Hope fills the afflicted soul with such inward joy and consolation, that it can laugh while tears are in the eye, sigh and sing all in a breath; it is called "the rejoicing of hope" (Hebrews 3:6).
—William Gurnall
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Saturday, September 29, 2007
Breakfast Fruit Cup
2 cups cubed cantaloupe
2 large red apples, chopped
1 cup red or green grapes
2 large red apples, chopped
1 cup red or green grapes
1 orange, sectioned
1 medium firm banana sliced
1/2 cup Lemon yogurt
1 tablespoon
Orange juice concentrate
Preparation: In a serving bowl, combine the fruit. Combine the yogurt and orange juice concentrate; drizzle over fruit.
1 medium firm banana sliced
1/2 cup Lemon yogurt
1 tablespoon
Orange juice concentrate
Preparation: In a serving bowl, combine the fruit. Combine the yogurt and orange juice concentrate; drizzle over fruit.
Easy Breakfast Bake
2 packages (12 oz each) bulk pork sausage
1 medium bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
1 cup Original Bisquick® mix
2 cups milk
¼ teaspoon pepper
4 eggs
Heat oven to 400ºF. Grease rectangular baking dish, 13x9x2 inches. Cook sausage, bell pepper and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Stir together sausage mixture, potatoes and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese in baking dish.
Stir Bisquick mix, milk, pepper and eggs until blended. Pour into baking dish.
Bake uncovered 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 1 to 2 minutes longer or just until cheese is melted. Cool 5 minutes.
1 medium bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
1 cup Original Bisquick® mix
2 cups milk
¼ teaspoon pepper
4 eggs
Heat oven to 400ºF. Grease rectangular baking dish, 13x9x2 inches. Cook sausage, bell pepper and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Stir together sausage mixture, potatoes and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese in baking dish.
Stir Bisquick mix, milk, pepper and eggs until blended. Pour into baking dish.
Bake uncovered 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 1 to 2 minutes longer or just until cheese is melted. Cool 5 minutes.
Shake It Off
A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer's well. The farmer heard the mule 'braying' - or - whatever mules do when they fall into wells.
After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened...and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.
Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and hisneighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back...a thoughtstruck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back ... he should shake it off and step up!
This he did, blow after blow."Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off andstep up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought "panic" and just kept right on shaking it off and stepping up!
It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of the well.
The dirt that seemed would bury him, actually blessed him ... all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.
After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened...and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.
Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and hisneighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back...a thoughtstruck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back ... he should shake it off and step up!
This he did, blow after blow."Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off andstep up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought "panic" and just kept right on shaking it off and stepping up!
It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of the well.
The dirt that seemed would bury him, actually blessed him ... all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.
Coping with Stress
A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked, "How heavy is this glass of water?"Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.
The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it.
If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.
If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.
In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."He continued, "And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."
"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden."
"So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can."
Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:
Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply be kind to others.
Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.
The second mouse gets the cheese.
When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.
You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.
The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it.
If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.
If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.
In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."He continued, "And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."
"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden."
"So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can."
Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:
Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply be kind to others.
Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.
The second mouse gets the cheese.
When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.
You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Pumpkin Bread
4 eggs2-1/3 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 - 15oz. can solid pack pumpkin
3 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
2 3/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon*
3/4 teaspoons ground nutmeg*
3/4 teaspoons ground cloves*
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice*
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup golden raisins, optional
1/4 cups sugar, for topping
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, for topping
* You may substitute 4 1/2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice for the starred ingredients. Be sure to note that you still need cinnamon for the topping.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans or 24 muffin cups. Combine the eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin in a large bowl, and stir until smooth.
In a medium bowl, mix the dry ingredients and the spices with a wire whisk.
Add the nuts (and raisins) and stir together. Add to the egg mixture and mix thoroughly. Fill the loaf pans or muffin cups with the batter.
Mix the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl, and sprinkle over the bread or muffin batter.
Bake the bread at 375 degrees F for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or the muffins for 35 to 40 minutes. When the bread is done, a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.
Yields 2 loaves or 24 muffins.
Pot Roast
1 (2 to 3 lb.) Beef Chuck Top Blade Boneless Pot Roast (Or English Cut)
1 TBS. butter
2 c. beef stock (stock adds great flavor)
4 potatoes, peeled & quartered
4 carrots, peeled & cut into 1 inch pieces
4 celery stocks cut into 1 inch pieces
1 med. Vidalia onion, quartered
1 small carton of whole button mushrooms
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 TBS. Soy sauce
1 TBS. water
1 TBS. cornstarch
Directions: Preheat oven to 375º F.Season roast with salt and pepper. In a medium skillet sear all sides of the seasoned roast in the TBS. of butter until browned.In a roasting pan place seared roast (along with the juices and bits from the skillet) in middle and arrange your veggies around it. Season veggies with salt and pepper. Pour the beef stock over it all and cover with foil.
Cook for 2.5 to 3 hours or until the roast falls apart with a fork. Transfer roast to cutting board or serving platter and let rest for 5-10 minutes.
Cook for 2.5 to 3 hours or until the roast falls apart with a fork. Transfer roast to cutting board or serving platter and let rest for 5-10 minutes.
While roast is resting, using a slotted spoon, remove vegetables and transfer to serving platter or other dish and pour broth and juices into a small sauce pan and add a slurry made of 1 TBS. soy sauce, 1 TBS. of water and 1 TBS. of cornstarch. Stir constantly over medium-high heat until gravy thickens. Actually this makes an au jus/gravy combination type sauce.
Seventy Times Seven
"Go again seven times."—1 Kings 18:43.
Success is certain when the Lord has promised it. Although you may have pleaded month after month without evidence of answer, it is not possible that the Lord should be deaf when His people are earnest in a matter which concerns His glory.
The prophet on the top of Carmel continued to wrestle with God, and never for a moment gave way to a fear that he should be non-suited in Jehovah's courts. Six times the servant returned, but on each occasion no word was spoken but "Go again."
We must not dream of unbelief, but hold to our faith even to seventy times seven. Faith sends expectant hope to look from Carmel's brow, and if nothing is beheld, she sends again and again.
So far from being crushed by repeated disappointment, faith is animated to plead more fervently with her God. She is humbled, but not abashed: her groans are deeper, and her sighing more vehement, but she never relaxes her hold or stays her hand.
It would be more agreeable to flesh and blood to have a speedy answer, but believing souls have learned to be submissive, and to find it good to wait for as well as upon the Lord.
Delayed answers often set the heart searching itself, and so lead to contrition and spiritual reformation: deadly blows are thus struck at our corruption, and the chambers of imagery are cleansed. The great danger is lest men should faint, and miss the blessing.
Readers, do not fall into that sin, but continue in prayer and watching.
At last the little cloud was seen, the sure forerunner of torrents of rain, and even so with you, the token for good shall surely be given, and you shall rise as a prevailing prince to enjoy the mercy you have sought.
Elijah was a man of like passions with us: his power with God did not lie in his own merits. If his believing prayer availed so much, why not yours? Plead the precious blood with unceasing importunity, and it shall be with you according to your desire. C. H. Spurgeon
Success is certain when the Lord has promised it. Although you may have pleaded month after month without evidence of answer, it is not possible that the Lord should be deaf when His people are earnest in a matter which concerns His glory.
The prophet on the top of Carmel continued to wrestle with God, and never for a moment gave way to a fear that he should be non-suited in Jehovah's courts. Six times the servant returned, but on each occasion no word was spoken but "Go again."
We must not dream of unbelief, but hold to our faith even to seventy times seven. Faith sends expectant hope to look from Carmel's brow, and if nothing is beheld, she sends again and again.
So far from being crushed by repeated disappointment, faith is animated to plead more fervently with her God. She is humbled, but not abashed: her groans are deeper, and her sighing more vehement, but she never relaxes her hold or stays her hand.
It would be more agreeable to flesh and blood to have a speedy answer, but believing souls have learned to be submissive, and to find it good to wait for as well as upon the Lord.
Delayed answers often set the heart searching itself, and so lead to contrition and spiritual reformation: deadly blows are thus struck at our corruption, and the chambers of imagery are cleansed. The great danger is lest men should faint, and miss the blessing.
Readers, do not fall into that sin, but continue in prayer and watching.
At last the little cloud was seen, the sure forerunner of torrents of rain, and even so with you, the token for good shall surely be given, and you shall rise as a prevailing prince to enjoy the mercy you have sought.
Elijah was a man of like passions with us: his power with God did not lie in his own merits. If his believing prayer availed so much, why not yours? Plead the precious blood with unceasing importunity, and it shall be with you according to your desire. C. H. Spurgeon
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups pumpkin puree or cooked mashed pumpkin
cream cheese frosting, below
1/2 cup chopped pecans
PREPARATION:
Directions for pumpkin cake Combine sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs in a large mixing bowl; mix well. Sift dry ingredients into a separate bowl; stir into oil mixture, beating well. Stir in pumpkin puree.
Pour batter into a greased and floured cake pan. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes. Turn out onto a rack to cool. Frost pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with chopped pecans.
Cream Cheese Frosting
1/4 cup butter
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
1 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl; beat well until smooth. Makes enough for 2-layer pumpkin cake.
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