My Song

All of creation declares the glory of God:

 

1 Chronicles 16:33

“Then the trees of the forest will sing, they will sing for joy before the Lord, 

for he comes to judge the earth.”

 Psalm 65:13

“The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; 

they shout for joy and sing.”

 Psalm 98:8

“Let the rivers clap their hands, Let the mountains sing together for joy."

 Psalm 69:4

“Let heaven and earth praise Him, The seas and all that move in them.”

Psalm 19:1

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”

Just as all creation praises its glorious maker, we were created to glorify the Lord. Each of us has been given a song to sing.

"He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord." - Psalm 40:3

"Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth." - Psalm 96:1

Its melody, harmony and sometimes dissonance are revealed in the way we live our lives. We choose to let God’s glory shine or we silence His song as we become preoccupied with the demands of life.

Slow Down

 Do you ever get tired of the busyness of our modern lives? Phones buzzing, the internet calling, always rushing to do the next thing. Never taking the time to slow down and rest. I sure do.

God's plan isn't for us to race around trying to get ahead. He calls us to slow down and spend time with Him.

 “Take time to rest by the wayside, for I am not in a hurry. A leisurely pace accomplishes more than hurried striving. When you rush you forget who you are and whose you are.” Sarah Young, Jesus Calling

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

He loves us more than we can imagine and wants the best for us.

“I want you to experience how wide and long and high and deep is My love for you, so that you can know My love that surpasses knowledge. This vast ocean  of love cannot be measured or explained, but it can be experienced.” Sarah Young, Jesus Calling

As we slow down and rest in God's love and His plan for us, we learn to give Him our worry and frantic thoughts.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.” Philippians 4:6-8

Jesus came to trade His sinless life for our sins so we can enjoy God's love and live in relationship to Him. He offers us a trade:

Trade our worrying and anxious thoughts for His joy, peace and grace.

Trade our sour attitudes and grudges for His forgiveness, peace and joy.

Trade our selfish pride and stubborn hard heart for His heart that gives freely without thinking about it’s own interests.

Trade our thinking about today’s circumstances for His eternal perspective.

Trade our sin for His righteousness.

The Weaver

In 3:16, Max Lucado tells of watching a weaver set up her loom and begin to work. Then he makes this comparison:
"...Christ in like manner, weaves his story. Every person is a thread, every moment a color, every era a pass of the shuttle. Jesus steadily interweaves the embroidery of humankind.
 'My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,' says the Lord, 'And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.' (Isaiah 55:8 NLT)
 A root menaing of the word translated thoughts is 'artistic craftsmanship'. As if God says 'My artistry is far beyond anything you could imagine'."

This reminded me of a story Corrie Ten Boom used to tell. As she talked, she held a small tapestry, but all the audience could see was the tangled mess on the back. All we can see of our lives are the threads of our own experience. Often these don't make sense and we feel like those tangled threads. What we can't see is God's plan in all of those things. As Corrie finishes speaking she turns over the tapestry to reveal the beautiful picture on the other side. Each of us is a masterpiece. Unlike anyone else. There is a purpose and a plan for all of those messy, tangled things we go through (Jeremiah 29:11).

Life is But a Weaving (The Tapestry Poem)

Image courtesy of Piyachok Thawornmat at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Corrie Ten Boom

My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.
Oft' times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.
Not 'til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the weaver's skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned
He knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice to Him.

You are loved

Mom's BBQ

Growing up in Delaware we didn't eat real pulled pork, or beef. I thought Mom's version was the real thing. I was disappointed when I first had pulled pork. I still prefer Mom's.  I think of her every time I take my leftover bits and pieces of meat and simmer them with barbecue sauce.

Really, it's that easy. When I have a leftover piece of chicken or beef or pork that sits in the refrigerator for a few days, you know the ones -too big to throw away, but too small to do anything with - I wrap it up and put it in the freezer. A gallon size bag keeps all of them together. When there is enough for a meal, I put the frozen meat in a saucepan with a few tablespoons of water and some BBQ sauce and simmer it for several hours. The slow cooker would probably be perfect for this, but I always do it the way Mom did. After a while you can start to shred the meat as you stir it. And you need to stir it occasionally. The sugar in the sauce makes it easy to burn. (I guess the slow cooker would solve that problem.) I frequently make my sauce these days, but there is always a bottle of store bought in the pantry just in case.

I remember putting pickle slices on the sandwiches when we were growing up. I married a southern boy, so now I make Cole slaw for our sandwiches. French fries are a classic side and they frequently are served here too. Though those are almost always frozen.

Chocolate Pie

Last night, we went to Towson to take Carrie out to celebrate her birthday. It is nice that she is nearby so we can celebrate with her. Dan and I got to have dinner out with five beautiful young ladies. (Carrie, her sisters, and her roommates. Then we went back to her apartment for dessert and presents.

Two thirds of our family love this pie. The other third might if they didn't know it contains tofu. I also love that it is ready to be chilled in fifteen minutes or less, and there is no cooking. This is one of very few recipes that I actually follow as written. It is Alton Brown's Mooless Chocolate Pie. Follow the link to get the measurements for each ingredient.

 There are just six ingredients, if you buy a chocolate cookie crust instead of making one. You could use 1/3 cup of coffee instead of the Kahlua, or a little less than 1/2 teaspoon of instant coffee mixed in 1/3 cup of water. Leave it out altogether if you must, but coffee brings out chocolate's flavor, so it will make a difference. If you are not using Kahlua, taste the filling after everything is blended.  You may want to add another tablespoon of honey since the Kahlua would have added some sweetness.

 A B uses a double boiler to melt the chocolate chips with the Kahlua. I put it in the microwave for 30 seconds, then stir and microwave another 15 seconds. I stir the honey into the chocolate with the vanilla extract since I sometimes have a problem with honey sinking to the bottom of my blender and not getting mixed in.


Pour the chocolate into the blender with the tofu and mix until smooth. Stop and scrape the sides once.



















Finish blending and pour into the crust. A note about the tofu: Silken tofu makes a creamy pudding-like pie. I have used firm tofu when I can't find silken and like the firmer texture almost as well. The firmer pie is a lot easier to serve. Chill for two hours before serving.

There wasn't room for all the filling in this crust, so I got to sample the pie without waiting. Some whipped cream or berries would have been good on top. I wish I had thought of that yesterday. 

Pizza Night

Setting pizza dough on the island to rise is a sure way to get my family involved in making dinner. Everyone wants to help and choose what goes on our pizza. Pizza night often becomes movie night when we decide to take our dinner in the family room. Finding a movie we all want to watch can be a challenge, but that's another story.

Around here anything goes on pizza. Michael has even used macaroni and cheese - which was surprisingly good. It is a great meal for cleaning out the refrigerator. We don't often use pizza sauce or Mozzarella.

I always start with fresh pizza dough, but pita bread, tortillas, English muffins,... can become pizza crust.  A lot of stores have pizza dough available. (Wegman's is our favorite.) If not fresh, then try in the freezer cases. I used frozen bread dough before I discovered pizza dough at the grocery store. For a while I made my own pizza crust, but with inexpensive, delicious fresh dough available it doesn't seem worth the time and energy involved. Bake according to package directions until just beginning to brown.

Arugula/Tomato

Thinly slice 1 medium tomato and place on paper towels to drain before seasoning with salt and pepper. Slice 8 ounces of fresh mozzarella and place between layers of paper towels to drain. Lightly spray or brush crust with olive oil and top with cheese and tomatoes. Add about ½ cup arugula leaves then spray with olive oil and lightly sprinkle with salt. Place in oven for 2 minutes to heat everything through.

Pizza Margherita
This is similar to the arugula and tomato, but just top the pizza with olive oil, tomato and cheese before returning it to the oven for 2 minutes. When it comes out add thinly sliced basil leaves. (The easiest way to slice the basil is to roll the leaves together into a cylinder then slice.)

BBQ Chicken/Bacon

Spread BBQ sauce on cooked crust. Top with diced cooked chicken, crumbled cooked bacon and grated sharp cheddar cheese. Bake for 5 more minutes.

 This one takes some planning ahead since the onions take so long to cook, but it is our favorite right now:
Caramelized onion/goat cheese

Cook 2 or 3 medium onions in 1 or 2 Tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat until golden brown. I add 1/4 teaspoon of salt, which adds flavor and draws moisture out of the onions. You can add 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, which will help with the browning. (It's not enough to make them sweet.) You have to watch them and stir every few minutes or they will burn. This will take 20 to 30 minutes. (It is worth it. – Really) Spread cooked onions over baked crust. Top with 5 ounces of crumbled goat cheese. Place in oven for 2 minutes to heat everything through.