Home Cooking for Body and Soul

I was featured at At the Well yesterday with lesson #8 for Home Cooking for Body and Soul. Join me there to check it out!

I’d Like a Word with You—The Resolution for Women

God’s Word was written just for us. It is like a love letter from God. We learn much from reading it and we experience His great love for us.

“ . . .like a radiation treatment on a cancerous cell, His Word is actively renovating us even when it seems like nothing unusual is taking place. His Word . . . . It’s life. It’s love. It’s living truth, solid as granite yet soft as a baby’s skin.”

Today I would like to share some of my favorite verses with you. Some of these I have memorized word for word. Some of them I know the verse, but not the reference (without looking it up). Either way, they are like carrying God’s love letters with me wherever I go! I’m also sharing some I would like to memorize.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” ~ Philippians 4:13

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who have been the called according to His purpose.” ~ Romans 8:28

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” ~ Psalm 127:3-5

“For you formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.” ~ Psalm 139:13-14

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” ~ Jeremiah 29:11

“I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” ~ John 10:10

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” ~ Proverbs 3:5-6

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way. Though he fall down, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand.” ~ Psalm 37:23

This ends the section of Faithfully His. I signed the resolution that,

I will live as a woman answerable to God and faithfully committed to His Word.

Do Not Deprive—A Look at Chapter 16 of Be Fruitful & Multiply

“When we refuse to have more children, we deprive many people.”

Have you ever thought about it that way or not? Many people will tell you that not having children or more children is their choice and it doesn’t matter to anyone else what their decision is. In actuality, it does affect others.

You deprive God of someone He had a plan for.

You deprive yourself of a blessing (or blessings) that God had in store for you.

You deprive your parents (that child’s grandparents) of “glory and honor” (Proverbs 17:6.

If you already have children and choose to not have more, then you are depriving your children of the blessing of a sister or brother.

You deprive the church of not only someone to minister to, but of someone that can help further the gospel message.

You deprive the world. That child you chose not to have could have been who the world needed to turn people back to Christ. You never know the power of raising godly seed.

Your decision to not have children (or more children) definitely has an effect on more than just you and your spouse. So many people will miss out on blessings because you choose to deny a blessing that God has planned for you.

Truth

Handling Opposition—Lessons from Nehemiah 6

I am constantly amazed at how much we can learn about living life from the Old Testament. I hear people all the time say how the OT is irrelevant and that we no longer need to live by it because Christ came to defeat the law so it is now not applicable. That has to be the farthest from the truth! God gave us His whole Word. If it wasn’t pertinent to us, then He wouldn’t have had it written and combined with the New Testament for us to read. Just taking the time to study the book of Nehemiah has opened my eyes to the vast amount of knowledge and wisdom for us to learn.

Chapter six of Nehemiah continues to show the opposition he experienced when rebuilding the wall. He was doing what God called him to do and Satan didn’t like that so he sent many people to try to stop him. People spread rumors about him and threatened him. We can learn much by how he handled the opposition.

When we are living for God, we will be attacked! If you are living a carefree, easy life, then you might want to worry about whether you are living right. If you are living for Christ, then Satan will want to ruin your testimony and break your spirit and will try to deter you from living for Him. (8-9)

This reminds me of the website that is out saying that someone will pay one million dollars to whomever can provide photographic proof that Tim Tebow is not a virgin. Just because Tim is influencing many young people for Christ, they want to bring him down. They are doing everything in their power to ruin his testimony. How sad is it that some people have nothing better to do with their time and money than to attack Christians?

Commit your accusers and their accusations to the Lord. Nehemiah just calmly stated that what they had heard was not true and then took it to the Lord. He prayed for strength to continue on with the work and to withstand the accusations. (9)

Stand fast! Do not let false accusations and those who fear what you are doing stop you. Stand up to them and do not be moved. (11)

Seek wisdom. Nehemiah could have easily been deceived into doing the wrong thing. One of his own people had turned against him and was trying to help those who wanted to stop him. God granted him the wisdom to perceive what was going on (12)

Give God the glory! When you succeed in God’s plans, make sure you give God the glory. When we are able to accomplish much more than “should” be accomplished, people will know it is because God was on our side, but we still need to make sure we give Him the glory and not try to take it for ourselves. Our goal should be to live our lives in a way that all we do directs people back to God. (16)

$200 Cash!

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How Do You Love Your Enemy?

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” ~ Matthew 5:43-48

We are called to love everyone—those who are our family, those who are our friends, those who we don’t know and even those who have hurt us tremendously (whether they are repentant or not). Christ doesn’t say that it will be easy, but it is what we are called to do.

If we only love those who love us back, we are no different than the world. If we treat our enemies with hatred as they treat us, we are no different than the world. We are called to be different from the world. We need to forgive those who hurt us.

Here is where my question comes in. What does it look like to love our enemies? How can we show forgiveness and love without setting ourselves up for continual attacks? Does showing forgiveness mean that we trust that person (those people) again? Can we cut off communication with someone and still show love?

I have been deeply hurt by someone that I befriended. I prayed for her and her marriage. I grieved with her when her mother died. I invited her and her family into my home and showed her love, respect, grace, and mercy. She then took my trust and hurt me so terribly that I can’t even imagine anything hurting more (except by someone in my family).

I forgive her but also pity her. She says she knows Christ, however, “every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.” (Matthew 7:17-20). While every person sins and messes up, this is not the only “bad fruit” I have seen produced from her. I’m having a hard time justifying continual bad fruit as mistakes and because of that I truly can’t expect her to live as I live because she doesn’t have Christ’s strength and peace in her.

I know that many of the things she has experienced in her life is of her own doing and she doesn’t even realize it. I know that if she truly did come to know Christ, then her life would change drastically and for the better, but there is a difference between saying you know Christ and attend church and actually having a relationship with Him.

That being said, is it okay for me to cut off communication with her? I do still pray for her to come to a saving knowledge of Christ. Is that the way that I am supposed to show love? Should I not cut off communication and continue to try to witness to her? Am I supposed to open myself (and my family) up for more pain by allowing her to have the opportunity again to hurt me?

I am hoping people will share their perspectives with me. I look forward to reading advice that is backed up with scripture.

Be Fruitful and Multiply....Why?

"I guess they took that silly little outdated verse in the Bible about being fruitful and multiplying…you know…the one that’s only for those old fashioned Bible characters, but not for us enlightened, modern Wemmicks…seriously.

The result? A really big tree. (Talk about dominion…)"

Read the entire article by clicking on the link below.


Be Fruitful and Multiply....Why?

Selfishness or Lack of Faith

I am experiencing something very stressful right now in my life. While I know that everything happens for a reason and that God is in control and that all things work together for the good of those who love the Lord (Romans 8:28), I am having a hard time dealing with this right now.

I know in my heart I should be saying, "Not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26: 39), but I am having difficulty believing that in my heart. I don’t want to endure the pain of this trial. I don’t want to see my family endure the pain of this trial. I don’t want to grow stronger through this trial. I don’t want to praise God through the storm. I want to praise Him through the goodness. I want the easy route. I just don’t know if I am strong enough even though His Word says, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13).

Am I being selfish or do I lack faith? Do I not trust God to guide me through this? Do I not trust that He will strengthen me and my family? Do I not trust that His plans are better than my plans? (Isaiah 55:8)

I need to draw closer to Him in this. I need to read more of His Word and talk to Him more in prayer. I need to read passages like Psalm 56: 3-4:

Whenever I am afraid,

I will trust in You.

In God (I will praise His word),

In God I have put my trust; ‘

I will not fear.

What can flesh do to me?

And Psalm 55:16-17

As for me, I will call upon God,

And the Lord shall save me.

Evening and morning and at noon

I will pray, and cry aloud

And He shall hear my voice.

And Psalm 18:31-32

For who is God, except the Lord?

And who is a rock, except our God?

It is God who arms me with strength

And makes my way perfect.

And Psalm 34: 17-18

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,

And delivers them out of all their troubles.

The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,

And saves such as have a contrite spirit.

And Psalm 71:20-21

You, who have shown me great and severe troubles,

Shall revive me again,

And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.

You shall increase my greatness,

And comfort me on every side.

And Psalm77:11-13

I will remember the works of the Lord;

Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.

I will also meditate on all Your work,

And talk of Your deeds.

Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary;

Who is so great a God as our God?

I know there are many more scriptures I could list (and I may in coming days). I truly believe I needed to write this post more for me than for someone else, but maybe His Words will be encouraging to someone else right now as well.

I pray for anyone going through a difficult time right now. While you may not be experiencing the same trials I am, He will comfort you regardless.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

Update: I couldn’t post this right after writing it because of some things that came up. About an hour after I wrote it, the main stressor trial I was experiencing was taken away from me—PRAISE GOD! We are still dealing with many stressful situations, but they seem more bearable. I’m praising God for guiding me through it all.

FRENCH COUNTRY COTTAGE: Front Door Basket & Giveaway

FRENCH COUNTRY COTTAGE: Front Door Basket & Giveaway: Last week ~ I shared the little refresh for our front door that I did with Lowes A little glossy black paint, some new address numbers ...

Are You a Fool?

I found a quiz on Visionary Daughter's blog to discover if I am a fool. While the quiz is geared toward daughters still at home, it was still eye opening for me as well to see where I thought I was doing "okay", but I'm really not. It backs everything up with scripture which I found the best aspect of the quiz. I will definitely be having at least my oldest two take this quiz.

Do you want to take the quiz, too? Do you want your daughters to take the quiz?

Do You Know What Your Money is Supporting?

I have written a post before about knowing where you spend your money (read it here). While the other post was about not spending money with organizations that support immoral practices, this post is about not spending money with companies owned by Monsanto.

Monsanto is a leading company creating and pushing genetically modified organisms. They are pushing for laws that would restrict not only small farms but also personal gardening. With their push for so many GMO, it is hard to keep some foods not genetically modified because they are cross-pollinated with Monsanto’s crops. They then want to “claim” the cross-pollinated crops because they are being grown with their patented seed.

I am against GMO because I believe God knew best when He created this earth. I think food should be grown and consumed as close to the way God created them as possible. I don't think that man knows better on how to grow something. I don't think we should put rate of production or producing something year round again of health. It is my belief that GMO are being pushed for greed and greed alone. We need to be putting our health above the desire for money. If GMO continue to increase in numbers, we are going to continue to see healthcare needs rise, therefore, healthcare costs rise as well.

I am constantly learning more and more about Monsanto and their shady practices so I didn’t like finding out that I was unknowingly supporting Monsanto owned companies. I wanted to share this list so that if others feel as I do about keeping food GMO-free, then they would be armed with the knowledge needed to spend their money wisely.

I don’t buy from these companies very often as it is because I don’t buy much processed food, but I do occasionally buy from a few of them. I am going to try to remember not to purchase from any of these companies anymore. I suggest keeping the list in your purse if you are serious because the list is long.

Monsanto owned companies

 

Aunt Jemima                                 Quaker                                 Betty Crocker

General Mills                                 Bisquick                               Duncan Hines

Hungry Jack                                  Jiffy                                      Ms. Butterworths

Pepperidge Farms                         Campbells                            Aurora Foods

Kraft/Phillip Morris                        Post cereals                         Hershey’s Nestle

Carnation                                      Holsum                                Interstate bakeries

Best Foods                                   Knorr                                  Kellogs

Nature Valley                                Nabisco                              Pillsbury

Heinz                                            Hellmans                             Hunts

KC Masterpiece                           Frito-lay/Pepsi                     Delicious brand cookies

Famous Amos                              Keebler/Flower Industries    Banquet

Green Giant                                  Healthy Choice                    ConAgra

Kid Cuisine                                  Stouffers                              Lean Cusine

Marie Callenders                          Ore-ida                               Smart Ones

Power Bar Brand                        Chef Boyardee                     Hormel

Loma Linda                                 Morningstar                         Lipton

Unilever                                      Uncle Ben’s                          Rice-a-roni/Pasta-roni

Tombstone Pizza                          Totinos                                Orville Redenbacher

Pop Secret                                  Pringles                                Procter and Gamble

Coca Cola                                  Minute Made                        Pepsi

Cadbury/Sweppes                      Capri-Sun                            Kool-aid

Ocean Spray                              V-8                                      Prego Pasta Sauce

Ragu Sauce        

The Vision—A Look at Chapter 15 of Be Fruitful & Multiply

Can you remember back to what you were told before you were married about marriage? If you aren’t married yet, just think to what people tell you about marriage.

Get to know each other before you have children.

Take time to travel and experience “life” before you have children.

Establish a large bank account, large home, new vehicles, etc. before you have children.

Do any of these sound familiar to you? Unfortunately, they do to me. I heard all of those and more after Chad and I were engaged. In fact, I told myself I wasn’t going to have children until after I was tenured and “secure” in my teaching. Good thing God changed my mind about that! If I would have listened to myself, I would have missed out on my first three children!

Nancy Campbell discusses the types of blessings that were said over a newly married couple in the Bible. They are in stark contrast to what blessings are said today. While she quotes and discusses many of those passages, I’m just going to mention one—Rebekah (because it is the freshest in my mind considering my husband mentioned her in his sermon last week).

Let’s recap the story briefly. Abraham sent a servant back to his homeland to find a wife for Rebekah. He said that whoever offers his servant water and water for his camel would be the woman. Rebekah was that woman. The servant went to her home and told her father what had happened and said that Rebekah must go back with him right away to become Isaac’s wife (remember, Rebekah had never even seen Isaac!). Rebekah and her father both consented and before she left, her family spoke a blessing over her.

“And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be though the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.” ~ Genesis 24:60

In most people’s eyes, they had every reason to say, “Wait until you get to know each other first!”, but they didn’t. They chose to speak a great vision for her. What greater vision can we have than to live a life for God and do His will?

Beauty in the Every Day

God definitely knew what He was doing when He blessed me with daughters (like anyone really questioned that!). I am definitely not a "girly-girl" and often lean toward practical instead of pretty. My daughters, on the other hand, are definitely all about the pretty!

Ever since the wild flowers started blooming, I have had at least one container full of flowers on my table. When a new flower appeared in the field across the street, Sabra asked about what kind it was. I informed her it was a daisy and one of my favorite flowers. Since then, I have been blessed with some on my table. Just today she brought me a big bouquet. Every time I walk into the kitchen (which is often when I have to feed a family of 11!) a smile appears on my face.

My girls have helped me see the beauty in creation. God created it for us and we need to take the time to embrace it and enjoy it. I often miss it in my quest for practicality and accomplishing tasks. God knew I would need help embracing the beauty and my feminine side. I guess I need more help than others which is why I have 9 girls!

Lessons from the Greenhouse

I read a wonderful post about lessons we learn from gardening to raising our children. Here is an excerpt:

Not all seeds germinate.
I have lost six babies in the womb. I refer to these little ones as my “Treasures in heaven”.
Seeds sprout in their own good time.
Several of my babies were born past their due date. One was over 2 weeks late!
Caring for plants requires daily maintenance.
Caring for children is a full time job, not only the “mechanics” of preparing meals, washing clothes, bathing, and meeting physical needs, but also instructing, correcting and building relationships.

Please head over to The Better Mom to read the rest of the article!