Thursday, October 30, 2014

creamy lentil soup



I made this delish soup last night for house church, and I must say it was just as good or even better today for lunch. While I was making it, I had to be creative and spontaneous with some of the ingredients. It got me thinking that this is how our life should is. We often don't have the right ingredients at the right time, but if we just ask God, he always has an ingredient which usually turns out way better than the my original plan. We need to plan and organize, but we also need to keep our ears and heart open to what the God plan is, and we need to quickly walk and do what He tells us.






Creamy Crock Lentil Soup    


1 c. dry lentils
3 or 4 medium carrots - chopped or sliced

4 stalks of celery - chopped (I use the whole thing..leaf part and all)
1 med or large onion - chopped
6 cups water
2 cans of evaporated milk
4-6 teaspoons of beef boullion granules


lots of seasonings - basically I use lots of crazy janes' mixed up salt, pepper, garlic salt, parsley and chives




throw it all in the crock pot and cook low 6-8 hours




I added cornstarch to thicken slightly - but you don't have to










Tuesday, October 21, 2014

the GPS

Did you ever notice that the GPS sometimes doesn't quite take the right road?
Or the road less traveled ? Or the road that has way to much traffic ?


I have been noticing that my husband has been talking to the GPS a lot lately. Similar to how men talk to the football coaches through the TV ?  The GPS or the TV cannot hear you.
 
As we are driving,  following the friendly voice, my husband talks back to it. "Why are you going that way? I can't believe you are doing that ? There is way to much traffic that way!"
I sit and listen. Smile to myself. Then, I just have to. I have to say something.
Babe, you don't have to follow the GPS. She doesn't have authority over you.
He just does his 'I'm not gonna let you see me smile, smile'.




I know there is a lesson in there somewhere.




Do we listen to outside voices to navigate our way ?
Do we give to much authority to those who shouldn't have it ?
Have we become a group of people that just sit and do what the friendly voice tells us to do ?




I was just reading an article by Charisma Magazine from the Barna group, how this generation (us and we) have the most bibles, but don't read them or even pick them up.


If we aren't reading from the Word, is it really easy to be led away by a friendly voice. The route seems correct, and it is so easy to just follow. But is that really the way ?




Bare with this analogy please, but if I asked you why you are going that way or why did you do that - would you answer be - the GPS said to.




My point is this - are we following the crowd (GPS) or following Jesus ?


Do we put too much into what the GPS (Greatest Preachers Syndrome) and what they tell us to do.


We have this great gift of the Word, we have this great gift given to us and yet we seem to follow the other voices.


We have this amazing internal light and life filled Holy Spirit guidance, but we don't seem to know how to follow its voice, because we are so consumed with the voice of the external system.


What voice or voices are you following ?













Friday, October 17, 2014

Long - {five minute friday}


Long
what do you think about when you hear the word long.
I think of length
length of time, a long time.
I think of a journey, a long road
I think the winter seems long.
I think of days. sometimes the days are very long, but the time seems very short.
my girls are only 23 and 19, but then holy moly they are 23 and 19 -
where did the time go and that really hasn't been very long at all

lately when I think of long, I think of my mom.
it's been a very long time.
since I have seen her face, heard her giggle,
held her hand, sat on the porch in the sunlight.
it's been long since I had coffee with her.
it was a long, very long illness
but a very short time we walked through it.
I am so thankful that God's love is long
I would have not been able to walk this road, this very long
road of grief mixed with peace without him.
There are some days that I think every moment is long.
or when talking with someone, that this conversation is long -
but it seems in the larger scale of life and love
that the time is really short.
so my prayer for you is to not live like you have "long"
live like you have "short"


Tuesday, October 14, 2014

the devil comes...

...as an angel of light.






the devil comes as an angel of light.






And it is no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light;  (2 Corinthians 11:14)


this morning I was pondering 'who in the world would we know the devil as an angel of light?'




we don't want to have mass hysteria and seeing devils behind every door, but is there a way to know what is the devil's light and what is True Light.






so I had these thoughts: ( and take these as me being a mom, friend, mentor)






do you notice that all your situations seem to end up the same ?
do you notice that the guy you are now dating is turning out to be just like the wrong guy you were dating?
do you notice that your relationships seem to be to all the same type of person ?
do you notice that you keep picking the wrong thing?






is it possible that: There is a way that seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death. (proverbs 16:25)


is it possible that when it seems right to me, and looks good - that it really could be the enemy trying to keep me from the real right way ?




is it possible that the angel of light that is before me is the path that really produces darkness?




how can I know? God is never going to take you from a bad situation and put you in another bad situation.






A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure. (proverbs 16:9)
so is it possible that if my steps aren't sure - I am walking my own plan and not His?
could it be that I am walking in the masquerade of light ?






this is really to be a encouragement - not a scare tactic. however, I think we are so easily swayed away from truth that we can really live outside of our relationship with Jesus, and then we are dazed and confused when the relationship we are not in, is just like the last one. why? we are walking in our own plans.






so maybe the devil as an angel of light - is really because of my lack of relationship with God ?


if I am not totally reliant on the Spirit of the Living God for all my needs, decisions and relationship then I will probably be making a lot of decisions claiming they are from God, but they are really from me. then trying to get God to respond to me and what I think should happen. hmmm.


still pondering.
















Friday, October 3, 2014

Five Minute Friday {new}

the thing about new is,  it's new.
when I hear the word new, I think of God. He is making all things new. He is new every morning. He has new wine that must go in new wine skins.
the thing about new is, it's only new for that moment.
think about it.
when you open a bottle of new wine, it now becomes old because you cannot re-cork it.
which means, you have to use the new before it becomes stale and old.
kinda like how we need to live our lives in the newness of His presence every day.
we can't live off yesterday's new, because now that is the old.
Or think of the manna He gave new, every morning.  It was only good for that day.
hmmm.
so new, is only new for that moment.
maybe this is what dwelling and abiding look like.
eating and drinking of the new.
I want to live in the new.
new wine, new word, new revelation - every moment of every day enjoying the newness of His presence.



Wednesday, October 1, 2014

rejection.

I deal with rejection. Big time. I think if we are all honest, we can say that we all deal with rejection issues. We all have this need to be liked, wanted, friend requested, as a sign of acceptance and of worth. So when we are not liked, wanted or are defriended it sends us down this slippery slope into rejection.


You would think that after years of loving God, being loved by God, having faithful friends and family, that I would not deal with feeling rejection. But I do. And this morning I couldn't even sleep because of asking myself "why" over and over.


Why don't think like me? Why did they reject me? Am I really that awful of a person to be rejected ? Do you ever have those thoughts ?


So while I was laying in bed, lamenting over this I heard that still small voice, "you aren't rejected". That's great God, you don't reject me, but then why do I feel this rejection ? His answer; "because you keep picking it up".


Here is what I am seeing. Rejection in it root word is reject. or REject. In the Latin form,(taken from Websters 1828) it means the act of throwing back. The act of casting off or forsaking. A refusal to accept.


But if someone offers you Kool-Aid, you don't have to drink it. God is saying that you don't have to pick up the gift of rejection that someone is hurling at you. It only becomes my rejection if I choose to accept it. So in the mission impossible theme - do you choose to accept this mission ? Because it is an impossible mission. Rejection is a mission that is not ours to accept or carry, or give out.


If I pick up the rejection, then I have to carry it. And it is so so heavy.


My value is not based on the approval of others, but on what God's Word tells me is true. If I pick up rejection, then I have to lay down what is truth. And the truth is it doesn't really matter what others say or do to me, because God likes me. He loves me. He calls me His very own.


We all fear rejection. But perfect love cast out fear, because there is no rejection in Him. Robert McGee puts it this way: Rejection is a type of communication. It conveys a message that someone else is unsatisfied with us, or that we don't measure up to a standard. Sometimes rejection is a will-full act used to manipulate or control someone else. It comes as a social snub. It communicates disrespect, low value and lack of appreciation. Nothing hurts quite like the message of rejection. Without lifting a finger, we can send the message that our targeted individual doesn't meet our standards. This is how rejection enables us to control the action of another human being".


Going back to my earlier finding, I can only feel rejected if I pick it up. I can only feel rejected if I am trying to meet others standards, or others value. Why do we hold others esteem for us in such a high regard ? Maybe rejection isn't really about me, but more about the other person? I need to stop accepting the rejection thrown at me. When someone throws a ball at you, you can step out of the way before it hits you in the face.


Today, I choose to lay it down. Again. Lay down the feelings of being a reject, or being cast off. I lay down the power of rejections pull and I pick up the light and easy yoke of love and acceptance of my Father God. I. am. accepted. The I AM accepts me.