
Christian- To Grandma's house

23: What would your mom be if she wasn't a mom?
LeeAnn- Very angry and sad.
Katie- An Italian Food Restaurant person
Christian-Pizza Delivery or Pizza maker

The 4th Of July

The fourth of July is something that every American enjoys! It starts with friends and family possible getting together and grilling or playing games and ends with fireworks! 

Every child in America learns that the Declaration of Independence, which was drafted by Thomas Jefferson, was adopted by the American delegates of the Continental Congress after the Revolutionary War on July 4, 1776. This day became known as Independence Day for all Americans.

But what does Christianity have to do with this holiday?

George Washington wrote a prayer that ended  "Let me live according to those holy rules which thou hast this day prescribed in Thy Holy Word. Direct me to the true object, Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life. Bless O Lord all the people of this land."
Our freedom comes from the desire of Christian men who yearned to have a country where they could freely serve the Lord Jesus Christ. Every original documentation of our freedom was based on biblical principles.  "Religion is the basis and foundation of government. We have staked the whole future of American civilization not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God." -James Madison

The American children started going to school not only to learn the three "R's" (Reading, Writing, and aRithmetic), but also to learn the godly principles which our forefathers gave their lives to ensure we, their lineage, could live under.

On Page One of the New England Primer was the following poem A Divine Song of Praise to God, for a Child by the Rev. Dr. Watts:

How glorious is our heav'nly King
Who reigns above the sky!
How shall a child presume to sing
His dreaded Majesty?

How great His power is, none can tell,
Nor think how large His grace,
Nor men below, nor saints that dwell
On high before His face,

Nor angels that stand round the Lord,
Can search His secret will;
But they perform His heav'nly Word
And sing His praises still.

Then let me join his holy train,
And my first off'rings bring,
Th' Eternal God will not disdain
To hear an infant sing.

My heart resolves, my tongue obeys,
And angels shall rejoice,
To hear their Mighty Maker's praise
Sound from a feeble voice.

America has become a great nation because of the men who not only lived by the principles of the Ten Commandments and The Golden Rule, but they were also willing to lay down their lives to ensure others had the chance to live by them, also.

So, in fact, the fourth of July is a Christian holiday. We should remember what people gave up so that we could have what we do today. We should remind our children that freedom isn't truly free, and that the men and women who gave their lives were also patriots who read the Bible, prayed, and believed in helping their neighbors all the while relying on God to give them the strength of character and wisdom to accomplish all this!

Scars And Stripes (song)

Freedom is never free- Truer words were never spoken!

Believer's Heritage- William Tyndale

William Tyndale was born in 1494 in England. He went to Oxford at the age of 11 and spent 10 years getting his Master's Degree. He was very gifted at learning languages and spoke 8 fluently by the time he was 21-  Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Spanish, French, Italian, English, and German. In fact, it was said that whichever language he spoke in, he spoke so well that you would think it was his native tongue.

William became the tutor at the house of John Walsh. It was during this time that he started to preach reformation. A clergyman once told William, “We are better to be without God’s laws than the Pope’s”. To which William replied,  “I defy the Pope and all his laws. If God spare my life ere many years, I will cause the boy that drives the plow to know more of the scriptures than you!”

This is the beginning of William's translation of the Bible to English. He left for Germany in 1524 where printing of the English translation of the New Testament took place in 1525.

He was under the impression that it was safe to return to England and he did so in 1534. He was not only a Bible translator, but also an evangelist. He wanted as many of the common people, or laity, to understand the Scriptures for themselves as he could possibly teach.

He was betrayed by a friend and sent to prison for over a year. He was tried and convicted for heresy and treason. His last words were  "Lord, open the king of England's eyes." He was strangled and burned at the stake in 1536.

His last prayer was answered in 1539 with the publication of The Great Bible in the English language by King Henry VIII, and by regal authority was placed in every parish of the Church of England.

Here is a passage from the Tyndale Bible, the Geneva Bible, and the King James Bible.

 

 

 

The Tyndale Bible was instrumental in the translation of the King James Version and many of Tyndale's translations were used such as "Let there be light" and "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" and "with God all things are possible". Some have even surmised that the King James Bible is in fact the finished product of what William Tyndale started almost 100 years before!

 

Too Late

How many times have I heard a child ask a parent, "Can I..." only to hear the parent respond, "Sorry, but it's too late!" I really can't count it. The kid wants something that he could have had if only he had obeyed and done a certain something that was asked of him.

God is the best parent! We, as Christians, often disobey Him and I can see him shaking his head because He had something amazing planned for us and we just messed it up by taking our way instead of waiting for His will!

Luke 12:16-20- And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

Time is not something we all have a lot of, nor is it something that we can measure. There are very few people who know how long they have to live.

Since, we don't know the length of our days, we should be afraid of "too late". I hear people say over and over again, "I'll do it later." We aren't promised later! I want to point out where we can be too late.

Too Late to get saved:

Luke 16:19,20,22,23- There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

We don't know how old this rich man was, nor do we know how long Lazarus was at his gate. What we do know is that he wasted him time and his chance to secure his eternity. He may have thought that he had more time. It's possible that, on many occassions, he planned to help Lazarus out.

The Bible never tells us. It only shows us that he waited too long; he was too late.

Too Late to get right:

Acts 5:1-5- But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. 

This man was pretending to be Spiritual. He was lying to Peter, and he was hiding what was really in his heart- pride. He wanted others to think that he was a great, holy man. We don't know anything about his life before this. Was he always like this or was this the first time? The Bible doesn't tell us.

However his life was like before, it was too late for him this time. He couldn't repent. He couldn't get right with God. His time was up. He was too late.

Too Late to serve Christ:

II Timothy 4:21- Do thy diligence to come before winter. Eubulus greeteth thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brethren.

Paul was asking Timothy to come before winter. Paul was on a time schedule. He was going to have his death sentence from the Romans come upon him soon. He really needed Timothy to visit him before it was too late!

The Bible never does tell us if Timothy made it. Once Christ closes the door, there's nothing you can do to open it. You've missed the opportunity and now you're stuck!

I sometimes think about Nebuchadnezzar and how God humbled him because he didn't give God the glory. God made him a beast for 7 years (Daniel 4:31-33). Then I think of Herod and how God killed him because he didn't give God the glory (Acts 12:21-23). What was the difference between these two men? They were both rulers. They were both Gentiles. Why did God kill one and only punish the other? I believe God knew that Nebuchadnezzar would repent and give God the glory (Daniel 4:34-37). I also believe that God knew Herod would not repent nor give God the glory; for Herod, it was too late!

Luke 13:6-9- He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?  And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.  

If you need to get saved, do it now. If you need to get right, do it today. If you need to start serving Christ, start immediately. You never know how long you have. Don't wait until it's too late!