Mother of Seven + 2

I want to be sought after. Pursue me I want to be loved.  Spend time with me I want to be heard. Listen to me RELATIONSHIP I want relationship, fellowship, communion. It is the craving of my soul. It was there.  In the Garden long ago. God loved his creation. He desired to spend time with them. He sought them out. He talked with them in the cool of the day. It was a time of holy communion. It was sweet fellowship. It was the relationship that God desired. RELATIONSHIP It was the intent of their God. It was the reason man was created. But it was broken. The relationship. The fellowship. The sweet communion. SIN It severed. It destroyed. It killed. And this is the struggle of life.   A craving for relationship. And sin that separates. Sin that tells me lies. Sin that whispers, "You will not surely die." Instead of chasing my Maker. Instead of filling up on Him. I fill my belly with forbidden fruit... Relationships Possessions Entertainment Mon...

3 (15 oz) cans black beans, rinsed and drained 1 can of corn, drained 1 orange, red, or yellow pepper, chopped 1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes 1 cup chopped red onion 1/2 c. finally chopped fresh cilantro 1 medium jalapeno, finally chopped 1/2 t. lime zest juice from one lime or 2 T. 1/4 c. olive oil 1/4 c. white wine vinegar 1/2 t. chili powder 1/2 t. Cumin 1/2 t. salt Garnish:  1 avocado sliced In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and toss to combine.  Place sliced avocado on top right before serving.  Serve with tortilla chips.

Ingredients 1 2/3 c steel cut oats 4 c water 1/4 t salt Additional ingredients (your choice) milk (I use almond) cinnamon nutmeg cardamom raisins apples (chopped) other dried fruit nuts or seeds unsweetened applesauce honey 5 pint sized jars 1.  Place the oats, water, and salt in a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce heat and simmer for about 3 minutes, stirring a few times to prevent sticking.  Turn off the heat. 2.  Using a ladle, evenly distribute oats and water mixture into pint jars.  Cover jars tightly with caps and rings, and leave on the counter overnight. 3.  The next morning the oats will be soft and ready to eat.  You can add spices, nuts, and dried fruit to each of your jars according to your taste.  Replace the lids and put the jars in the refrigerator. 4.  When you're ready to eat your oatmeal, remove the lid and ring and microwave right in the jar for 2-3 minutes...

I have struggled the past six years.  The struggle has been with forgiveness.   I want to think I have forgiven, but it comes back to haunt me over and over. Deep hurt and pain do not go away overnight.  Betrayal changed me.  The "open armed" love that I had embraced life with was replaced with fear of being hurt again.  Depression and anxiety became my companions. How to forgive became the question?  Or was it how to keep forgiving when new wounds were exposed?  How to keep forgiving when the old wounds festered and broke open?  How to forgive when the one who has wronged me does not seek forgiveness? Loving broken children is never easy.  However, I still truly believe every child deserves love and a chance at a better life. Our on-going struggle with Troy who was nearly eight when he came to us was no secret.  He was severely wounded.  We prayed.  We enlisted many to pray with us.  We loved with all we had....

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."  Ephesians 4:32 One of the first verses I memorized as a child was Ephesians 4:32.  I remember my dad telling me how he often had to quote the same verse when he fought with his brother.  Following the family tradition, my children all knew this verse as the "B verse" in our alphabet memory verses.  A fight would break out, and I was ask them to quote the "B verse."  When the fighting didn't stop, they earned the privilege of writing it on paper ten times. One particular child wrote Ephesians 4:32 so many times that at the age of 6, he proudly proclaimed to his grandparents that he could spell the word "compassionate."  Yes.  Yes, he could.  He had much practice.  Being kind was hard for this child, but I often found it much harder as a parent to teach the second portion of this verse. We had many a "face off."  Two angry chil...

This lesson was a challenge for me.  I didn't know how to go about writing it.  During my morning walk a couple mornings, I prayed for God to give me guidance.  Often times something will come to mind while I am in prayer, but nothing did.  I continued to wrestle with this lesson even as I sat down to write it.  Then it came to me how appropriate it was that I was struggling with this topic.  Forgiveness is something we struggle with.  It doesn't come easy.  It feels like a battle of tug-of-war. Photo from www.freedigitalphotos.net "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."   Eph. 4:32 KJV This is one of the first Bible verses I remember memorizing.  My sister called me "dumb or stupid," and I was reminded of Ephesians 4:32.  My brother broke my china teapot, and I was reminded of Ephesians 4:32.  My best friend played with someone bes...

The Connection between Prayer and our Hearts. David was called a man after God's own heart. Many of the Psalms are a record of the prayers and praises of David. He spent much time communicating with God. In order to have hearts modeled after God's, we need to follow David's example of communicating with the one who made us. After all only God can mold our hearts to look like his.  Prayer is essential in an undivided heart. In Psalm 86 we find one of David's prayers. “ Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.” Psalm 86:11 What kind of heart did David ask God for? Make a list of things that can divide our hearts. Photo from www.freedigitalphotos.net What indicates to us where our hearts are? Mt. 6:19-21 “For where your ______________________ is, there your _______________________ will be also.” Looking back at our list of things that divide our hear...