Intentionally Focused, Day 30

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Okay, so I just had to share one more session from Week 6 of the "Intentionally Focused" Bible study from Good Morning Girls.  To be perfectly honest, I hadn't expected quite so much from this particular week, since it had to do with children.  I have no young children at home and, at this time, am not ministering directly to children, so -- although I studied these Scriptures dutifully, with my grandchildren in mind, I wasn't expecting a lot.  I was quite surprised with how the Lord spoke to me through week 6.  I will just share the study from that Friday:

S [Scripture]= "And that from a  child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
"That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." 
(2 Timothy 3:15-17)

O [Observation]= This second letter from Paul to Timothy is far more personal than 1 Timothy, and is probably the last letter Paul ever wrote.  He is encouraging Timothy to keep standing fast in the sound doctrine that he has learned.  I verse 14 he exhorts Timothy. "But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of", even in the face of persecution, evil, and false teaching.  He reminds Timothy that he has known the holy scriptures since childhood, and that scripture makes us "wise unto salvation through faith in Christ Jesus."

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable:
1) for doctrine
2) for reproof
3) for correction
4) for instruction in righteousness.
Applying scripture to our lives in each of these ways will lead to spiritual maturity and prepare us for the good works God has for us to do in His service.

A [Application]= Things are growing worse and worse in our world, just as they were in Timothy's day.  In the face of this, I am to do just as Paul counseled Timothy and continue in the things which I have learned and have been assured of.  Evil abounds, false teaching is out there, and persecution could be just around the corner.  Yet I need to keep on keeping on, standing fast on the Word of God.  I've learned sound, solid doctrine, and I can be in God's Word every day to be reproved, corrected, and instructed in righteousness.  As I do, I'm equipped to serve God in every area He calls me to, and I become spiritually mature and settled.  And surely part of the work God has for me is to instruct -- both by word and by example -- the children in my life, so that they will come to faith in Him and then grow spiritually strong.  They are facing an increasingly evil world and it's more important than ever to provide them a firm foundation they can build their lives on.

P [Prayer]=  "Lord, how I thank and praise You for Your Word!  It brings us to an understanding of salvation, but it doesn't stop there.  It reproves, corrects, shows us sound doctrine and instruction in righteousness -- all for the purpose of equipping us to grow spiritually strong and to serve You.  How thankful I am to own a Bible in my own language, and to be able to read and study it each day.  I pray that you will help me to faithfully read, study, and apply Your Word to my life.
"And I pray, too, Lord, that You will help me to keep the Bible before the children in my life, and to help them grow in You.  Give me special insight and strength for this task, especially as I prepare this year's summer devotional book.  I thank You for all You will do and the strength that You will give.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Simply random mid-March thoughts

Just a few random thoughts and happenings from the week ..

  Snow is probably the big story here.  Big storm on Wednesday, lots of snow, cold, ice, and wind.  Sometimes it seems as if this winter is going on forever.  (And there *was* once a time in our state's history, sometime in the 1800s, when there was a frost every month of the year, so I guess it's not impossible.)  On the other hand, as my husband says, if it all melts at once, we are in for a lot of flooding. 

I do enjoy watching the snow fall, as long as I don't have to drive in it.  And it is pretty to see a clean layer of white, looking like meringue or 7-minute icing, covering everything once again.

It's also nice to see the longer daylight, even though daylight saving time in mid-March still seems a bit odd.  And the higher, brighter winter sun feels good, although I'd rather not see all of the cobwebs, dust and crumbs it tends to reveal indoors.

Does anyone else have those strange little spiders that look like miniature daddy long-legs and leave drifts of webs everywhere?  The webs look sort of like cotton batting to me.  They are dense and white.  I've seen a few of these at church, so I can't blame it on the wood in our cellar which might be the natural guess as to why we have them.  They seem able to spin these webs very quickly and it's impossible to stay ahead of them. 

This is Zone 3 week in FlyLady's system ... the bathrooms.  Yesterday I scrubbed the tub and shower using my favorite homemade Tub and Shower Magic.  It works great on bathroom sinks and countertops, too.  If you've never tried this, you might like to give it a try.  I find that by using this once a month, and maintaining by use of Tilex Fresh Shower every day, the tub and shower stay looking fairly decent in spite of our hard water. 

I've been working at trying to reduce our grocery bill, and this week I actually succeeded.  It's still not low, but we spent about $15 less than the previous week.  I've made a number of meatless meals from some of my favorite basic cookbooks -- More-With-Less Cookbook; Jane Brody's Good Food Book
(Lentil Soup; Rice, Corn and Cheese Casserole); and Jane Brody's Good Food Gourmet (from which I plan to make Lentils Ole this week, to serve over baked potatoes with taco toppings.  Any of these books will give you some good ideas for inexpensive, nutritious meals that taste good.
Another thing I do to save money is to make a lot of my own spice blends, onion soup mix, taco seasoning mix and so on.  Many of these recipes I've found in More Make Your Own Groceries by Daphne Metaxas Hartwig, and its predecessor, Make Your Own Groceries, which is hard to find at a reasonable price.  Check in local used bookstores, thrift shops, etc. and I hope you will find one!  More great recipes for this type of thing can be found here: 100-plus Recipes for Homemade Mixes and Seasoning Blends.

If you are interested in more homemade ideas, check out the "homemade life" label in the label cloud to the right.  There are quite a few of them there, from bagels to swiffer refills!




Today I have corned beef in the slow cooker, along with carrots and potatoes, to serve with homemade baked beans for supper tonight.  This is my go-to recipe for making corned beef in the crock pot: Glazed Corned Beef Dinner.  At the end of the cooking time, one transfers the meat and veggies to a baking dish and adds the glaze, cooking it in the oven for the last half hour.   I recommend it!

I probably had much more to say, but this is our day to clean the church and so I had better have lunch and get ready to go, since Mr. T is now home from work.  Enjoy the randomness!
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A colorful salad to enjoy!

Image courtesy Vintage Holiday Crafts.com

I made a salad for this week's potluck at church that was very good and quite different.  A week or so ago, I had made three-bean salad for supper to go with macaroni & cheese, and used my favorite recipe from the More-With-Less Cookbook, an old standby.  (You can find it here in my A-Store: More-With-Less Cookbook.  Or just go to Amazon directly and do a search).  On the facing page was a recipe for Soybean Salad Special.  It looked intriguing so I decided then and there that I'd try it for the next potluck.

Here's the recipe:
SOYBEAN SALAD SPECIAL
Combine in salad bowl:
1/2 head lettuce, torn in bite-size pieces
1 1/2 cups cooked soybeans, drained
1 fresh orange, peeled and diced
2 T. chopped onion or scallion
Combine in a jar and shake:
1/4 cup oil
1 T. lemon juice
1 T. vinegar
1 T. honey
1 T. orange juice
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
Pour dressing over salad ingredients and toss lightly.

Now, here's what I did.  I used a bag of salad -- it was the Fresh Express "Sweet Butter" which is a blend of green butter lettuce and red leaf lettuce.  And for the soybeans, I used a bag of the store brand steam-in-bag frozen shelled edamame.  For the orange, I chose to use a Cara Cara orange, which I had never tried before, but it sounded intriguing.  My supermarket website describes the flavor as "Exceptionally sweet with cherry undertones and a tangy cranberry-like zing" and the inside of the orange is a pretty pink -- almost like a red grapefruit color -- even though the outside is orange.  It was a great choice.  I didn't have scallions on hand, so just shook some dried minced onion into the dressing.

The recipe also noted that one could mix the dressing in advance -- several hours or overnight -- and marinate the soybeans in it, so I did do it that way.  I'm sure it made the salad more flavorful -- it just made the nice green soybeans not such a pretty color.

The salad was delicious and I will definitely make it again.  Maybe it would perk up your late-winter salad repertoire, too!
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Intentionally Focused, Day 29

Image from CrossCards.com

I'm continuing to enjoy the "Intentionally Focused" Bible study from Good Morning Girls and will be sad when the study ends this Friday.  However, they are offering a study with an Easter emphasis which will be starting, I think, at the end of March.  In the meantime, I want to share a few more of my studies from the "Intentionally Focused" readings.  Week 6 was about our children.  Now I know that not everyone has children, and some have children who are grown and gone.  I hadn't really planned on sharing any of the study from week 6 because for me it was quite introspective and personal.  But the particular verses from day 29 could apply to any of us and our interactions with any children whose lives we touch.  The verses we were to SOAP were Matthew 18:5-6.  So here goes:

S [Scripture]= "And whoso shall receive one such little child in My name receiveth Me. 
"But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in Me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depths of the sea."
  (Matthew 18:5-6)

O [Observation]= In this section [verses 1 through 6] of Matthew 18, Jesus is teaching that childlike faith is a necessity for those who would enter the kingdom of heaven.  His disciples had come to Him asking who was greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  In response, Jesus called a child to Him, set him in the midst of the disciples, and challenged them with the importance of childlike faith and humility.  No one will enter the kingdom of heaven without it. 

In verse 5, Jesus went even further, explaining that when children are received in His name, it's like receiving Him.  There are many ministering to children in His name; it is as if they ministered to Jesus Himself.  What a privilege!  But verse 6 adds a very important and sobering detail.  If anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, he is a marked man.  It would be better for him to have died.  When you think of how many horror stories we've heart of "missionaries" or "priests" who've abused children while representing the name of Christ ... well, this passage shows us exactly what God thinks about that.  Most sobering.

A [Application]= Over the years, I've had the opportunity of ministering to perhaps hundreds of children, through Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Wednesday Night Bible Club, and while working at a Christian school, not to mention through the written word in devotional books and a novel for young people.  How very exciting and encouraging for anyone who ministers to children that this is like ministering to Christ Himself!

But here's the sobering question for me.  Have I ever caused any of them to stumble?  Certainly not because of any abuse, but what about something as simple as a bad attitude on my part, or an unthinking idle word that I might have spoken?  I pray that this hasn't been the case, and will certainly be more aware of it in the future.  I hadn't ever really thought of it in this light before.

P [Prayer]= "Lord, I thank You so much for Your Word and its effectual working in our hearts and lives.  I thank You for the opportunity to minister to children, not only in the home but in many other venues over the years.  What a privilege it has been to be involved in their lives!
"Yet, Lord, as I consider the sobering words in Matthew 18:6, I pray that I have not ever caused any of them to stumble in any way.  Certainly that would never have been my intent, but I realize now that even attitudes or tones of voice could have contributed to that happening.  Now that I'm aware of this, Lord, I pray that You will help me to set a consistent example for all the children whose lives I touch.  I thank You for all You will do.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

So that was my study for Day 29.  A bit heavy, perhaps, but that's how it spoke to me.  Something to consider, for sure.

My next "Intentionally Focused" posts will be on ministry, I think -- although I may do just one more concerning children.  We will see!

Some "worth the read" links

This wonderful graphic is by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings.

 From time to time, I read some blog posts that really speak to me.  I subscribe to a number of blogs via email, and so I can read the posts as I have time.  Sometimes that might be days or weeks after they were originally posted, but good writing stands the test of time!  Often I will pin such posts to my "Worth the Read" Pinterest board, and sometimes I share the links here at my kitchen table.  Today I would like to share a few links with you!

One of the best posts I have read in a long time is Spring Cleaning the Soul by Sarah Beals at Joy-Filled Days.  Yes, just as our homes here in New England need cleaning after a long winter of cobwebs, tracked-in mud,  and wood ashes, our hearts need a thorough going-over, too.  I think Sarah is one of the best Christian bloggers out there.  She is "iron sharpening iron" for me (Proverbs 27:17) and her posts never fail to encourage or challenge me in some way.

This post -- 4 Ways to Cultivate Margin and Breathing Room in Your Life -- by Crystal Paine was so helpful to me.  I need to go back and re-read it.  Crystal's book Say Goodbye to Survival Mode is also well worth the read and re-read. "Balance" is my one word for 2014, but so far I'm not doing too well putting it into practice.  I hope that Crystal's book is going to help me a lot with that.

Last week the "Intentionally Focused" Bible study from Good Morning Girls was zeroing in on our ministries.  I intend to blog about each of the days, because the study was just so good and I got so much out of it that I just have to share.  One ministry we all should pay attention to is hospitality.  I feel so strongly about this that I have an entire Pinterest board about Hospitality.  This post: God Changes Lives when We Open Doors will bless your heart and possibly change the way you view hospitality.

Some times and seasons of life are very, very hard.  Although I don't have young children in the home on a regular basis, I can remember those days well, and this post -- Your Parenting Struggles are Opportunities to Choose -- by Sarah Beals might encourage you if you happen to be in this season of life.

If you are facing or living through some hard things right now, be sure and read Life is Hard.  God is Good. by Diane at An Extraordinary Day.  You will be blessed and encouraged!

Remember, "The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him."  (Nahum 1:7).  God is good, and He will always be good.  All the time.

Just one more.  We all have a story.  A story of childhood and growing up, a story of how God worked in our lives to bring us to salvation, a story of how He has sustained and led us since that time -- even stories of hard times He has brought us through.  Read Redeeming Your Story by Brenda at
Coffee Tea Books and Me and be encouraged today to share your story with others.

I hope that these posts will encourage others as they have me!

A busy week indeed

Graphic from CrossCards.com

"You must have had a busy week!" commented my pastor's wife yesterday.  It took me a few seconds.  How did she know?  Then I remembered -- she reads my blog.  And I hadn't posted anything new since March 1.  She was absolutely right.  My week was busy, crazy, stressful, and any other synonym that fits.  I was out of the house a LOT.  So much so that ... well, try to imagine the following scenario:

An appliance -- let's say it's the washing machine, because that's what it was -- breaks down.  Not at your house, but at your elderly parent's house.  After having the situation assessed by a knowledgeable handyman (your husband, in this case) who says it would best be handled by a professional, you call Sears to schedule a repair appointment.  And the person on the other end gives you a time next week -- next Thursday, to be exact.  (In the meantime, of course, you are doing your parent's laundry at your own home.) 

It will tell you a great deal about the busyness of my week when you learn that my response to this week-in-the-future appointment date was, "That would be great!"  The man on the other end sounded a bit surprised.  I almost think he said, "It will?"  He probably doesn't get that response very often when he mentions repair dates over a week away.  But I was just. so. relieved. that it wasn't last week.  The Lord knew I didn't need to add another thing to that week.  I'm so thankful that our times are in His hands!

"But I trusted in Thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God.  My times are in Thy hand ..."  

(Psalm 31:14-15a)

March Goals

Maple sugaring in 1956

A new month, and time to set some new goals!

* Read through the March  portion of the One-Year Devotional Bible.
*  Read 4 chapters in The Power of a Godly Grandparent
* Write and send a newsletter to grandkids
* Finish reading Say Goodbye to Survival Mode
* Memorize at least 4 Bible verses and review some older ones.
* Add 4 pages to my "What Do I Know About My God?" Scripture notebook
* Continue with "Intentionally Focused" Bible study
* Keep up with my Sunday School study -- The Heart of a Woman Who Prays
* Exercise at least 20 times.
* Get to bed by 9:45 pm each night.
* Limit sugar.
* Drink enough water each day.
* Keep up with Kelly's missions in homemaking zones of the week.
* Take an overnight getaway with my husband
* Watch grandkids so their parents can get away
* Post in both of my blogs as often as possible
* Reduce grocery bill by $5 per week (just a place to start!)
* Spend several hours updating my A-store.
* Do research for setting up an Etsy shop (I've already joined Etsy)
* Make at least a dozen items for sale at craft fairs.
* Write at least 4 encouraging notes to friends and family.
* Clean church and set up for potluck meal
* Make some winter banners
* Make gift tags from last year's Christmas cards.
* Complete several handcrafted birthday gifts for March and April birthdays.

MARCH'S HEALTHY HABIT:  Exercise
WORD FOR 2014: BALANCE

And here's how February went:
FEBRUARY GOALS
* Read through the February  portion of the One-Year Devotional Bible  -- DONE!
*  Read 4 chapters in The Power of a Godly Grandparent -- not done (sidetracked by another book)
* Memorize at least 4 Bible verses and review some older ones -- DONE!
* Add 4 pages to my "What Do I Know About My God?" Scripture notebook -- DONE!
* Continue with "Intentionally Focused" Bible study -- DONE!
* Keep up with my Sunday School study -- The Heart of a Woman Who Prays -- DONE!
* Exercise at least 20 times -- not done
* Get to bed by 9:45 pm each night -- not done
* Limit sugar -- not done enough
* Drink enough water each day -- not done enough
* Keep up with Kelly's missions in homemaking zones of the week -- not fully done
* Plan an overnight getaway with my husband -- not done
* Post in both of my blogs as often as possible -- DONE!
* Check out airline tickets for trip to NV -- DONE!
* Reduce grocery bill by $5 per week (just a place to start!) -- not consistently done
* Spend several hours updating my A-store -- not fully done
* Do research for setting up an Etsy shop (I've already joined Etsy) -- not done
* Make at least a dozen items for sale at craft fairs -- not done
* Write at least 4 encouraging notes to friends and family -- DONE!
* Clean church and set up for potluck meal -- DONE!
* Finish some UFO Christmas gift craft projects -- DONE!
* Design and make some winter banners -- found a pattern, but they're not done
* Make gift tags from last year's Christmas cards -- not done
* Start several handcrafted birthday gifts for March and April birthdays --  not done

FEBRUARY'S HEALTHY HABIT:  Exercise -- a dismal failure!  Life became so busy with so many snow days for grandchildren and with appointments for my dad, and then I got a cold.  Our road is not safe to walk on due to ice underfoot and high snowbanks which obscure visibility, so I can't say that I even went for a walk, other than parking at a distance at Walmart and the grocery store!

I am certainly hoping that March will be better as far as accomplishing my goals.