Christmas And The Cross (poem)

Christmas to me is full of great worth,
For Mary, you see, had just given birth.
To Jesus, the Son, the One, the True,
The One who had come to save me and you.
He came to the earth to be born as a man
For people and God the distance he spanned.
He left His good home, but not just for us;
There's people who'll murder, and rob things, and cuss.
But still He went and died on the cross
So that all our souls wouldn't be lost.

-Iris Fredrick
Age 12

Healthy Minute- Vitamin B12

Ah, B12! It's the sound of steak on the grill. Well, it is to me anyways. Vitamin B 12 can also be found in calf's liver, beans, fish, leafy greens, brewer's yeast, and eggs- but who doesn't like a big, juicy steak?

B12 is a water soluble vitamin that helps our brains, nervous system, and adrenal function, to name a few. When we are deficient in this vitamin it can lead to memory loss and confusion as well as fatigue from anemia. Those in stressful situations will find that their B12 is depleted faster.

A study was done on certain individuals in high stress job situations. A large dose of Vitamin B12 was administered to the individuals for 90 days. The results- significantly lower personal strain and a reduction in confusion and depression.

Vitamin B12 can be bought as a sublingual liquid (under the tongue absorption) or in a nasal gel form. You can find it in tablets, and even get it injected by your doctor- ouch!

Certain medications, such as acid reflux or ulcer meds and metformin, can interfere with our body's ability to absorb B12.

For some good information on B12, watch the video below. And, please, enjoy the British accent!

Funny Happenings- It's Not Real

Moving to Louisiana was a culture shock for me. Things are done very differently here in Cajun country. The food is amazing! The weather is tempermental- and it rarely ever snows! When people decorate for Christmas, it's not unusual to see a pirogue (a flat boat) with Santa Clause sitting in it being pulled by alligators.
When my niece was little, she was very adamant about certain things. They way she viewed the world was the way things were in her mind. South East Louisiana sure did play a role in how the world looked.
One day when she was around 3 or 4, she was playing with a friend and she felt the need to enlighten the little girl. "Santa Clause is not real!" she told her. The little girl looked at her in shock! I could only imagine what was going through this little girl's mind. My niece continued, "Santa Clause isn't real. And neither is snow!"

Believer's Heritage- August Lindstedt

August Lindstedt was born in 1887 in Sweden and was the oldest of 6 children. His father was a steel mill caster who died of "black lung" when August was 12 years old. August got a job at a steel cable factory to help his family out.

It wasn't recorded when August accepted the Lord as his personal savior. But, as a young man he felt the calling to preach Christ to the Russian people.

August enrolled in Orebro Missionskola to train for the ministry. At the age of 20, he graduated from the Baptist Bible School. By this time, his brothers and sisters were old enough to help out his family.

So, August took a job at a steel cable factory in Rosiiju in the Ural Mountains from 1915 to 1917. Here he learned to speak Russian and about the Russian culture while preaching to the workers there. When the communist revolution came in 1917, he fled to St. Petersburg, and then back to Sweden.

He took a job as a pastor, but kept his burden for the Russian people in his heart. It was here that August met Eric Waldmar Olson in 1921. Together they planned to build a Bible school in Siberia and teach Russians the English language (all ministerial books were written in English at this time). 

They moved to Vladivostok to help the Christians who were already there. It was during this time that August met Margaret Bergskold. She was a musician and a teacher from America. Their engagement came as a shock to her mother because he was 35 and she was 22. They married in Vladivostok in 1923 against her mother's wishes.

They remained in Vladivostok for a few years trying to help the 30 to 40 believers who were struggling to keep their church going. Things were going well and they started printing religious materials, and working on an orphanage. All their work ceased in 1922 with the entering of the Bolshevics. August was arrested in 1924, but released because they thought a "harmless Swedish preacher" wasn't going to be much trouble.

The Lindstedt's moved to Manchuria, but Olson had to return to America. The church had to move around along the Trans-Siberian railroad to keep safe from the Russian civil soldiers. When the people move, August, Margaret, and their family went with them, sharing their money of $50 per month with those in need.

After a brief stay in America, they came back to Russia. By 1931 his church had more than 500 regular members, with 5 "daughter" churches. People came and went through his church, moving on to other parts of the world.

In 1933, August helped Pastor Petrov organize a Chinese orphanage for war children with no sponsors.

The Lindstedt family moved to Shanghai in 1940. They tried to keep contact with the church in Manchuria, but when Japanese gained control of Shanghai during World War II their ministry was confined to the city. Here, his congregation of Russian Baptists numbered 387 to 725 church members with 395 Sunday School students. 

The Lindstedt family was able to stay together during the Japanese occupation because the Swedish ambassador gave Margaret, an American, a Swedish passport. When the Japanese came to take her to a concentration camp, she showed them the passport and they left her alone.

Times were tough here. Chinese money was considered worthless, and there was a bad famine in the area, but they were happy to be together.

When the war ended, August and Margaret moved to Tsingtao, China, where many Russian refugees had settled. But lack of proper diet and medical care took a toll on August's health. and his family returned to America in 1947. He died in 1950 at the age of 63. 

His three youngest sons stayed in America. His oldest son, Lars, became a missionary to the Philippines for 36 years and planted 4 churches on two of the islands.

Many of the Russian converts spread throughout the free world- Australia, South America, Canada, the United States, and New Zeland- taking the gospel with them and furthering the work that August started so long ago.

Who Is He In Yonder Stall (song)

Cappuccino Mousse recipe

1 cup milk

3/4 cup cold strong coffee

1 small box chocolate instant pudding mix

2 TBS sugar

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

Beat milk, coffee,pudding mix, and sugar in a large bowl until thick. In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream and 1/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer until stiff. Fold both mixtures together and keep in the fridge until set. Keep refrigerated.

Land Of Erde (book review)

A book review by Christopher Trosclair.

  Land of Erde is a three part series, consisting of book one: Ekleipsis, book two: Daegsteorra, and  book three: Andeis. The theme through the story is not so much the characters and the conflicts they go through as individuals, as much as it is the looming struggle between the fundamentals of good and evil. The Darkness is an ever present threat, that grows as the story of Ekleipsis progresses, until it succeeds and takes captive the peaceful land of Erde.
  Daegsteorra follows the relentless resistance as it struggles to survive the crushing reign of the Darkness.
  Andeis brings the saga to a satisfying conclusion as the good and righteous King Salvare returns to Erde to destroy the Darkness and make all things right.

This book is for those who enjoy an exciting read that has a deeper meaning. It is full of Biblical typology and truths that endure throughout all generations.

  This absorbing series can be purchased on Amazon, and is available in EBook form.

7 Sins Of Santa Clause (video sermon)

Bro. Richard Miller brings a message on the 7  sins of  Santa Clause.  I know this may come as a shock to some people, but telling your children about Santa and letting them believe in this mythical person is actually not a good thing. It's not an innocent game we play with our children.
We have always told our children that daddy is the one who gets them their presents. It's because we love them and because God gave us the ability to give them presents this year. It's not because they deserve it. It's not because they earned it. It's a free gift that we give to them without expecting recompense because we love them. When they view Christmas in this fashion, they are better able to comprehend Salvation.

The True Christmas (poem)

So stick up ivy and the bays,
And then restore the heathen ways.
Green will remind you of the spring,
Though this great day denies the thing.
And mortifies the earth and all
But your wild revels, and loose hall.
Could you wear flowers, and roses strow
Blushing upon your breasts’ warm snow,
That very dress your lightness will
Rebuke, and wither at the ill.
The brightness of this day we owe
Not unto music, masque, nor show:
Nor gallant furniture, nor plate;
But to the manger’s mean estate.
His life while here, as well as birth,
Was but a check to pomp and mirth;
And all man’s greatness you may see
Condemned by His humility.
Then leave your open house and noise,
To welcome Him with holy joys,
And the poor shepherd’s watchfulness:
Whom light and hymns from heaven did bless.
What you abound with, cast abroad
To those that want, and ease your load.
Who empties thus, will bring more in;
But riot is both loss and sin.
Dress finely what comes not in sight,
And then you keep your Christmas right.

-Henry Vaughan (1678)

The Merciful Samaritan

Mercy is compassion, pity, sympathy, loving consideration, and help. Mercy  refrains from harming or punishing an offender. it is kindness beyond what fairness expects.

A merciful person will meet the needs of a neighbor. A merciful person feels for the suffering of others and delights in relieving them. Matthew 5:7- Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Christ exemplified mercy as he dealt with people in his ministry on earth. We need to remember the love, forgiveness, and mercy which God shows to us. Psalm 86:5- For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. And Titus 3:5- Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of  regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

A lawyer wanted to make himself look good or perhaps even feel better, so he asked Jesus, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?"

But Jesus knew what he was up to. Jesus wanted to teach him that he was a sinner. "What is written in the Law?" Jesus asked.

The lawyer answered, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself."

Now remember, he was a lawyer. Lawyers are known for being ruthless. Christ reponded, "This do and live."

He must have had someone in mind. He was probably nice to those who lived around him. So he asked, "Who is my neighbor?" The Bible says he was trying to justify himself. He knew he hadn't done this.

So Christ told the story of the Good Samaritan.

As you know, a Jewish man was on a journey and got robbed and beaten up and left for dead. A priest and a Levite walked by and didn't even come near to help him. As the man laid there in pain and despair, he heard someone else coming. He peeked out his eyes and saw a Samaritan. "I am forever doomed," he thought, "for no enemy would help me. He will probably finish me off."

But the Samaritan stopped and looked at the man, and his heart filled with compassion and pity. He treated the man's cuts and bruises and then bandaged them. He took the man to an inn and took care of him all that night. As the wounded man fell asleep, he wondered what would become of him.

The next day, he awoke to the inn keeper. "How will I explain this debt for which I cannot pay?" But the inn keeper made no mention of the debt. He just continued to care for the man.

When he was strong enough to leave, he asked the inn keeper of his debt. But the inn keeper replied, "The Samaritan asked me to care for you, and he said he would pay me when he came thru next."

Who showed mercy? By helping bandage the wounds, the man showed kindness. By helping the man to the inn, he showed graciousness. Most Christians would think that was enough. But this man had been robbed, he had no money. He showed mercy when he stepped beyond his human emotions. He helped this man's future, also.

1 John 3:17- But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
Mercy results from a love of God infused into our lives. One who shows mercy to others, receives mercy in return. When you are merciful to others, God will show you his mercy thru his grace and thru other Christians.