Saturday, October 30, 2010

Carrot Cookies


So last night, I made carrot cookies! For the past several months, I have been trying to cook healthy and get myself in the habit of finding healthy alternatives. I have found an ice cream recipe that I am itching to try! But last night, I was in the mood to bake and I wanted cookies. So instead of grabbing the chocolate, I grabbed carrots. I was skeptical, but they were delicious! Below is the recipe I used with a few slight modifications.


* 1 cup sugar (I used Splenda, but next time I will be using honey)
* 1 cup vegetable oil (I used Olive oil)
* 3 eggs
* 1/2 pound carrots
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup chopped nuts (optional. I didn't use nuts)
* Flour, enough to roll dough (I used All-Purpose, but I'm going to try it with wheat flour next time)

*** I also added 1 TBL of Flax Seed Meal and a sprinkle of Flax Seed SEED


Finely grate the carrots (a food processor may be used). In a mixing bowl, combine the carrots with the oil and sugar. Add slightly beaten egg, nuts, baking powder, salt and enough flour to enable you to roll out the dough. Cut into rounds with a flour dusted cookie cutter and transfer to parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

I strongly suggest trying this out. I will most definitely be making them from now on, especially for my children. Happy eating!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Funny Quotations From My Life




Upon entering Hobby Lobby....

"God, grant me restraint." - my Mom



While talking of spankings....

"I am about to get a spanking." - Noel
"Why? Are you about to do something bad?" - Mom
"I might..." - Noel



Glimpsing a strange, scary bug...

"Oh my goodness, it's a UCO!" - Mercy
"What's a UCO?" - me
"An Unidentified Crawling Object." - Mercy
"I've seen a UWO" - Melody
"What's that?" - me
"Mercy. She's an Unidentified Walking Object." - Melody



At some random moment....

"I'm getting mad at you"
- Noel
"I love you, Noel" - Grant
"I love you too, but I'm still mad at you" - Noel
"Well, come give me a hug goodnight" - Grant
"You're just like my dad" - Noel
"Well....sorry" - Grant
"We'll talk about it tomorrow" - Noel


While talking of Grant's Jewish heritage....

"Hey, when we have this baby, he or she will be part Jewish!" - me
"Yep. You will be the bearer of a holy one.... but you'll still be a Gentile dog." - Grant


Monday, October 25, 2010

My Jesus

This month has been filled with traveling; revivals, weddings, and doctor's appointments. I have to say that this month has taught me many things. The revivals have been uplifting and it has been wonderful to meet new people, get reacquainted with old friends, encourage the young people, and see souls saved and lives renewed. It has been a blessed month. But along with being blessed, I have also been burdened. I have seen, more than ever before, a lack of interest in the Word, in the Gospel, and in Jesus Christ. I have seen a scary decline in the fear of God. I have seen empty hands without a Bible. I have seen immodesty. I have seen cell phones take the place of Spiritual hunger. I have seen and heard girls and boys, claiming Christianity, use filthy and perverted language. I have watched them drink, smoke, and hook up....and I have been consumed with righteous anger and an overwhelming sadness. More than anything, I long to see men and women step up and answer the sacred and holy call of our God and King. He is so worthy....

A few posts back, I blogged about my husband; how he is my love, my prince charming, my best friend, and how happy and utterly blessed I am to be his wife. Now, I would like to brag a bit about another Prince of mine who has my heart, and He is not of this world.

His name is Jesus Christ.

He is my Savior, my Redeemer, my Lover, my Creator.

He is my King, my Prince, my Captain, and my Healer.

He is my Forgiver, my Sacrifice, my Light, my Song, and my Leader.

He is my Refuge, my Rock, my Comfort, my Upholder, my Source of Strength....and He is my Salvation!

He is NOT a cuss word! He is not a reason to live your way. He is not an excuse to frustrate His grace.

He forgives, but He demands obedience. He calls us to live holy because He is holy.

He saved me from my sin. He saved me from eternal separation. He saved me from hell. FOR THAT REASON, I will live for Him. I will obey Him, I will follow Him, and I will serve Him. He deserves my allegiance, my loyalty, my respect, my praise - my ALL.   He is worthy of everything.

My Jesus....it is because of my relationship with Him that my earthly relationships survive. It is because of Him that I am alive and well. He is worthy of my life. How I wish others would love Him as much as I do. And how I wish I loved Him more than I do.

If you do not know my Jesus personally, you certainly can right now!

1. Admit you are a sinner
2. Believe Jesus is God
3. Confess your sins to Him
4. Ask His forgiveness
5. Invite Him into your heart and life


Lord Jesus,
Have mercy on me, a sinner. I believe in you and that your word is true. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that he died on the cross so that I may now have forgiveness for my sins and eternal life. I know that without you in my heart my life is meaningless. I believe in my heart that you, Lord God, raised Him from the dead. Please Jesus forgive me, for every sin I have ever committed or done in my heart, please Lord Jesus forgive me and come into my heart as my personal Lord and Savior today. I need you to be my Father and my friend.

I give you my life and ask you to take full control from this moment on; I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."


Romans 6:23
"...The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Romans 5:8
"God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us."

Romans 10:9
"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."




Friday, October 22, 2010

O Lord, Our Strength And Confidence



O Lord, our strength and confidence,
Our eyes are unto Thee;
Thou art the rock of our defence,
Our song of victory,
Thou who dost still the violence
Of any raging sea.


Thou at the flood didst sit as King;
What are our floods to Thee,
To whom it is a little things
To walk upon the sea?
We wait to hail Thee conquering,
King of eternity.

Only, O Lord our God, we pray,
Teach us to do Thy will,
Through windy hours and flying sprays
Thy purposes fulfill,
Until the word of yesterday
Thou speakest - "Peace, be still."

          --- Amy Carmichael




Saturday, October 16, 2010

I Like It Godly

This month of October is breast cancer awareness month. In case you haven't noticed, pink is everywhere.

Pink blenders, pink straighteners, pink laundry detergent, pink sports supplies, pink ice chests and coolers, pink canned vegetables....

You name it, it's pink.

To begin, I am going to clear the air and set your mind at ease and state that I am a supporter of any cancer awareness. I have a heart to help with any hurt. I mourn for those lost and I pray for those battling any type of disease or disability or illness. However, I think the Church (more importantly, the Christians), have forgotten and/or overlooked a very important issue. I believe a vast number of those called by God to stand up and stand out for His righteousness and glory are found lacking. While breast cancer is most certainly a disease worthy of fund-raising, it appears that fund-raising has come before the accomplishing and determined prayer of the saints. What's more, most of the attempts at raising "awareness" are not only ridiculous and unprofitable, but downright unholy.

Remember last year's Facebook campaign where a message went out to all of the women (and women only, I might add) and suddenly statuses appeared with words like “White,” “Blue,” or “Polka dots” and no one (i.e. the men) had any clue what was up? Oh, but then word got around that the updates were the bra colors of choice and the updates were meant to pique interest of those left out of the joke (again...males) in order to "raise awareness" about breast cancer. Really? Raise awareness? Yeah right.

Not long after that "phenomenon" the next phase was putting a number next to the color. Suggestions have been the age the women lost their virginity or the number of people they have slept with. I am none the wiser and, honestly, I don't care to know. The whole thing was sickening enough to me.

Last year, I was amazed and literally shocked speechless at how many Church girls and women on Facebook and Twitter participated in the game. Oh, I expected the non-Christians to participate, but the Church? The professed Christians? I was appalled. And it wasn't just teen or college age girls. Sunday school teachers, Pastor's wives, Evangelists' wives, mothers, grandmothers....women of every age proudly posting their "color" claiming to "raise awareness" when, really, it just brought lust to the minds of men and greatly damaged their testimony. Many lost respect. After a while, I began to see Pastors and men joining in, posting their brand or color of their undergarments. Cat calls and virtual whistling followed suit. God, help us...

That was last year and, thankfully, I don't have to read the bra colors on Facebook anymore. However, now, we have something just as nauseating. Those of you who have Facebook may have noticed several status updates in the past few weeks with phrases such as "I like it on the couch," or "I like it on the floor." At first glance, I can guess what your first thought is. However, it seems they are revealing, not where they like to have sex, but where they like to keep their purses.

Seriously.

But by updating their status with such a mysteriously evocative statement, women are, um, arousing attention to the breast cancer campaign. Right? I say wrong.

Since when is it okay and acceptable for Christians, the called out, chosen of God, to use sexual innuendo at any time? And yet, the Church is using provocative language to promote an agenda; to raise awareness; to spread the word of a disease. Horrifying. This culture is immersed in sexuality. Sex is used to sell everything from guns to pizza to cars to shoes. It is in our music, in our movies, on our magazines, in newer books, on billboards, on menus, and all over the World Wide Web. But now, it is being used to "raise awareness" for cancer. Well I would like to say a big NO to the culture, to our society, and to being politically correct. I think it is high time for the true Christians to stand up and stand firm upon the word of God that says, "But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation."  (1 Peter 1:15)

As a great preacher has said, "The issue and the problem with humanity is not breast cancer. There is a deeper issue and if we don't deal with the deeper issue, who cares if we have women that are healed of breast cancer if they end up in eternal fiery torment forever?"

In closing, let me say SUPPORT cancer awareness. Give money. Visit the sick and the hurting. Do the work of a Christian. But above all, PRAY. The cure is here and that cure is Jesus. Start spending more time on your knees than lacing up your walking shoes. Wrestle in prayer for the sick, the hurting, the dying and, more so, the LOST. THAT, Christians, is our calling. Playing silly games that damage your testimony and the name of Christ do nothing but hurt our Savior and His work.

And FYI..... I like it GODLY.


Titus 2:11
"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works."



Philippians 1:27a

"Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ..."



1 Peter 1:16
"Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy."



Ephesians 1:4
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:"



 James 5:16
"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."


Tuesday, October 12, 2010

I Love My Husband

These days, you hear plenty of talk from girls and young women who say, "Oh I love my boyfriend!" They gush over how handsome is, how perfect he is....blah blah blah. But, sadly, you rarely hear a happy wife brag on her husband. After a couple of years of marriage (or less) her man is no longer "perfect" or "the most amazing and handsome guy EVER!" Well, I would like to start a new trend. I am going to brag on my hubby of almost 6 months. And I plan on continuing for the rest of my life!

I will begin by saying that my husband is not perfect.....BUT he is perfect for me. He is human and he has flaws and makes mistakes. But he is Godly, he is passionate, he is a soul winner, and a true warrior for Christ.

He longs to see men stand up and be men; bold, serving, urgent, firm, and loud about their faith.

He wants the women to be ladies; modest, pure, gentle, sweet, and passionate about their Savior.

He has a heart to see people saved, to see chains broken, people free from bondage, to see the Church rise up and be what the Church was called to be.

He is quick to pray, ready at a moment's notice to speak the truth and proclaim the Word.

My husband is HANDSOME!! To me, he is the best lookin' hunk of a man in the world! And to make it even better, he is not only incredibly good looking on the outside, but he is amazingly striking on the inside as well and THAT makes him all the more appealing.

My husband is a family man. He loves his family and he loves mine. He can't wait for April to roll around when we begin one of our own. 

He is funny! We tell jokes regularly, and belly laugh all the time! We are literally each other's best friend.

My husband is kind. He is encouraging. When I have my down days and discouraging moments, he uplifts me and tell me I can do anything. He is gentle when he needs to be gentle and strong when he needs to be strong.

He is many things.... I don't think I could ever name them all. But I am proud to say he is my husband! I am proud to call him mine.




Proverbs 31:10-12 -
"Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life."

Titus 2:4 -
"That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed."


Friday, October 8, 2010

13 weeks and CUTE!



I am 13 weeks today!!A little over 3 months. I am completely over morning sickness (hooray!) and am feeling great. I am sporting a little bitty baby bump and beginning to lie down flat while I zip up my jeans! I am anxiously awaiting the moment when I feel my first flutter and counting down the days until we find out if our baby is pink or blue! Life is.....crazy....different...overwhelming....and so sweet!

Yesterday I went for my second doctor's appointment in Little Rock. What a difference from last month! As you may remember, last month, when we saw our baby for the first time, he or she was just a little speck of a thing! Teeny, tiny....not even an inch long! But precious. THIS time, however, we saw our little baby's arms, legs, and head. "Baby Lee" is almost 3 inches long and full of energy! We saw him/her squirming, stretching, punching.... what an incredible experience! We heard the little heart beating again and watched as he/she brought his/her hand to their mouth.




Can you imagine aborting this precious baby? Can you imagine injecting salt solution in the womb to melt that little one and destroy his/her life? Yet EVERY SINGLE DAY, millions of mothers allow an evil "doctor" to kill their baby. I heard my baby's heartbeat at 8 weeks, but his/her heart was beating long before that day. Now, at 13 weeks, I saw him/her squirm around and move. When my doctor pressed on my abdomen with her finger, I saw the baby react. My baby is ALIVE. My baby is a life, full of energy and cuteness. I pray you, reader, will always view a baby in the womb as what it is - which is a life!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Monday Meanderings - 10/04/10



I totally missed last week! My life is crazy. BUT, on to THIS week's Monday Meanderin'....


Bible Study... James

Memory Verse... Acts 7:49 -
"Heaven is
 my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?"

Husband Encouragement...
* Practice guitar and piano with him
* Remember to say "I love you" at every opportunity

Train Them Up...
* Read another chapter of "To Train Up a Child" by Michael & Debi Pearl
*
Begin writing "Book to Baby"

Personal Goals...
* Try to exercise every day
* Write in journals
* Get plenty of rest

New Habit of the Month...
* Vacuum couches twice a week (I'm keeping this for another month until the habit is cemented into my brain!)

MUST Do...
* Go through boxes in the garage (haven't gotten to this yet)
* Wash all laundry Thursday for the following week

Zone...  the back porch.

Menu...
M - Revival in Ruston - Church food!
T - Revival in Ruston - Church food!
W - Revival in Ruston - Church food!
Th - Deer steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, carrots OR green beans, biscuts?
F - Whatever we can get on the road
S - Same as above
Su - Revival in Mt. Ida - Church food!

FUN THINGS!
* Trip to Alabama for a wedding!
* Hanging out with Grant more this week!

3 things I'm thankful for today
...
1. Cooler mornings and evenings
2. My sweet husband
3. Fellowship of the Church
 



Friday, October 1, 2010

Baby "LEE" Update -- TWELVE WEEKS!

Today marks the beginning of my second trimester. HOORAY!!! I am 12 weeks pregnant and beginning to feel like a pregnant woman. My jeans are beginning to get tight. I am feeling clumsy and dizzy and fatigued. My nausea is subsiding, my appetite is getting strange, and my abdomen has a slight, barely-there bump! Next week, I will go for my second appointment and second ultrasound! I will, once again, hear my baby's heart beat. This time, I will also see little arms and legs flailing about! How exciting!!

Currently, "baby Lee" is about the size of a plum! His/her average size being about 2.1 inches and .49 oz. The fingers and toes are formed, arm and leg joints are working, the heart is beating strong, blood is circulating, and almost all of his/her systems are fully formed! Any time in the next couple of weeks, I could feel the first of many flutters in my tummy!



Life is fragile and beautiful and amazingly intricate. HOW CAN WE DOUBT a God so big??

Acts 7:50 -
"Hath not my hand made all these things?"

Psalm 95:6 -
"O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker."

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