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Showing posts from May, 2013

God's Rainbow

The falling rain dissolves into mist  And the thunder begins to die As the sporadic lightning fades An arch of color pours from the sky. Rainbows appear after mighty storms When things look their worst Just when the sky is darkest gray, Out of Heaven does a rainbow burst. God first sent the rainbow to Noah As a sign that His word is true The rainbow's eternal message  Still speaks to me and you. The rainbow is a sign of God's promise That He will guide us through any storm That He will ease all our troubles, No matter what their form. When you feel battered by life's storms And you are filled with doubt and dismay Just remember God's rainbow is coming, For it's blessing you have only to pray. --- Author Unknown

A Mother's Priorities - Being Your Husband's Bride

We've got to remember that before we were mothers, we were brides. It can be so easy to forget. Not that we can extend the natural novelty of being newlyweds. But I think that being a bride is representative of the miraculous and holy union of a man and woman under God.  What is a bride but a woman who has decided to devote herself to one man? So much so, that she abandons her former name to possess his name. It signifies her new identity and devotion to him alone. But after children come along, oftentimes the bride disappears and the mother sort of takes over. Motherhood is a beautiful and wonderful thing. But if we focus on being a mother and forget that we are first and foremost a helpmeet, problems develop. There are a lot of moms out there who are now on their own because they forgot they were first a bride. Naturally, children will take every waking hour we give them and their needs are legitimate and constant. But a wise mother will be able to distinguish between needs

Dinner Tonight - Zuppa Toscano Soup!

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With all the rain and thunderstorms we've been having this week, some hot comfort food sounded really good. So I made Zuppa Toscano soup for dinner tonight.   This is a creamy, flavorful soup that the Olive Garden restaurant made famous, and it's a family favorite.  The best part is that it's so easy to make. You only need a few simple ingredients - sausage, bacon, kale, onion, olive oil, half and half, red potatoes and chicken broth (I didn't have any broth on hand so I used "Better than Bouillon" and water) First c ut open the sausage   brown it in a little olive oil Chop the bacon (I used precooked) and add it to the pot Chop the onion and add it to the pot Add the broth and s alt and pepper to taste Wash and chop the kale (removing the tough stems first) Add the kale (a super food!) Stir it in Add the half and half Bring to a boil then reduce the heat.    Cover and s

Churchianity Part 2

I'm sure there are other definitions for church-ianity out there, but to me it's when people are consumed with the process of church - appearances, performances, routines, rituals, and structures - far more than they are about God's truth, loving God and loving people. So many pastors, bishops, deacons and elders in churchianity seem to forget that they are actually accountable to the people they are teaching.  They seek and enjoy the "limelight" of being out in front teaching others, but often ignore that such a privilege comes with the extremely sobering reality of accountability.   This pastor and his family are very gracious and open about their personal lives.  They are a lovely family and their sweet children have captured my heart completely. But I can't help but feel that our friendship with them is contingent upon our becoming members of their church. Which is so sad. My husband invited just the pastor over for dinner and discussion a few mon

A Mother's Priorities - Table Manners and Meals

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My biggest priority as a wife and mother is a happy household. That breaks down into a lot of little things. So in this post I'm going to focus on table manners and meals because meals make up such a large portion of each day. (At least they should. If you aren't making mealtime a family event you are missing a great blessing as well as teaching opportunities.) Many of life's battles can be fought and won at the family meal table.  Food and nourishment  Food is all tied up together with security, acceptance, provision and unconditional love to a child. So mealtime should be used as a wonderful opportunity to commune and love on your family. To begin with, meals should be a pleasant experience and God has given wives and mothers the job of encouraging pleasantness at the table. Smiling is easy. You don't smile because everything went well that day or because life is a bowl of cherries. You smile because God is on the throne and has given you another day to live. 

Churchianity ~ Part 1

My husband and I have been on a journey of faith since the day that we got married 18 years ago. When my husband and I met, we had both been newly saved (born again) and we were hungry babes in Christ.  As we grew in our faith, we searched for a church. We longed for fellowship in a body of believers who truly believed the Bible. Although we eventually settled on a foursquare church and got involved in it for about 7 years, we found several inconsistencies in the doctrine taught there. A few years later we moved to the east coast.  After searching for a church there and finding the results disheartening to say the least, we decided to have church at home with just our family. We sang songs and listened to preaching cd's by Michael Pearl which we thoroughly enjoyed. We were always inspired to study on our own after listening to them. A few years after that, we relocated westward and have searched where we are now, too. We found a small church here a year ago that taught from the

Parents These Days

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It's become very common to see families with small children (and even not so small) who are demanding, unthankful, whiny, disobedient and stubborn.  The parents often look worn out, haggard and act as though this is normal.  That all babies are a handful. Oh and toddlers, too. And gradeschoolers. And highschoolers.  Does anyone see that parents these days are bemoaning EVERY stage of childhood? Societal lies have convinced this generation of parents that it's normal for kids to be a big drain on your emotions, your wallet, your time and your life. It's normal for them to whine. It's typical for them to refuse to do what you say or want. It's average that they are picky eaters. And don't all little kids need 658 toys in bright primary colors to amuse themselves with?  The word "amuse" is an interesting study. A - MUSE = NO THINKING.  When one is amused (entertained) there is no original thought patterns happening. It's all incoming - someone e