Monday, June 29, 2009

menu monday

Greetings from the southern shores of Lake Shetek.
We are spending the week with my family at Shetek Baptist Camp where my dad is the director, mom is the head cook, and 3 brothers and their wives also work.
So this week's menu comes straight from the Clarke Dinning Hall.

Believe me, you've NEVER had camp food like this before!

homemade pizza/salad/fruit/coffee ice cream
chinese chicken/cabbage salad/fruit/raspberry dessert
roast beef/potatoes/carrots/homeade bread/better than ever cake
spaghetti/salad/breadsticks/pound cake
chicken alfredo lasagna/olive garden salad/flatbread/cool lime pie



Wednesday, June 24, 2009

The Proberbs 31 Woman


Tonight our discussion for small group is on Proverbs 31:10-31. So I thought I'd also use this for my verse this week. I'm just going to break down each statement and add some application questions.

10
An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than jewels.
An excellent wife > precious jewels to her husband. Am I living in a way that makes me more desirable to my husband than a great treasure?
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
Does my husband trust in me, and can he trust in me always, even when he's not around? Even when I'm upset with him? Does he trust in my conduct? Do I ever bring him shame or disrespect from my words or actions to others?
13 She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
Wool is used to make woollen items and flax is used to make linen. Am I industrious with what I have? Do I make use of common things? Am I working willingly without grumbling or complaining?
14 She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15 She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
Am I providing strength for my household through nutrious meals? Am I putting effort into cooking for my family and those that visit my home? Am I planning ahead? Am I trying new things?
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
Am I hasty in making purchases? Buying on a whim? Putting us into debt? Or am I using our money wisely? Am I being resourceful with what we have and investing what we have?
17 She dresses herself with strength
and makes her arms strong.
Do I keep myself in shape? Do I push myself to do hard work?
18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.
Am I a hard worker? Am I a diligent worker? Am I being thrifty? Am I using my talents?
20 She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.
Am I generous to others? To those less fortunate? Am I loving them?
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.
Am I planning ahead? Snatching up good deals on winter clothing for my family?
22 She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.
Am I taking care of myself? Do I look frumpy? Not dressing nice to be vain, but knowing that noble character is also something first seen by others, just like style of clothing.
23 Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.
Can others tell that he has a good wife at home? Taking care of his needs-clothing, food, love, friendship?
24 She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant.
Am I providing for my family by doing what I can?
25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.
Do I realize that noble character is also something first seen by others, just like style of clothing. Do I portray dignity? Am I confident in God's plan for my life that I don't fear what the future may bring?
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
Do I speak to my kids, husband, others, with kindness and wisdom? Do I think before I speak? Are my words going to build up or tear down? Am I an example to follow or an example to avoid?
27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.
Am I being lazy? Am I using my time wisely? My husband's time wisely? My kid's time wisely? If I'm not filling my day with productive, good things, satan will tempt me with destructive things.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”
Our we doing our job as wife and mother in such a way that would point our husbands and children back to God?
30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
The fear of the Lord is the fear of being out of His fellowship and into the way of sin. A woman who fears the Lord will not run away from God to satisfy her longings. She will wait for the Lord. She will hope in God. She will rest in God.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.
A tree is known by it's fruit. If my husband is happy and respected and loved, and my kids are well behaved and respectful and do as they ought, then I can reap the benefits of the time and love and care I put into them.

Lord, this Proverbs 31 woman sets the standard high, but would You work in me these qualities at Your timing. Help me not to feel overwhelmed, but do my best each day as You set before me choices and tests of my character as a wife and mother. May I find my strength and satisfaction in You each day.

Monday, June 22, 2009

Menu Monday

Nice, hot summer weather is here. I'm gonna try to not use the oven this week.

sloppy joes/ fruit / pudding
ravioli/ garlic bread / salad
yogurt grilled chicken / pasta salad / grapes
tuna sandwiches / leftover pasta salad / chips
grilled chicken / flatbread / fruit

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Olive Garden Salad and Dressing

I love the colors of this salad not to mention the taste. The dressing is the knock-off recipe that you can find on the internet. I think it's pretty close to the real deal.

Olive Garden Salad and Dressing

1/2 c white vinegar
1 t lemon juice
2 T beaten egg*
1/3 c water
1/3 c vegetable oil
1/4 c corn syrup
3 T grated Romano cheese
2 T dry, unflavored pectin
1 1/4 t salt
1/2 t minced garlic
1/4 t dried parsley
1 pinch dried oregano
1 pinch red pepper flakes

Pour the vinegar, lemon juice and egg into a blender and blend for 10 seconds, then allow to rest for 10 min.
*mixing the raw egg with the vinegar and lemon juice and letting it sit will kill any salmonella that may be present.
Add remaining ingredients and blend for 30 seconds.
Chill at least an hour before serving. The longer the better.

Pour over romaine lettuce, tomatoes, black olives, red onion, pepperoncini peppers, grated parmesan cheese, and croutons.


**GF without croutons.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Love in deed is love indeed!


Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. -1 John 3:18

We all know we should love each other. Many times I've quoted to my kids the Golden Rule to "do unto others as you would want them to do to you"! (Matthew 7:12)

I never have a hard time coming up with how I would want to be treated, but why is it so hard to love others and do what I know they would want? Because it doesn't fit my schedule? It might cut into nap time? I might look foolish? I don't know them that well? They might think I'm silly? I'll just pray for them that God would provide for them. I'll tell them I'm praying for them next time I see them. Or better yet, I'll email them, because then we don't have to talk at all.
This is what I feel loving in word or talk means. Someone shares something with me like, "money's tight right now and I'm not sure how bills will go this month." And I say something like, "I'm sorry to hear that. I'll pray for you." Maybe I really do pray for them, that's great. Maybe I pray for them quick the next time I run into them so that I can tell them I prayed for them. That's not so great. Is that really love? Is that what I hope they would do for me if I was the one with the struggle?
So how do you love in deed and in truth? I'm not saying you shouldn't pray for them. I'm saying to truly love them the way Christ loves us we need to do more. I need to do more. The two verses preceding this verse says,
16By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

So when someone tells me money is tight, and God has given me money, I should give some to them.
When someone tells me they haven't had a date with their husband in 6 months, I should watch their kids and give them a date night.

When someone tells me they are having a bad day, I should send them flowers, or a gift card, or bring them some ice cream.

I don't even need to wait for someone to tell me something, I'm sure I could think of someone who needs some love. I don't even have to know them.

To truly love you will have to be vulnerable. You will have to be out of your comfort zone. You will have to be selfless. C. S. Lewis says this,
To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love
anything, and your heart will certainly
be wrung and possibly be broken. If
you want to make sure of keeping it
intact, you must give your heart to no
one, not even to an animal. Wrap it
carefully round with hobbies and little
luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock
it up safe in the casket or coffin of
your selfishness. But in that casket -
safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will
change. It will not be broken; it will
become unbreakable, impenetrable,
irredeemable ... The only place
outside Heaven where you can be
perfectly safe from all the dangers of
love ... is Hell.
-C. S. Lewis


1 John 4:20-21 it says,
"If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.


Who do you need to love in deed today?

Lord, please help me to love the way You love: unselfish, unconditional, unpicky. That kind of love can only come from You. And if I truly love You, it can't stop inside me. It must then flow out of me to others. Help me to see others the way You created them and the way You see them, and love them in deed.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Menu Monday

Short and sweet, here's what we're gonna eat.

grilled chicken/grilled potatoes/salad
cheeseburgers/fruit
pizza @ church
parmesan chicken/noodles/veggies
baked tacos/rice/beans

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Granola


This is a recipe of my Mom's that she has made for years. It is a favorite and a staple in our home growing up and now. It has also found a home on the menu at Camp Shetek where it is made by the ton! It's so famous, it has even made a cameo appearance in the music video 'Without Camp'. What? You've never seen that video? Well, here you go!


And here's the recipe:

Camp Granola
from Mom Judy

5 c oats
1 c coconut
3/4 c brown sugar
2 T cinnamon
1 t salt
3/4 c oil
3 T vanilla
1/2 c chopped nuts (opt)

Mix above ingredients. Bake on cookie sheet at 300 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 20 min.

*And for a peanut butter version remove the 3/4 cup of oil, and instead melt 1 cup real peanut butter with 1/4 cup of oil and the 3/4 c brown sugar in a saucepan until smooth. Drizzle over rest of ingredients and mix well. Cooking time and temp are the same.

**Can be GF if you use GF oats

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Whatever



Thanks to Mom for showing us this verse this weekend at the Dells.
Let's pick this verse apart.

Whatever happens....conflict happens, disagreements happen, hurtful words happen, telemarketers happen, drivers cutting you off happen, ungrateful kids happen, annoying people happen, interrupted time happens, disobedient kids happen, sleepless nights happen, hormones happen, lay-offs happen, sickness happens, etc, etc.

conduct
yourselves...the dictionary definition is : to behave or manage (oneself)

in a manner...a way of doing, being done, or happening; mode of action, occurrence, etc.

worthy...–adjective
1. having adequate or great merit, character, or value: a worthy successor.
2. of commendable excellence or merit; deserving: a book worthy of praise; a person worthy to lead.


of the gospel of Christ....other versions say 'message of Christ', or 'the good news about Christ'.

So how does this apply to real life?

When my kids disobey me on the same issue for the quadrillianth time, I will behave in a way that is a credit to the things Jesus taught. Not screaming, "How many times do I have to tell you to quit rubbing trash in your hair!" (What? You've never screamed that?)

Next time someone cuts me off in traffic, I will smile and wave and pray that they get to where they need to go safely. Instead of thinking, 'C'mon! Where did you learn to drive?!'

When I don't feel I was treated the way I should have been treated, I will control myself and pray that God will help me love that person the way He loves them and the way He can love me, because I too am a sinner. Not by assuming, 'She did that on purpose! I just know it! She's probably been planning for months how to hurt me. And now she finally got her chance! Well, I'll show her....' (What? You've never said that either?)

The next time someone says something about me that isn't true, I will be glad that God is my judge and He sees and knows everything and it is He I want to please, not that other person.

When someone believes differently than I do about a situation that happened, I will not ignore them out of rivalry, but will still love them and not let it distance us.

When someone else has an idea, I will consider there interests as more significant than my own. Even though I know my idea really is better and someday they will see that I was right and they will fall at my feet and beg for my forgiveness for not seeing the wisdom in my suggestion, because that is what the Kingdom of Heaven is all about. No? What? I need to also have the right motive behind my kind actions? Shoot!

Oh, Lord help me to act in a way that would point people to You. It's not easy. It goes against my sinful nature. Help me to do what I know is the right thing to do, but it's so much easier to take the low road and rub it in their face or point out all their faults. Keep me in Your Word so that I know what Your ways are. With Your help, may I always behave in a way that gives honor to Your Name! And may I come to the place where not only my actions, but also my heart is worthy of the gospel of Christ. Amen.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Menu Monday

We are back from a great vacation at the Wisconsin Dells with most of my side of the family. We all had a great time!
Now back to real life and that includes meal planning.

baked potato soup/focaccia bread
grilled chicken/bruschetta
tacos/mango salsa/guacamole
spaghetti and meatballs/garlic bread/salad
parmesian chicken/beans/noodles

What's on your menu?

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Who do you think you are?


I like to read this passage in Job whenever I need to be reminded who's really in charge around here.

The conversation in this passage is God speaking to Job after he lost everything he had (children, animals, land) and was afflicted with sores all over his body. His friends and even his wife told him to curse God and die. Job held strong and told them "Shall we receive good at the hand of the Lord, and shall we not receive evil?" (Job 2:10)

Eventually, after months of suffering Job begins to question God and feels that he doesn't deserve this anguish. Job proved that he loved God more than all his posessions, which were taken away from him but one more thing that God wanted to take from Job was his prideful attitude.

And here is what God says to Job:

4“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
7 when the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors
when it burst out from the womb,
9 when I made clouds its garment
and thick darkness its swaddling band,
10 and prescribed limits for it
and set bars and doors,
11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?

12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
and caused the dawn to know its place,
13 that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth,
and the wicked be shaken out of it?
14 It is changed like clay under the seal,
and its features stand out like a garment.
15 From the wicked their light is withheld,
and their uplifted arm is broken.

16 “Have you entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.

19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light,
and where is the place of darkness,
20 that you may take it to its territory
and that you may discern the paths to its home?
21 You know, for you were born then,
and the number of your days is great!

22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,
or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,
23 which I have reserved for the time of trouble,
for the day of battle and war?
24 What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,
or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?

25 “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain
and a way for the thunderbolt,
26 to bring rain on a land where no man is,
on the desert in which there is no man,
27 to satisfy the waste and desolate land,
and to make the ground sprout with grass?

28 “Has the rain a father,
or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb did the ice come forth,
and who has given birth to the frost of heaven?
30 The waters become hard like stone,
and the face of the deep is frozen.

31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades
or loose the cords of Orion?
32 Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season,
or can you guide the Bear with its children?
33 Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?

34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
that a flood of waters may cover you?
35 Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go
and say to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who has put wisdom in the inward parts
or given understanding to the mind?
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,
38 when the dust runs into a mass
and the clods stick fast together?

39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 when they crouch in their dens
or lie in wait in their thicket?
41 Who provides for the raven its prey,
when its young ones cry to God for help,
and wander about for lack of food?


Yeah.....that pretty much tells me where my place is. And if you want anymore, there's a couple more chapters of God giving Job the what for.



Monday, June 1, 2009

Menu Monday

Hello all! It is officially summer around here. Evan is done with school. No more days dictated by 8:15 and 3:00. Yipee!

This week's menu is short because we will be on vacation beginning Thursday. Another Yipee!

beef kabobs/wild rice/cheddar popovers
omelets/muffins/bacon
eat up leftovers before trip