What Kind Of Heart Do You Have For God? (video sermon)

Believer's Heritage- John Geddie

Hideous shrieks and unearthly wails shattered the stillness of the night.

"Do you hear those horrible cries?" asked the missionary's wife.

"Yes," her husband replied. "Someone has died and, after the custom of this dark island, a relative is being strangled."

Shortly after dawn, on a beach nearby, they saw a group of natives casting into the sea the body of the man who had died a few hours earlier and also the body of his wife who had been strangled. Hastening to the shore, the missionary spoke pointedly to the natives about the wickedness of their conduct. Some of them, having for sometime been under Christian instruction, joined in the condemnation, and then set about to locate the actual murderer. In a few minutes the party returned, dragging the culprit. Seeing the white man he cried out: "Have mercy! Let me go and I will never again strangle a woman."

After an earnest talk with the guilty man, the missionary told the natives to release him. This they were at first unwilling to do, saying that he should be tied to a post for several days while he was flogged and lectured.

"No," said the white man. "Force will not do. Only the compulsion of love will avail. Was it not the love of Christ that softened your hard hearts? Use no weapon but that which our Redeemer uses, the weapons of love. Let us constantly keep our hearts open 'unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins.'"

There we have the man and the text. The man was John Geddie, the year 1851, the place the New Hebrides [Vanuatu] and the text which wrote such a magnificent history, Revelation 1:5: "Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood." Like the Apostle John's his all-absorbing theme was the love of Christ. The stirring annals of John Geddie's life may be summed up in three episodes: the love of Christ captivated his young heart; the love of Christanimated his missionary labors; the love of Christ irradiated all his day.

When, after twenty-four years of toil, he answered his Lord's final summons and left the earthly scene, December 14, l872, a tablet, prepared in Sydney, was placed behind the pulpit of the church in Anelcauhat where the beloved missionary so long had preached. On it was the following inscription:

"In memory of John Geddie, D.D., born in Scotland, 1815, minister in Prince Edward Island seven years, Missionary sent from Nova Scotia to Aneiteum for twenty-four years. When he landed in 1848, there were no Christians here, and when he left in 1872 there were no heathen."
 

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Remember, Remember the 5th of November

The fifth of November is celebrated in Great Britain as Guy Fawkes day, or the gun powder plot. Back when King James ascended the throne there was a plot to overthrow the Protestant King. A mercenary named Guy Fawkes was going to explode barrels of gun powder, which he hid in a cellar under Parliment. God's mercy allowed the knowledge of this plan to reach the King. His guards found the barrels and Guy Fawkes on November 5th. It is because of this divine intervention that we now have the King James Bible- finished 6 years after this incident.

The British observse this night by lighting bon fires and shooting fireworks all over England to celebrate the safety of the King. The children also make little dolls of Guy Fawkes and then throw them into the bon fire; it is a little reminder to those who would entertain the idea of treason that the penalty is rather severe.

“Remember, remember
The fifth of November
The gunpowder treason and plot.
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.”

If you want to learn more about this story, you can watch the movie "The Book That Changed The World".

The Majesty (poem)

Hearken to my voice, my friend;
I'll tell you where I've been.
To visit one, a Majesty,
Who, up in Heaven lives.
Looking down through ages past,
And over many plains, a vast
Yet barren hill there lies-
All history of His kingdom gives.
A blood-stained cross, three iron nails,
An empty tomb which never fails
To bring to light the mystery
Of He who lives as Majesty.
He died for sins; He lives for saints.
What a beautiful picture this story paints!
Hearken to my voice, my friend;
My story shall never come to an end.

-JCT

Complete In Thee (song)

This is a song that tells how much Christ has done for us. We don't need to add to his sacrifice; we only need to accept it!

Brown Bag Turkey recipe

My husband likes to listen to Kidd Kraddick. One year Kidd talked about cooking a turkey in a brown shopping bag. We decided to try it with a few tweeks of our own, and here's the recipe that we like to use.

1 turkey
1 (12 oz) bag frozen seasoning blend
1 (16 oz) jar Cajun Injector Marinade
1 cup Sprite
Olive Oil

First off, you need to make sure that your turkey is fully defrosted. It makes it so much easier. Preheat your oven to 375*. Check the weight of your turkey and remove the wrapping.
Take everything out of the turkey. You can use them for broths, stocks, or even cook them along side the turkey, but they need to be removed from the plastic bag at least.
Take your seasoning blend and Cajun Injector Marinade (we like the Creole Butter Flavor, but any flavor will do) and mix them together in a blender. You want to get it as liquidy as possible because you're going to be using the syringe and injecting it into your turkey.
Once your marinade is done, add the Sprite. The carbonation in the Sprite helps to get the flavor into the meat of the turkey.
Using your injector needle and syringe, inject the marinade all over into the turkey meat. The more you get in there, the better the taste! Don't forget the legs and wings.
Rub the breast of the turkey with olive oil, and place it face down in a roasting pan. Now, rub the backside of the turkey with olive oil. Cover the roasting pan with a large paper bag- It usually takes us 2 and we have to put one over each end and then try to shove them together so they overlap.
Sprinkle the bag with water. You don't want to drench it, but get it good and spotted. Then place the whole thing in the center of your oven.
Bake at 375* for 15 minutes per pound of turkey. Now, you're glad you looked at how much it weighed!
You can check the temperature of the turkey by sliding a meat thermometer through the bag and into the turkey. It should read between 163* and 170*.
Remove the bag when finished. You can drain the drippings and make a lovely gravy with them. If you're looking to avoid gluten, rice flour works great for making a gravy!
Hope you enjoy!

Seeking God's Blessing

Many people say they want God's blessing on their life. And I'm sure they mean it, but actions speak louder than words. God has placed certain qualifiers for people to achieve so he knows who is serious and who is all talk.
Saul said he wanted God's blessing. He even told Samuel that he had obeyed the Lord, but he was all talk. Samuel answered in I Samuel 15:22- And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
So, God would rather obedience than lip service. Do you want God's blessing? Are you giving lip service or actual service?
Ananias and Saphira were another example. They wanted God's blessing and the admiration of other Christians, but not for their real works. They wanted to pretend- lip service, rather than actual service. 

II Chronicles 16:9- For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.
You can't pretend with God! He sees your heart. He knows your desires. And the scary part is that he will grant you those desires and then laugh when you face the consequences. Ezekiel 14:4- Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel
that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;
Proverbs 1:25-26- But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
Do you really want God's blessing? Are you all talk? Because God's blessing does cost. You have to give up some things. David understood this and said in II Samuel 24:24- And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings untothe LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
What is the cost? Well, it is the same for every man and yet different for every man. Every man must surrender their will to God and accept his will as their own. But each man's will differs.
Some men want possessions- like Achan in Joshua 7.
Some men want a profession- like Balaam in Deuteronomy 22.
And some men choose a person- like Adam in Genesis 3.
Each of these stories ends in tragedy; not only for these men, but for those around them. Why? Because each man decided that his own desires were more important than following God's will.
Do you still want the blessing? Have you considered the cost? I will tell you that it will hurt now, but the blessings are worth it!
If you still want them you must surrender to God's will. Read your Bible daily. Pray for more than just your dinner. Take time to witness. Go to church regularly. Include the ones you love. Shouldn't they get God's blessing, too?
And lastly, you need to weed out hinderances. They may not be sins, or even bad, but they keep you from running the race. How can you get God's blessing if you aren't striving for it?
Paul said in I Corinthians 9:24- Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So, run that ye may obtain.
Are you running? Are you serving? Do you want the blessing? Or are you all talk?