Dry Bones

Life for My Bones

 Sometimes I feel spiritually dry and wiped out. God is always there, ready to restore me when I come to Him. His Word has the power to restore me in ways that I find supernatural. 

His Word is...
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart..Hebrews 4:12 (NASB)

I come to His living Word and receive LIFE! It always amazes me how His Word breathes new life into me when the stresses and strains of every day living drain all my energy and joy.

I think part of it is that His Word puts my eyes on Him. He is the Giver of all Life! I guess it shouldn't amaze me so that when I come to the Giver of Life, I receive Life!

He is the giver of hope and all good things. He came that we could have life abundant, but that life is only available as we dwell in Him and seek to glorify the Living and Holy God. ^{(John 10:10} The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.) The enemy of our souls seeks to destroy us, but God wants us to have an abundant life. He is the only source of the fulfillment that we seek. He can fill you up!

Are you thirsty? Are your bones dry? Mine get that way! 

Come with me and drink His living water ! 

There is a dying world out there that needs the hope we have to offer. Most of the time I am not sure how to reach that dying world. But I want to...Do you feel that way?  Let's ask God to show us how to reach the lost and empower us to minister to them. He is faithful!

These verses are pulled from today's "Walking With Women Through the Word" by Wendy Pope(http://wendypope.org/.) Wendy always pulls encouraging thoughts from the passages for the day.

 

“I will put my breath into you, and you will come to life.  Then you will know that I am the LORD.”
Ezekiel 37:6

“ We have become old, dry bones-all hope is gone.”
Ezekiel 37 :11

 “’I will put breath into you, and you will come to life.  Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
Ezekiel 37: 6

 

 “O, my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again.”
Ezekiel 37:12

 Ezekiel 38:23
He destroys our enemies for His Name’s sake, so they will know He is LORD.  He is the Defender of His Name.

  Nahum 1:7
“The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust Him.”

 

 

And God.....

Don't you love that?
And God.......
He's there when no one else is.
At the end of everything and everybody, there He is.
And what a God!
Love
Joy
Peace
Comfort
Patience
Mercy
Hope
Strength
Healing
Consuming Fire!

How do we ever forget?
But He never forgets us.
He never gives up on us.
He always loves us.
He has everything I need all the time and I just refuse to see sometimes.
And God....
His mercies are new every day, to cover my sins, pick me up, and set me on the right path again.
Thank you, Father!

I love you, Lord!
 

Ratatouille

Ratatouille in the Crockpot

2 onions, sliced--I did 1 yellow and 1 red
1 eggplant, peeled and cubed
4 zucchini, sliced (I added 1 yellow squash to use it up)
2 green peppers (I used 1 green and 1 red), diced
2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 t. basil
2 t. oregano
2 t. parsley
2 t. salt (more to taste)
1/4 t. pepper
a pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 c. olive oil
2-3 T. balsamic vinegar

Layer in your crockpot: first half of the onion, eggplant, zucchini, peppers, garlic, a can of diced tomatoes and then dot with tomato paste. Add half of the herbs & spices. Repeat layering with remaining vegetables and dot with the remaining half of the tomato paste. Pour the olive oil on top and drizzle with the balsamic vinegar. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Serve over rice or whole grain pasta (which was what we did). Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top before serving.

That's it! You could omit or add vegetables as you wished. This was so healthy and flavorful! I am already craving it and I am going to make it again soon!

Chewing a bug

Well, I've been chewing a bug for a while now. I had to decide whether I was going to stay in my corner and chew my bug or move on. I've decided to move on.
Chewing a bug is not all it's cracked up to be.
Life is tough.
People are made of clay.
They let you down and hurt you.
I have friends that have broken my heart and left me wounded and afraid to trust again.It is really painful to be mistreated and misjudged.
But I refuse to be stuck on these issues for the rest of my life.
I will move on.
I will love as God intended for me to love and serve Him. I continually seek to love them and continue to pray for them despite the hurt.And our Amazing God gives me the love and strength to step outside of my hurt and love them in ways that are like Him! I do love my friends, even though they have walked away. I want us all to glorify God and raise our children to love and glorify Him because He is worthy of that. So He empowers me to love them and pray that for them.
God is always there and ready to help and to help you be all that He designed you to be.
I am seeking to be all He created me to be to His glory.
Enough bug chewing for a while.
Thank you, Lord, for never giving up on me.
Thank you for Your new mercies every day!


Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous;
love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly;
it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,
does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails...But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7,13
Love is patient,
True love is unconditional, that is, it does not depend on the attributes or lack thereof of the person loved, therefore, it is willing to give as much time necessary, and as much space as necessary for that person to grow.

love is kind and is not jealous;
Love seeks to give others something of benefit for their welfare, and consequently, rejoices when they do benefit.

love does not brag and is not arrogant,
To lift one's self up in reference to others leaves no room for unconditional, graceful love.

does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own,
To act inappropriately, shamefully (morally, especially in the area of sexual purity) is not in accordance with true love. Love never seeks it's own gratificaiton but rather the interests of others.

is not provoked,
Selfishness seeks to manipulate others by stimulating certain selfish emotions. Love will not do this to others, nor will it let it happen to itself.

does not take into account a wrong suffered,
Forgiveness. Let it go. Bitterness is the acid. You are the container. Get rid of it or it will kill you.

does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
Love does not somehow gloss over things that are going to be hurtful. True love originates from the truth.

bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
If love really is unconditional, it will hold any weight, face any doubt, persist through hopelessness, and last any trial

Love never fails...
If it did, would it be love?

But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Someday, faith will not be needed, for we will see God. Hope will not be needed, for when everything is fulfilled, there is no need for hope. But love, yes, to it there will be no end. If it did, it wouldn't be love.

Claim It!

Isaiah 55:11:

So is my Word that goes out from My mouth:
It will not return to Me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Sometimes We Need Rescuing

Sometimes we need rescuing...
That was on Ann Voskamp's blog today.
http://www.aholyexperience.com/2011/08/organizing-head-heart-to-homeschool/
It was a release, permission....
I need rescuing.....
And Satan wants me to beat myself up for it. Or better yet, to deny it.... And I oblige....
But God wants to rescue me....
He loves me...
He's there.
He will.
Thank you, Lord, for being my salvation. For saving me from my sins, both in the past and in the present. Thank you  for loving me even when I am singularly unloveable. After decades of pratice, I can hide that I am hurting, angry and bitter from everyone else. But I can't hide it fromYou...
And the longer I  hide it and dont' deal with it, the more it festers and becomes a boil of nasty germs that would eat me up from the inside.
But You are there.
You see.
You know.
And You say, "Come to me... I love you... I care.... I will help..." When no one else is there, You are... When no one else cares, You do.
My heart hurts so much. I need You, Lord. You are the only one that can fill this empty space insideand I  feel so empty, so needy.
Rescue me....

9/12/11 Monday

40 clove garlic chicken

http://susannesspace.blogspot.com/2007/04/slow-cook-thursday40-clove-chicken.html

garlic mashed potatoes

green beans

salad

Special Spinach Salad (from my Sister-in-Law)

1/4 Cup Sugar
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 bunch of romaine, torn
1 pkg (6 oz) fresh baby spinach
1/2 lb. sliced mushrooms
3 cups shredded swiss cheese
1 med. red onion, sliced
1/2 lb. sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 can 15 oz mandarin oranges, drained

Poppy Seed Dressing:
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 tbsp. dijon mustard
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup canola oil
2 tsp. poppy seeds

1. In a small heavy skillet, melt sugar low heat add almonds and stir to coat. Spread onto a greased sheet of foil; break apart if necessary.
2. In a large bowl combine romaine, spinach, mushrooms, cheese, red onion bacon and oranges.
3. For dressing, in a blender, combine the vinegar, sugar , onion, mustard and salt cover and process until blended. While processing, gradually add oil in a steady stream, stir in poppy seeds.
4. Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat. Sprinkle with sugared almonds