Sunday, October 31, 2010

What are you reading?

I love Max Lucado's books.  I just finished reading his newest one.  The name got my attention - Out Live Your Life! This book will challenge you to think about ways you can make a difference in other's lives. As you read it you will hear the heart of God for the world. One hundred percent of the royalties from this book benefits children and families through World Vision. You can find it on amazon.com at a very reasonable price!


I am starting a new book called Shame Off You.  Yesterday the author Alan Wright held a conference at our church.  He taught us from the book and had us answer some of the questions in the workbook. I bought the book and am excited to read it and complete the work book as I read. 

I'd love to know if you have read either of these books or if not, what books are you reading?

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Three October gifts...

Happy Birthday
to our nephew Joshua, our daughter, Shawna and
our son-in-law Travis!

We are so thankful for you!
You are each unique and precious gifts from the Lord!

Joshua

Shawna

Travis


Elaine

Friday, October 22, 2010

He can turn your sadness into gladness!

She read the words written to her and could not believe what she was reading.  Her heart sank and that was when the sadness began.  That is when the enemy began to whisper lies to her.  They did not sound like lies at the time.  They sounded like truth and the more of them she believed the sadder she became until she was crying.  She continued to feel worse and worse...about things, about who she was, about who she wasn't.  She could not bring herself out of this sadness, even when she thought she heard the Lord reminding her of things totally opposite of what she was believing. She wanted to take hold of truth spoken but it was quickly replaced with the lies that were being repeated over and over to her. Several days later she called a friend to check on her.  They hung up after a short conversation but the friend called back to ask if she had read a particular day in Streams in the Desert. She hadn't read it.  The friend told her how much it had helped her with the sadness she was feeling over the loss in her life. She only told the friend she would read it but knew that God had something for her in this. She got the devotional and found the day. As she read, she read it as if it were written to her by someone that knew how she was feeling, because that is how it seemed. She cried, but this time it was because she was seeing things God's way. She began to change her thinking and in doing so the sadness began to leave.  God was replacing it with His joy. A few days later she was able to share this devotional with another person that was going through something that had made them sad in hopes it would be an encouragement to them. Someone reading this may be needing God to replace the sadness you have with God's gladness/joy! He will do it! Then when you see the need, pass it on to another.

Streams in the Desert - Oct. 15 by Mrs. Charles Cowman

Satan's Tools

"Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and, let us run with patience the race that is set before us" (Heb. 12:1).
There are weights which are not sins in themselves, but which become distractions and stumbling blocks in our Christian progress. One of the worst of these is despondency. The heavy heart is indeed a weight that will surely drag us down in our holiness and usefulness.
The failure of Israel to enter the land of promise began in murmuring, or, as the text in Numbers literally puts it, "as it were murmured." Just a faint desire to complain and be discontented. This led on until it blossomed and ripened into rebellion and ruin. Let us give ourselves no liberty ever to doubt God or His love and faithfulness to us in everything and forever.
We can set our will against doubt just as we do against any other sin; and as we stand firm and refuse to doubt, the Holy Spirit will come to our aid and give us the faith of God and crown us with victory.

It is very easy to fall into the habit of doubting, fretting, and wondering if God has forsaken us and if after all our hopes are to end in failure. Let us refuse to be discouraged. Let us refuse to be unhappy. Let us "count it all joy" when we cannot feel one emotion of happiness. Let us rejoice by faith, by resolution, by reckoning, and we shall surely find that God will make the reckoning real. --Selected

The devil has two master tricks. One is to get us discouraged; then for a time at least we can be of no service to others, and so are defeated. The other is to make us doubt, thus breaking the faith link by which we are bound to our Father. Lookout! Do not be tricked either way. --G.E.M.

Gladness! I like to cultivate the spirit of gladness! It puts the soul so in tune again, and keeps it in tune, so that Satan is shy of touching it--the chords of the soul become too warm, or too full of heavenly electricity, for his infernal fingers, and he goes off somewhere else! Satan is always very shy of meddling with me when my heart is full of gladness and joy in the Holy Ghost.
My plan is to shun the spirit of sadness as I would Satan; but, alas! I am not always successful. Like the devil himself it meets me on the highway of usefulness, looks me so fully in my face, till my poor soul changes color!
Sadness discolors everything; it leaves all objects charmless; it involves future prospects in darkness; it deprives the soul of all its aspirations, enchains all its powers, and produces a mental paralysis!

An old believer remarked, that cheerfulness in religion makes all its services come off with delight; and that we are never carried forward so swiftly in the ways of duty as when borne on the wings of delight; adding, that Melancholy clips such wings; or, to alter the figure, takes off our chariot wheels in duty, and makes them, like those of the Egyptians, drag heavily.


Elaine

Sunday, October 17, 2010

So good with a cup of tea...

This afternoon I made a recipe that Jim and I really liked.  It is easy to make and tastes so good.  It is a very moist cake. I found the recipe at: http://www.all-bran.com/#/home  You can find the calories and nutritional information for this recipe, as well as other recipes on this site.



Lemon Poppy Seed Snack Cake

1 C. flour
1/4 C. sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt (optional)
1 T poppy seeds
1 C. All-Bran Original or 1 C. All-Bran Buds
1/4 C. fat-free milk *
2 egg whites
3 T. vegetable oil
1 C. (8 oz.) low-fat, lemon flavored yogurt
1 T grated lemon peel
1 t. powdered sugar

  1. Stir together flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and poppy seeds. Set aside.
  2. In large mixing bowl, comine All-Bran, cereal, milk, egg whites, oil, lemon peel and yogurt.  Let stand about five minutes or until cereal softens Add flour mixture, stirring only until combined.  Spread evenly in 8 x 8 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray.
  3. Bake at 350 degrees about 25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
* If you are like me and thought you did not like fat-free milk, try organic fat-free milk.  It is delicous.

 
Enjoy!


Elaine

Monday, October 11, 2010

Where He leads me...

On Sept. 15th I received a phone call that broke my heart. Our precious friend’s 37 yr. old daughter died from an epileptic seizure. The next few days were spent trying to figure out the best time to go to MN to be with our friends.  It was decided that waiting for a couple weeks would be better than coming right away.  Reservations were made and I was all set to be gone from Friday to Tuesday morning.  I am not the best flyer and much prayer is prayed when I do fly.  I asked the Lord to give me a smooth flight and that it would be nice if I sat by a woman (I had a middle seat). While waiting to board the plane I sat down by a lady reading a Randy Alcorn book I had read.  As she and I talked she told me how she had had these reservations for a long time and this week decided to change the dates she would go to MN. But she forgot to do this and two days ago her sister called to tell her that her father had passed away.  So because she had the ticket she was prepared to go.  As I listened to her story I thought again how God directs our steps.
1Thessalonians 3:11 Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you...
I boarded the plane and when I got to my seat I saw that I was sitting between two women.  Thank you Lord!  The one by the window greeted me and we quickly began visiting.  She was a Christian, her parents had been missionaries in Hawaii (where I once lived) and half way through the flight I found out she attends my daughter's church.  When she found out where I was going and why, she shared about her mother's sorrow and how she coped when her baby sister died.  How interesting that I was once again gfiven an opportunity to share about grief.  As I was walking off the plane I was filled with thankfulness to the Lord.  My visit with our friends was so sweet and I prayed that the words spoken or not spoken were just what they needed.
2Corintians 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
I loved my time with them. I know that the Lord will continue to comfort their hurting hearts and meet their needs.  After many hugs and tears my visit with my friends was over and I was boarding a plane home. Again I prayed about the trip and who I would sit with.  This time, as before, I was sitting beside a lady.  Our conversation began with talking about Mexican food and how she prepared it. As we talked I also learned that her mother had passed away three years ago and she seemed to be handling it OK but her sister wasn’t.  I was able to share and suggest some things from my own experience that could help her sister.  As we began to land she said she sure hoped that her next flight would be safe and that she would sit by a lady. Without a thought, I began to pray out loud for her, her next flight and then for her sister.  I was surprised but happy for my boldness. As I finished she said, “in the name of Jesus”.  I told her I hoped she did not mind me praying.  She didn’t. I smiled inside remembering times I had heard others tell about their times on planes, praying or witnessing to people and was glad this time I was the one experiencing it. I am thankful for this trip and the time I had with my sweet friends.
Elaine