Comfort Food on Sunday!

Check out Angie's Home Cooking for delicious comfort food!

Perfect for Sunday.

Spiritual Self-Help from a 20th Century Minister

Quote from D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899 - 1981)

I say that we must talk to ourselves instead of allowing "ourselves" to talk to us!  Do you realize what that means? I suggest that the main trouble in this whole matter of spiritual depression in a sense is this, that we allow our self to talk to us instead of talking to our self.  Am I just trying to be deliberately paradoxical? Far from it.  This is the very essence of wisdom in this matter. Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?  Take those thoughts that come to you in the moment you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them, but they start talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc. Somebody is talking.  Who is talking to you?  Your self is talking to you. Now this man's [David in Psalm 42:5, 11] treatment is this; instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself.  "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says: "Self, listen for a moment, I will speak to you." Do you know what I mean? If you do not, you have had but little experience.

The main art in the matter of spiritual living is to know how to handle yourself. You have to take yourself in hand, you have to address yourself, preach to yourself, question yourself. You must say to your soul: "Why art thou cast down" - what business have you to be disquieted? You must turn on yourself, upbraid yourself, condemn yourself, exhort yourself and say to yourself: "Hope thou in God" - instead of muttering in this depressed, unhappy way. And then you must go on to remind yourself of God, Who God is, and what God is and What God has done, and what God has pledged Himself to do. Then having done that, end on this great note: defy yourself, and defy other people, and defy the devil and the whole world, and say with this man: "I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance, who is also the health of my countenance and my God."

Word Picture for Grace

Not to lessen the awesome and true nature of grace, but I read this quote yesterday from the (in)courage calendar and it brought a smile to my face.

My definition of grace? I was standing lone, in puddle of mud, when God picked me up and set me in a flowery field, let me rest, and gave me a strawberry milkshake to drink.

Hodgepodge 6.5.13

1. Have you learned more from success or failure? Explain.

I've learned from both - what works and what doesn't work. Isn't it great that God gives us the capacity to learn in many different ways if we're open to doing so.  

2.  What did you call your grandparents when you were growing up? If you have children, what do they call your parents? If you have grandchildren, what do they call you?

I called them Grandpa and Grandma. My kids also call them Grandpa and Grandma. Grandbabies are not on the way yet.  I have "tried on" the name "Gigi" or "GG."  My nieces and nephews have a hard time with "Aunt Angie."  Wish I had had a nickname from the beginning.

3.  You're invited to a luau.  In keeping with that theme, what dish will you bring to share? 

We just had a luau-themed birthday party at our house! I might bring a chicken/pineapple kabob recipe we used at the party, but I would definitely bring along my swan inspired watermelon! Got a quick snap at the end of the party, but earlier the melon was full of fruit and enjoyed by all.

4. Besides Jesus, what one person's life story do you think everyone should know about?

This is a tough one. I have tried thinking up a great answer and I'm sure other participants will come up with great answers, but I can't think of one overriding person we all should know about. In the end I think we should be interested in other people's stories. It's important to remember everyone has a story to tell and if you are a follower of Christ, we all have a redemptive story to tell. I LOVE hearing about what the Lord has done in the lives of people I meet. 

5. "Don't sweat the small stuff." Agree or Disagree? Why?

Uh...I usually sweat it all. (control freak much?) I think that you should not sweat a lot of the small stuff, but in some instances if you sweat the small stuff then it won't turn into big stuff. The trick is knowing the difference. 

For example, I don't sweat the quality of chore completion in my children as they are learning, but I do sweat it later down the road if they are trying to do a half-hearted job. I want to raise responsible, thorough and see-it-to-the-end kinds of kids. Make sense?

6.  June is National Rivers Month. When were you last on a river? What's the prettiest river you've ever seen? What's a river you'd like to see? 

We usually picnic on the Potomac River down by the monuments once or twice a summer, so it's probably been a year since I've been near a river.  

I grew up blocks away from the Illinois River so I have a great respect for the power and beauty of that river.

I would love to see the Nile River. 

7.  Speaking of rivers-paddling, fishing, swimming, or bird watching safely from the shore? Which activity would you choose? Yes-you have to choose. 

Hmm, paddling is ok, fishing is ok. Swimming - blech (give me a clean pool, please.) Bird watching = nap.  Let's go with paddling.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

We live in the boonies, y'all. So imagine our surprise one morning recently when the dog started barking like crazy and we look out the window to find a HUGE turtle walking across our driveway.

He stopped dead in his tracks when Tara plopped down beside him. 

Must have never seen a big purple girl before. :) 

He was a dried up crusty looking turtle who really didn't seem to enjoy the attention.

We thought we'd rescue him so Dad got the work gloves and tried figuring out how best to pick him up.

He tried biting Mark, but just wasn't fast enough. 

Catching a ride in the wheel barrow down to the creek was a detour he was going to have to take. 

Bon Voyage, big guy!

See what others have to say over at Joyce's blog.

Happy Anniversary!

Two of my favorite people are celebrating their second wedding anniversary today, 

my daughter, Ashley and her husband, TJ.

As a parent we very often wonder what our kids will turn out like as adults. Will they love the Lord? Will they be responsible? Will they make wise choices? Will they be hard-working? Will they be fun to be around? Will we like who they marry?

TJ and Ashley are all that and more!

As they embark on their adult life and beginnings of a family we are filled with joy. They do love the Lord, take responsibility, try to make wise choices, work very hard, and are great fun to be around.  We love TJ like our own son! (sometimes more - ha!)

I'm so happy for them today, but since they live thousands of miles away, 

I'm a little sad too. We miss them very much!

If you'd like to wish them "Happy Anniversary!" head on over to her blog, Ridges and Ripples.

My outdoor-loving kids!

Yummy cookies!

Last week I baked about 550 cookies, most of them for an event at church. I did this last year and remembered that you can't bake cookies in your house for days on end and expect your family not to hover. The smell of freshly baked cookies is difficult to resist.

So I baked them a batch prior to starting my marathon on Monday.

On Thursday when I was finished with the baking for church I noticed that the family stash had one lonely cookie left in it.  The church cookies needed to survive in my house until Friday afternoon so I baked two more batches for the family - one chocolate chip and one Butterfinger.

I certainly could have just made the Chocolate Chip Cookies (they were completely gone by Saturday!), but I love my newest recipe Butterfinger cookies. They are nutty, chewy, and a little crunchy around the edges.

For me they are the perfect cookie.

So I guess I baked my family a batch and myself a batch.

Yesterday I worked a 12 hour day and I must admit I thought about the Butterfinger cookies back home  during many of those hours. I used the bait of these tasty cookies to hold me back from scarfing down the delectable treats we set out for volunteers/staff: doughnuts, muffins, brownies, cake. I maintained a healthy eating day (yay, me!) and rewarded myself with ONE Butterfinger cookie at the end of the day.

It was ever so sweet.

Interested in giving them a try? You can find the recipe on my cooking blog here.

Enjoy!

First Days

Anyone who knows me knows how much I LOVE a first day... first day of the week, first day of the month, first day of the year. I just love them!
(Sorry all you Monday-haters!)

I love fresh starts.

I often need fresh starts.

I have been looking forward to today, June 1st, for about a week now.

Our children's department hosted a very large event last night. The week and a half prior I have been working my tail off, mainly just surviving, as I know many of my co-workers have been, as well.

Today feels like a fresh start. A place to breathe again.

Over the past 5 months my husband has been traveling a lot. He's been gone up to three weeks at a time and I've had to single parent and keep up a farm on top of all my other responsibilities.

He's home now for a while.

So I have room to pursue the things I enjoy.

I am filled with anticipation for the summer months when there is a little extra time to carve out projects and adventures with my kids.

However, I know that I often get to an "end-of-summer" and feel like I wasted so much of my time. It flies by just as quickly as the other months of the year, doesn't it?!

A slow down is what I need.

As I've thought about summer I realized that although I have tasks I want to accomplish, more than anything I want to spend time with the Lord. I want to slow down enough to really soak in the Word and sit in His presence.

It's time for renewal.

I'm still plugging away on my Siesta Scripture Memory Team Verses. Is anyone out there participating with me?

My verse for June 1-15 is 2 Corinthians 5:9

Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.

I wrote out a prayer request this morning asking the Lord to help me be singularly focused on Him this summer.

I figured that's the only way to find renewal, refreshment and a fresh start.

Do you enjoy first days and/or fresh starts? What desires do you have for summer?

Peter and Jesus

In John 21 Christ appears to seven of his disciples.  These men have gone to Galilee, probably in obedience to Christ who told them that He would meet with them there.  (Matt 28:10).

They go fishing, possibly to earn some money while they wait, but they catch nothing all night.  When the morning comes, a man on the shore asks them if they have any food.  They answer, “No.”  He suggests they should cast their net on the right side of the boat where they will find some.  They give it a try and their net becomes so full, they can’t haul it into the boat. Obviously, this is a miracle.

John recognizes that only the Lord could have done this and cries, “It is the Lord!”  When Peter figures it out, he grabs his garment and jumps out of the boat. He can’t wait to see Christ!  The other guys bring the boat up and begin dragging in the net. Peter runs back to help drag in the net and when they arrive on the beach, they see Christ has a fire on which breakfast is cooking.  He invites them to bring over some of the fish they’ve caught.

This is the 3^rd time Jesus reveals himself to the disciples after His death.

Christ then begins a dialogue with Peter. He asks, “Simon, of Jonah, do you agape love me (a love of total commitment)?” Peter responds, “You know I phileo (friend love) you, Lord.” Christ instructs, “Feed my lambs.” Christ asks again in the same way and Peter answers again with the same answer. Christ asks a third time, “Simon, of Jonah, do you phileo me? (My interpretation, “Ok, Peter, do you only love me like a friend?”)

“The third time Jesus asks Peter, He uses Peter’s word for love that signified something less than total devotion, questioning even that level of love Peter thought he was safe in claiming. “ (MacArthur Study Bible)

This grieves Peter.

Peter “was reluctant to express the greater love because he had been disobedient and denied the Lord in the past. He was, perhaps, now reluctant to make a claim of supreme devotion when, in the past, his life did not support such a claim.” (MacArthur Study Bible)

How many times do we allow our past sin to get in the way of today’s obedience? We think to ourselves, “Well, I didn’t really live up to my own expectations. Christ must be as disappointed in my performance as I am.” We come back tentatively and “hope” we can muster up some kind of devotion to Him, but we sting from not following Him fully.

Christ KNEW Peter’s heart. He knew Peter was a devoted follower, but that sin had previously overcome him. He KNEW that great things would be accomplished in Peter’s life, but that Peter needed to be reminded that Christ wanted his FULL devotion. With Christ, Peter would end up doing the impossible!

Do you see the gentleness in Christ in this questioning? He’s encouraging Peter to believe that He can be restored and please the Lord with his life.  There were no lectures about past sin. They’ve been forgiven. This is about his restoration and future.

In Matt 26:35 Peter expresses his emotional love when he says, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!”  It was his natural self talking; he truly felt this way. However, agape love, true love, is a deep spiritual love that declares itself not merely by words, but by everything we do, as well.  Peter truly and deeply loved the Lord, but He would have to prove that love by “feeding the Lord’s sheep.”

Peter’s actions in building the early church prove what resided in Peter’s heart – a deep abiding love for Christ.

What kind of love do we have for Christ? Do we enthusiastically SAY we love Him and then deny Him to others? Do we say we want to follow Him and then deny His power to live a well-pleasing life? Are we willing to only go so far (friend love) or are we willing to give up everything to prove our love to Him and those around us?

It takes faith to believe that stepping out in full devotion to Christ will be worth it, but Matt 16:25b reminds us that “whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” He promises it will be an abundant life.

Side note – did you notice that the 3^rd time Christ reveals Himself, He calls Peter “son of Jonah”, a picture of the resurrected Christ. Peter had denied him 3 times, but it took Peter 3 times to realize that He was forgiven and that he was being called to share the love of Christ with the Lord’s sheep - all pointing back to our Risen Savior!

A Drunkard's Path

A Drunkard's Path, the second book in the A Someday Quilts Mystery series, was fantastic! I couldn't put it down! It got read in hours, not days.

In book # 1, The Lover's Knot, the author, Clare O'Donohue, sets up the characters. That took about half of the book, but in book # 2, the story is action-packed from the beginning to end.

This book introduces some new characters who are quite entertaining.  As you read you're not sure whether to like or dislike the new additions and you hope that in the end it will be ok. :)  The circle of quilters were too cute and I'm beginning to really enjoy their contributions to the story. The author is not adept at writing angst between characters or she just can't add romance. The romantic elements in both books are quite irritating.  She puts the main character, Nell Fitzgerald, in on-again-off-again relationships and they do not add to the story, except to get her some information to aid in solving the mystery. It would be great if Nell didn't have a love life in book # 3. Ha!

The author paints vivid scenes and I would love to visit the new coffee shop in town and see the mural on the wall. It sounds really cool. She has folks traipsing around in the cold and snow and I got a real sense of the weather. You visit an art class and you can just smell the paint in the room. Ms. O'Donohue is a talented descriptive author.

The quilt named in the title was more prevalent in the story, but you do not have to be a fan of quilting to enjoy these mysteries.

I did my best to try to weed out the red herrings and solve the mystery, but when I finished the book I had only figured out about 1/3 of the scenario. However, it was easy to look back and clearly see the trail of clues, they were so unexpected, however, that I missed them.  That's a good mystery to me!

I'm looking forward to reading books # 3 & # 4 sometime soon!

The Lover's Knot

I've read through the Elm Creek novel series and was looking for something new. A friend suggested a quilting mystery series so I thought I'd give A Someday Quilts Mystery series a try.

The first novel, The Lover's Knot, was ok. The author does not compare to Jennifer Chiaverini; she did not create endearing characters. In fact, her main character is so conflicted and all over the place, I wanted to "smack her" at times. Guess that made good angst. :)  The dog was the best character.

Clare O'Donohue, the author, took too long leading up to the murder and spent an inordinate amount of time not telling you things, I guess to build suspense, but it got irritating.  For example, someone would give someone else a dirty look and another character would say, "Wonder what that was about." We live that way, but she did it too often and I just felt like saying, "Ok, already, you're not going to tell us. Quit telling us you're not going to tell us!"

Once the murder occurred the story got moving. She gave good clues to help us see the truth and threw in some red herrings, as well. I enjoyed trying to figure it out.

Her writing style is easy to read and her chapter size is perfect. You can finish off a few chapter with ease right before bed.

I had checked out the first two books in the series from the library and I opened up the second book to see if she used the same characters from the first book.  She does. She has a great opening and I was drawn to read the first few pages immediately.  I look forward to finding out more about the main characters so I guess she told a good story in the first book. I've more than willing to give book # 2 a try.

Quilting doesn't play a dominant role in this book, as much as in Jennifer Chiaverini's, but it does add a nice touch and helps you understand this circle of friends.

I recommend A Someday Quilts Mystery series and will let you know how book # 2 turns out when I'm done.