Funny Happenings- Mischievous Boys

Two little boys, ages 8 and 10, are excessively mischievous.  They are always getting into trouble and their parents know all about it.  If any mischief occurs in their town, the two boys are probably involved.
The boys' mother heard that a clergyman in town had been successful in disciplining children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys.  The clergyman agreed, but he asked to see them individually.  So the mother sent the 8 year old first, in the morning, with the older boy to see the clergyman in the afternoon.

The clergyman, a huge man with a booming voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him sternly, "Do you know where God is, son?"  The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, sitting there wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open.  So the clergyman repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is God?!"  Again, the boy made no attempt to answer.  The preacher raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and bellowed, "Where is God?!"  The boy screamed and bolted from the room, ran directly home and dove into his closet, slamming the door behind him.  When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "what happened?"  The younger brother, gasping for breath, replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time dude.  GOD is missing, and they think we did it!

Double Minded (video sermon)

You can be a rock who depends on God no matter what is going on in your life. Or you can be like a boat on the waves, getting thrown around by all the different waves coming at you. What's the end of both? Living like a rock will help you to be willing to lose your life; living like the boat will make you fear everything around you and change to preserve the life you have. What does God want? What kind of man is God looking for? And what is the end of both of these kinds of life?

 

Zuppa Toscana recipe

1 lb Italian sausage
1/4 cup bacon
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups chicken stock
2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup Kale, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook sausage in a soup pot. Remove and set aside.
Cook bacon in the same pot until crunchy. Remove and place with sausage.
Add onions and garlic and sauté in bacon grease. (Sometimes I like to add a little orange and red bell pepper, diced, to give this a lovely color).
When transleucent, add potatoes and Chicken stock (I use chicken bone broth).
Cook until potatoes are tender. Add bacon and sausage back into pan and simmer for 10 minutes.
Turn heat to low and add heavy cream and kale.
Heat until warm all the thru and serve.

Options: You can omit the sausage and kale and use clams for a wonderful clam chowder!

Believer's Heritage- George Muller

George Muller was the son of a Prussian tax collector, born in 1805 in Germany. George was far from a model child. He used his money selfishly, but in a way his parents wouldn't find out. And he even stole government money that was in his father's possession.

His teen years were spend in school, playing cards, and visiting the local taverns. His mother died when he was 14, and his father gave him very little supervision. He was a very terrible teenager who drank and lived as he pleased. This even got him thrown into jail!

To look at George you never would have thought that he could amount to anything but a selfish old drunk! His life was very much the same until one day he went to a Christian meeting at a friend's house. George something very strange that day that would forever alter his course of life.

The scene of Christians on their knees praying was one that George couldn't rival with all his travels. It was something he had really never encountered. George asked Christ to be his Savior, and at the age of 20 he became a new creature. He found the desire and the strength to change.

George wanted to become a missionary to the Jews. He applied to a society in London and moved there. A German by birth, he became fluent in the English language. Because of his health, George travelled to the country and met Henry Craik, the Silas to his Paul, or so he would find out!

He married a woman 5 years older than himself and together they began a journey of not asking people for help, but solely depending on God for supplying their needs.

“After the Lord has tried our faith, he, in the love of His heart, gives us an abundance. For the glory of His name and for trial of our faith, He allows us to be poor and then graciously supplies our needs.”  

In 1832, he and Craik moved to Bristol, England, where they spent the rest of their lives in service to the Lord. Cholera broke out in their village and many people lost their lives. For some time, George had been thinking of starting an orphanage in Bristol.

His life was spent in giving many children the father they needed and the faith that would carry them through. George always relied on God to supply his needs, and thru his faithfulness he saw orphans raised, tracts and Bibles sent out, missionaries supported, and  all his godly desires met.

The end of his life was spent on worldwide evangelism. He preached in 42 different countries, and was said to read his Bible completely through over 200 times. And saw specific answers to prayer, which he estimated to be around 50,000. Over 3,000 of his 10,024 orphans came to know Christ as their Savior, and he even influenced the lives of missionaries around the world.

“Money is really worth no more than as it can be used to accomplish the Lord's work. Life is worth as much as it is spent for the Lord's service.”  

At his death in 1898, tens of thousands were said to have lined the streets of Bristol. He is remembered as a father of many who gave his life for the glory of God, and the man who built his ministry through faith and prayer.

 

 

The Great I AM Still Is (song)

Some times, we forget that the God of the Old Testament is still the same God today. The Lord that wrought wonders in Egypt, the same God that went to battle with the Israelites, and the same Creator that sent fire from heaven when called on by Elijah is the same God that we serve today.

A Father's Job (poem)

When in the garden Adam sinned,

The father's toil then did begin.

To learn the lesson to let go

Abraham's broken heart did know.

To worry of his children's wrong

Was constantly Job's morning song.

The heart-ache of the wayward one

Was felt by the father of the Prodigal Son.

To lose your child to that devil foe,

This pain did Judas' father know.

God the Father, himself has cried,

When Christ, his Son, was crucified.

A father's job knows many pains-

The soul of a child to lose or gain.

This precious soul is yours to mold,

His fragile future in your hands, you hold.

And when before God you stand in heaven,

An account will be made of the tie given.

The example of a Christian One

Will earn the blessed words, "Well Done"!

 

-JCT

Abraham

There are a lot of figures in the Bible that we like to look at and learn from. The best part about the Bible's characters is that they are real: they sin, they get confused, they get angry!

I was reading about Abraham when some things popped out to me.

Genesis 12:1-4- Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Here, Abraham is given a promise by God. But, there is something about Abraham's preson that we need to notice. Abraham is called Abram here. He is 75 years old with a different name when God promises a blessing to him, but just like all of God's dealings there were a few things that needed fixed in Abram's life.

God told Abram to leave his father's house, yet he takes Lot- his nephew. God called Abram to leave his past behind, and yet, like us, Abram tries to hold onto something in his past that he feels is precious. But God's promise wan't given to Abram thru Lot. God had other plans, and Abram had to leave Lot behind first.

Genesis 16:1-2- Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.  And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

Way back in chapter 11, Abram made a mistake and went into Egypt. He had a run in with the Pharoah, and left with riches and servants. But God didn't want Abram in Egypt, and 4 chapters later we see this caused some problems.

Sarai was the one whom God promised to bring children thru. But she was impatient, and I'm thinking Abram was, too. So, they decided to use a product of Egypt to get what their hearts desired.

Now, Egypt in the Bible is a picture of the world. When you go to the world to get your desires met, you're letting Satan give you the desires of your heart! I can't tell you how many people I know that couldn't wait for God and had to let the world fill their desires.

Hagar had a son- Ishmael. It is now about 4,500 years later and the promised seed is still be persecuted by the product of Abram filling his fleshly desires thru the world. Is it worth it to find what you want in the world? It wasn't then, and it isn't now. There's a huge cost!

In the end, Abram had to let Ishmael go. I'm sure this was really hard on Abram. He loved that boy! But, to obey God and get his blessing, we have to let go of what we love that is worldy. We cannot get the blessing of God while holding onto the world.

Genesis 17:1,4-6 - And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.  And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

So, we see that Abram had to give up his family, his home, and his desires to obtain God's blessing. But there was one other thing- time. Abram had to wait for God's time.

When God gave the promise to Abram, he was 75. When Abram was finally ready to receive the promise in God's eyes, he was 99. God had to take the time to mould Abram into Abraham. Time is what was needed to make this man into the Father of Many Nations that would teach his children to walk after God.

No where, do we see that Ishmael was taught to obey and fear God. Ishmael found his own god!

It took 15 years of God working on Abram's heart to get a man who could teach Isaac to serve God. 

Sometimes, we like to have things now. We go to our family, or the world, to get what we want when we want. The cost is much more than you want to pay! God will give you what is best for you in His time. And if you wait, you won't have the consequences to deal with that Abraham and his lineage did. If you don't wait, you may still get the blessing- but it'll take years of God getting the world out of your life, and it will hurt from now til, well, maybe eternity. And it's always possible that you'll miss out on the blessings of God because you can't let go of what's hindering God from blessing you.