Matt 28:18-20 "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey
everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very
end of the age." NIV
Once in Northern Newfoundland, we were amazed to find a variety of jams made out
of fruits we had never heard of before!—Squashberry, bakeapple, partridgeberry,
to name a few. They were available everywhere. In souvenir stores, grocery
stores, camp stores—literally everywhere. And most of them carried a label
sporting the name: Dark Tickle.
Dark Tickle??? What kind of a name was that???
We learned that in Newfoundland, where they use a different English word than we
would for almost everything, “tickle” had nothing to do with gently passing a
feather under your nose! Instead, it is a shallow water inlet into a bay.
Because of the shallowness, the bottom of a boat might be “tickled” on the rocks
or sand of the inlet floor.
Okay, so that explained the work “Tickle” of the name. But why “Dark Tickle”?
And why put the name of a shallow water inlet on a jar of jam???
It wasn’t until we found the place where the Dark Tickle jams were manufactured
that the mystery was solved. The store had apparently been originally located on
a Newfoundland “Tickle”, known as the “Dark Tickle” because of its lack of
natural sunlight.
We thought that this unusual product was only to be found in the Northern part
of Newfoundland, and so we bought a few small jars of different kinds. However
our assessment was far from correct. We found the product in Labrador, in
Bonavista, and even as far east as St. Johns. It soon became apparent that the
Dark Tickle jams were well known throughout ALL of Newfoundland! A local unusual
product had become a provincial celebrity.
How?
Because tourists like ourselves who had been to this region and had discovered
these unusual jams had spread the word to family and friends throughout the
province! As word spread, the product became in demand, and soon it had a market
all over Newfoundland. And as a result, tourists from all over the world are now
discovering it as well!
Words. How powerful they can be! How eager we are to share with others unknown
delicacies. With our words we can make unknown delicacy renown all over the
world.
“Have you ever tasted partridgeberry jam?”
“I never heard of it. What is that?”
“Here, taste it.”
“Wow! Out of the world!”
Why is it that we are so eager to share such delicacies with others, but not so
eager to share the greatest Good News of all times? Why don’t we just as eagerly
tell people that eternal life is theirs if they accept Jesus’ offer of
Salvation? Why don’t we go out of our way to say: “Have you ever heard of the
Gospel of Jesus?”
“No. I never heard of it. What is it?”
“Here, come experience Jesus into your life. You won’t regret it.”
“Wow. Out of this world!”
What about you, friend? What news are you talking about? Unknown jams? New
products…? What about the greatest news of all?
“Would you like to taste some bakeapple jam?”
“Absolutely, if you let me share with you the greatest news of all.”
“What news?”
“Well…”
Is Jesus as exciting to you as unknown jams?
In His love,
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
messages. HTML and plain text versions available.
The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.