A 'Lil of This and A 'Lil of That & A Recipe

Greetings from ice and snow covered Ohio!  We've been experiencing one of the worst snow storms since the 1950s - at least that's what the morning news folks said today.  I know we are not getting anything compared to Chicago!  Sure hope those folks were prepared and are staying safe.

It's been a while since I've written, so I thought I'd just share a few things that are going on here for us as of late.  Just a 'lil of this and a 'lil of that...

One of the biggest changes we made happened just today.  We made some changes as to the direction of education for our oldest daughter.  We'll see how it works out.  We've needed to make a change of sorts for a bit, and we hope this will be the answer.  If not, we will look at something else.

I started a Bible study a few weeks ago.  I haven't participated in a Bible study where a bunch of gals meet for a very long time.  I was sitting in service one of the weeks they announced it (the deadline to sign up was that Sunday) and I felt the weight of the Holy Spirit on my shoulders undeniably...so I walked back and signed up!  I have learned enough in my Christian walk to know that if I don't listen to Him, I am going to miss out on something He has for me.  I'm excited about the study - it's Beth Moore's study called David:  Seeking a Heart Like His.  I've only been to the introduction meeting, but it was great!  I've never been through a Beth Moore study before, so this should prove to be interesting.  I feel in my heart that the Lord is going to do something great in me through the study.  Between you, me, and the Lord, I'm a bit scared!  It's not easy allowing the Lord to chip away at the walls of your heart...at least it isn't for me!  And yet, I am anticipating, with excitement along with a bit of fear, what He will do in these next weeks.  I'll let you know how it goes.

We've discovered Boboli pizza crusts - yum!  I know they aren't the healthiest in the world, but I figure they're at least marginally better than the ones we buy from our local pizza place.  They're really quite good with cheese, pepperoni, and some veggies!

For those of you who don't know, I was adopted when I was 10 days old.  I lived a blessed life with my parents and brother and love them very much!  About 7 years ago, the Lord allowed my birth mom and family to locate me.  I have been blessed ever since with their love and friendship in my life!  There's a lot more to that story, but that will have to wait until another time. But, that leads in to what happened over the weekend.

I was chatting with my (birth) Mom, Chris, and she I were discussing how interesting it would have been for me to meet my paternal grandmother (mother of my birth father).  The little I knew about my grandmother was that she was from England and had never lost her beautiful accent.  She had a sweet spirit and Chris said she always had a good relationship with her.  As I ended the conversation and got off of the phone with Mom, I decided to see if I could find her online.  What I found was her obituary...and surprisingly (to me) it made me somewhat sad.  She was a beautiful woman with classic tastes.  I would have loved talking to her I think!  Her obituary can be found here:  Tribute to Mrs. Joan Ada Anzelmo.  My husband says he sees the resemblance when he looks at her eyes.  Do you see any resemblance? 

I share this because I feel it's a gift from God to me.  He obviously saw fit for me to find her online and have yet another piece of my history puzzle put in place for me.  The doors to that side of the family have consistently been closed, so I am convinced that the Lord is protecting me from something.  For whatever reason, He has not allowed any of those relationships to enter into my life.  I am resting in that and joyful that the Lord would give me this glimpse into who my paternal grandmother was when she was on this earth.

Ok, I mentioned a recipe in the title, didn't I?  We tried this dish only last week and found it to be tender and delicious.  You'll especially like it if you enjoy a bit of citrus flavor in your meats/sauces!  I served it over brown rice.  

Honey Roasted Pork Loin
2 lbs pork loin  
to taste salt and pepper
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 cup chicken broth

Prep Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 55 mins

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Season the pork and place in a roasting pan.

In a separate bowl, mix together the honey, juice, oil and thyme.

Pour over the pork.

Add the broth to the pan.

Bake until internal temperature reaches 150 (45-60 minutes).

Baste frequently.  (I basted every fifteen minutes.)
 

Strain the pan juices into a saucepan.

Reduce until slightly thickened.

Serve over the sliced pork.

Recipe Resource:  http:www.food.com/29493

All my best to you!

Learning Something New - The First Day!

Good Saturday Morning to you!

 
Yesterday was my first day of reading through God's Word chronologically.  As you may expect, I began by reading in Genesis, chapters 1-3.  I have read through this book of the Bible several times during my Christian walk, but I learned something new yesterday!  It was rather exciting to me that the Lord would have an interesting nugget of truth for me on my very first day of this Bible-reading journey.  (Isn't He GOOD?)

In Chapter 3, it talks about how Eve and Adam sinned against the Lord by eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge (of which they were instructed not to eat) and that they realized they were naked and needed clothing.  The Lord explained to them that they were going to have to leave the garden and toil and labor to make a living now that they had disobeyed, sinned, against Him.

Verse 21 of Genesis Chapter 3 says, "Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them."  I read through it twice and thought, wait a minute!  Did the Lord kill animals in the Garden of Eden in order to make the clothing for Adam and Eve?  That seemed odd to me, so I asked my husband about it.  The conversation went something like this.

Me:  Honey, this is what verse 21 in Genesis Chapter 3 says (quoted it to him).  Does this mean the Lord killed animals in the garden of Eden to clothe Adam and Eve? 

Hubby:  Yes.

Me:  Was it because sin was committed by Adam and Eve?

Hubby:  Yes.

Me:  But, why did he kill the animals? (in my mind, the Lord could have just produced some clothing for them without sacrificing the animals' lives)

Hubby:  What had to happen in order for sin to be forgiven? 

Me:  Christ had to die on the cross for my sins.

Hubby:  Yes, and He was perfect, right?  (I'm nodding)  Christ was perfect and yet He had to die.  The animals in the garden of Eden were perfect too before sin, but once sin entered the world, the animals were killed to cover Adam and Eve's sin (their blood was shed).

Me:  (the light bulb went on!)  Oh!  So, this is a 'type' of Christ!

Hubby:  It's a foreshadowing of Christ coming to die for our sins!  (I am nodding) 

Me:  I get it!

I grabbed a pencil right then and wrote that nugget of truth out right in the margin of my Bible so I wouldn't forget it.  Yes, it's ok to write in your copy of God's Word!  

Now, you may be thinking, wow, she just got that after reading through Genesis several times?  I am still in awe of the fact that we can read God's Word over and over and still see and understand new things every time we read it.  He opens our eyes to what I think of as "big" truths and "little" truths.  I know that truth is truth, but sometimes for me, I feel like He gives me one or the other depending on what is going on in my life at the time.

Again, isn't God Good?

I love the saying, "God is good all the time...and all the time God is good." 

To be truthful, there are days that I cannot say that without a niggling question in the back of my mind...my disbelief gets the better of me sometimes...but in my heart of hearts, I know that He is Good.  I know that He has my best interest at heart.  He loves me with an everlasting Love. 

I am humbled that He would love someone like me.  A flawed, selfish, cross (sometimes), difficult person like me...He loves me with no holds barred and died for my sins so that I might live with Him in eternity.

That truth still makes me cry sometimes and makes me wonder why...but deep down I am so very, very grateful that He loves me the way He does.  Thank you Lord!

I hope the Lord is showing you new and exciting things each and every day as you read through His Word and listen for His voice.  He loves you. 

Scripture Reading for today:  Genesis 4- 7

All my best to you today,

Healing and Encouragement

Last night, we had our pizza and movie night like usual together as a family.  Friday nights are eagerly anticipated in our home because we eat together and then snuggle together on the couch to watch a movie.  It's one time during the week we all plan to "stop the treadmill" and spend time together.  Inevitably, the movie we watch ends up sparking conversations that seem to go in any and all directions.  It's wonderful actually because my husband and I have the privilege of hearing what is going on in our daughter's hearts and minds in a way that is totally unexpected. 

Last night, the conversation was primarily between my husband and oldest daughter, but my youngest daughter and I were listening intently.  They got to talking about the Lord returning to take us home (Rapture), God's Word and how important it is to us, the experiences we had at our last two churches and what the Lord taught us there (child version of course), and much more.  My husband has been listening to sermons daily via his MP3 player and I can hear in his voice that the Lord is encouraging his heart once again.

See, we went through a very rough time several years back with not one, but two churches and two pastors.  Let's just say that when we chose to follow the Lord's leading (leaving "their" churches), they were not happy to say the least.  We were told we were no longer believers, that we would backslide, that we would be divorced within a year (that was nearly five years ago), and that our children would be on drugs and drinking alcohol before we knew it.  We were out of the Lord's favor and His will because we were leaving a certain church, not because of sin or something we had or hadn't done.  Our dedication and love for the Lord and His people was questioned and we were basically blackballed by the people we had spent so much time with and served for several years in His name. 

It was a dark few years for us, but we always felt the Lord's leading and His voice through it all.  My husband and I know that the Lord carried us through those days of panic attacks and feelings of inadequacy and fear.  The Lord brought to my husband a senior saint from one of those churches who came alongside my husband and mentored him and loved him with Christ's love.  These two men still meet once a week for devotional and prayer time to encourage each other and lift each other up in the name of the Lord.  It's inspiring.  I am so thankful for this man, one who truly sees the light and love of  Christ despite what goes on around him, followed the Lord's leading and never once allowed my husband to doubt our decision. He knew the decision had been bathed in prayer for nearly a year and that we had spoken to no one of our thoughts because we wanted to hear only the Lord's voice.  I praise the Lord for this senior saint who loves Him and shows Christ's love to my husband and to us. 

Last night I realized even more strongly while listening to my husband and daughter talk that I have closed my heart off to many things in the last several years.  I am, frankly, terrified to open my heart to the Lord in many ways...scared to be hurt again.  I know it wasn't the Lord who hurt me, it was His people who weren't seeing clearly.  But, nevertheless, I know that I am living in fear of what the Lord will call me to if I open my heart completely to Him and to His Word.  Isn't that crazy?

I share all of this to say that I am committing to the Lord (and to you, my sweet readers), that I am going to read the Bible over the next year from cover to cover.  I need to immerse myself in His Word.  I need to try and open my heart and life to Him in a way that will change me...and my life...because I know in my mind that Jesus loves me too much to leave me the way I am.  He knows I need to change in so many ways!  I want to be more like Him!

I thought about trying to read the Bible in one month, but when I realized it would take a dedication of 2 1/2 hours a day, I know that realistically, that won't happen for me.  I am a busy home schooling mom working two part-time jobs from home and trying to take care of my husband and girls the way they deserve to be taken care of, so I know that this type of schedule would fall by the wayside very quickly.  That would only serve as a discouragement to me.  If there is one thing I have realized in the last few years, it is that I must be realistic in my expectations - with others and especially with myself. 

That said, reading the Bible in one year is very reasonable and I am looking forward to getting started.  I found this site, BibleYear.com that provides a reading schedule for reading the Bible through from cover to cover in one year.  You can choose how you want to read it - from the beginning, chronologically, historically, or whether you want to read the Old Testament or New Testament first.  The site lists several different Bible versions from which to choose as well, so you can choose your preferred version.  The schedule is set up so you can start either on the 1st of a month or the 15th of a month. 

I'm going to begin my reading on October 15th and I've chosen to read the Bible in chronological order.  I am wondering if this will help me further understand my Lord and who He really is.  I will keep you updated!

May you be encouraged today by the Lord's Word.

All my best to you today,

Flowers in the Bible

I have this thing for flowers...not sure why, but I just love them.  I love taking photographs of these fragile, intricate, and beautiful plants that the Lord created and put here for us to enjoy. 

As I was looking at my flower photos, I wondered - how many times is "flower" or a reference to it mentioned in the Bible?  I finally found this site that references over 100 different types of flowers mentioned in God's Word.  Love that! 

My hope is that you enjoy the photos of the flowers this morning.  But, most of all, I pray that your praise and worship time this morning will be a blessed time for you and yours.

Matthew 6:29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 

Isaiah 40:8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. 

1 Kings 6:35 And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work.

 

 

Song of Solomon 2:1 I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.

 

All my best to you this Sunday morning,