Slow Cooking Thursday for June 14

Okay, it's still Thursday -- but I am very late getting this posted! Sorry about that -- it's been a busy day.

CROCK POT RIBS

3 to 4 pounds of country-style pork ribs
Steak seasoning, lemon pepper or other favorite seasoning to taste
1 cup barbecue sauce

Place ribs in crock pot. Sprinkle liberally with the seasoning of your choice. Lemon pepper is good; Montreal-style steak seasoning is outstanding. Or try one of your own favorites. Cover crock pot. Cook ribs all day on Low, or 4 to 5 hours on High.

30 minutes before you are ready to eat, drain off all the liquid from the crock pot. Spread the barbecue sauce over the ribs. Cover crock pot again and continue to cook for 30 minutes.

This easy recipe produces some of the tastiest ribs you will ever eat. If you use bone-in ribs, the meat will fall off them. Boneless ribs are even better. This has become a favorite meal in our family! Great with potato salad and raw veggies in summer, or with mashed potatoes and coleslaw for a warming winter meal.

Quote for the day

Graphic from Abby, at Little Birdie Blessings

From my 'quote notebook', here's another inspiring quote, this one on prayer.

"I give myself unto prayer." (Psalm 109:4)

"The instruction to ourselves from these words is most comforting and precious. Are we bowed down with sorrow and distress? 'I give myself unto prayer.' Are we persecuted, and reviled, and compassed about with words of hatred? 'I give myself unto prayer.' Has death entered our dwellings? ... 'I give myself unto prayer.' God... gives prayer as the balm of human trial."
~ Barton Bouchier ~

Picnic by the River for June 13

Well, this week's Picnic by the River ended up being a picnic for one at the kitchen table. After a stressful couple of days, I came home from a busy afternoon and set about preparing our picnic supper. The more I worked, the worse I felt -- my stomach felt literally "tied up in knots". I did get things ready -- Cashew Chicken Wraps and, instead of the salad I'd originally planned, Spicy Tomato Soup, since it was cool and breezy outside. (Both of these recipes can be found here in my blog, somewhere in the 2006 archives. Just type the name of the recipe into the search box, click on "Search Blog", and it should lead you to the recipe.)

After getting the food all packed up, I realized I needed to lie down for awhile and hope to feel better if I was going to make it to church. Mr. T agreed that a rest was in order, so off he went to the kitchen table for his picnic. After a 20-minute rest, I felt much better and was able to join him.

So we did make it to church, but unfortunately missed out on our picnic. We were somewhat disappointed, because we do look forward to this bit of relaxing time so much. It had been overcast and threatening rain all day, but by evening had cleared up beautifully. It would have been nice by the river. But God knows best, and I'm just thankful not to have missed the Bible study and prayer time at church... which, after all, is the most important thing!

Another neat quote...

Here's another quote I'd scribbled on a scrap of paper, this one taken from Streams in the Desert, Volume 2, by Mrs. Charles Cowman. The author of the verse is unknown.

"I want to make a quiet place
Where those I love can see God's face,
Can stretch their hearts across the earth,
Can understand what spring is worth,
Can count the stars,
Watch violets grow,
And learn what birds and children know."

The first two lines speak to me especially. I want my home, and my life, to be "a quiet place/where those I love can see God's face."

A thought-provoking quote...

I've been doing a 27-fling boogie in my computer room... part of Kelly's Mission for today at FlyLady.net. Several more items need to be flung -- bits of paper I've saved with quotes on them. But first, I need to get them down on paper, and into my blog. Here's the first one.

"God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble." (James 4:6)

"How we love to prance into the limelight and live there! This is the opposite of biblical humility.... It turns out that it is the humble, dutiful person who finds uncluttered joy in giving full attention to life's demands. Proper foundations enable a creative, satisfying, and interesting personal life." -- Susan Schaeffer Macauley

Isn't that challenging? I am so thankful for those moments of "uncluttered joy"! May I seek to live each day this way!

Menu Plan Monday for June 11

Here it is Monday again! Is it just me or are the weeks flying by more quickly than they used to? Here's my menu for this week -- and I'm using lots of leftovers from yesterday's Crock-Pot chicken. I seem to be in a coleslaw mood this week too, for some reason!

MONDAY: Seafood Melts, Oven Potato Wedges, Coleslaw

TUESDAY: Pasta Salad with Chicken, Tossed Salad with Oranges & Dried Cranberries, Cranberry Sauce

WEDNESDAY: (picnic) Cashew Chicken Wraps, 3-Bean Salad

THURSDAY: Macaroni & Cheese, Broccoli/Cauliflower Blend, Apple Salad

FRIDAY: Overnight Spinach Manicotti, Salad, Bread

SATURDAY: Garlic Lime Chicken, Lime-Thyme Potato Wedges, Coleslaw

SUNDAY: Crock-Pot Ribs, Potato Salad, Coleslaw

Another page from the summer devotional

This is from the category called "Down at the Station."

May 24

"Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: He calleth them all by names by the greatness of His might, for that He is strong in power: not one faileth." (Isaiah 40:26)

Today we are going to visit a very famous train station in New York City. Most people call it Grand Central Station, but its name has been Grand Central Terminal since 1913. There are many, many interesting things about Grand Central Terminal, but today we are going to think about just one thing -- a ceiling!

The center of Grand Central Terminal, where many people come and go each day, is called the Main Concourse. This is where the ticket booths and machines are, as well as an information booth with a four-sided clock on top. But the ceiling of the Main Concourse is something special. It was painted to look like the night sky. This was done in 1912 by a French artist named Paul Helleu. The painting covers the whole ceiling and is said to show 2500 stars, including constellations like Orion. Strangely, the sky and the constellations look backward. A lot of people think that the artist made a mistake as he painted them.

Our verse reminds us that God is the One who made the real stars and constellations, and that He is all-powerful. He created the stars, and He is the One who brings them out each night. He is the One who gave the stars their names. When He calls them to come out, they all come. None of them are missing. On the ceiling in Grand Central Terminal, the stars and constellations do not look just right. But in the real night sky, they will always look perfect, because God is the One who put them there. And He never makes mistakes!

* Praise God for His mighty power in creation. Praise Him for making the stars and constellations. Thank Him that He never makes mistakes, and that everything He does is perfect.