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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Spring in Virginia

cherryblossoms
It's not yet Spring here in Colorado. We're still catching up on the cold weather and snow-showers that December forgot to have. But in Virginia, everything is starting to bud and bloom.
bridalwreath
We had a wonderful week there--visiting relatives, having a birthday party, taking graduation pictures, and just relaxing from the stress life brings.

our neighbor's flock had three newborns this spring--they were so sweet!


waiting in the Detroit Airport--it's ginormous and the intercom blared out in English, Chinese, and another Asian language


Our five year old cousin loves to draw and color. She drew a few pictures for Sarah and me.


the forsithia was in bloom--it was gorgeous!

my Aunt made these cute cupcakes and a beautiful cake for my birthday

blue blooms at my grandmother's house

An old blue bike one of my great uncles left leaning against Pawpaw's old shop.
Mr. and Mrs. White Duck and their brown friend (not pictured ;) were the only ones out and about on the pond at Emory & Henry (where I hope to finish college after Highlands Community College)


I'm already missing the cabin...but we'll be living there soon.
I hope I can enjoy the rest of my time here with all contentment, like Paul says in Philippians 4:11,
"...for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content."
Have a relaxed, blessed weekend!

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Trust

Do you trust God?

Think on that for a moment.

Do you really trust God?

Or in the words of Del Tackett: "Do you really believe that what you believe is really real?"

I've had ongoing health problems since I was 10. Sometimes things are worse. Sometimes they're better. Last week they were worse.

One evening, I went to my bedroom, sat on the floor in the dark, and just cried. I was so tired. Tired of feeling sick. Tired of pain. Tired of not being able to do the things I wanted, even normal everyday things. I cried for a long time. I also prayed.

During the height of my sobbing, I heard a voice. (To clarify: I did not hear an actual audible voice; it was more like a feeling in my mind.) "Do you trust me?"

That brought me up short. I thought for a minute.

"Do you trust me?"

And I realized that I didn't. I certainly would have said that I did. I thought that I was trusting God. And I realized that there was my problem in a nutshell. I didn't trust God.

Immediately I prayed. I confessed that I hadn't trusted him, and I realized that trust was a choice, not a feeling. I resolved to trust him in the future. At once I felt "the peace of God, which passeth all understanding" (Philippians 3:7) And I knew that God would take care of me. That doesn't necessarily mean that he will heal me...but he will take care of me.

Job 13:15 "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him"

So I ask again, Do you trust God?

Blessings,
Rachel

Monday, March 28, 2011

Project: Read

This week rather than posting, I want to prepare you for next week's post. Go check out James 1 and Psalm 27.

Read them several times. Look at texts that stick out to you.

I'm looking forward to next week!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Waiting

I don't really know what to post this week. I am sick in body, and anguished in heart. I have no words of wisdom or insight. I'm not even sure I have any words.

I wish that I could pretend I had it all together, and that I was still rejoicing in the middle of everything. But I don't have it all together. I'm tired; I'm frustrated; I'm hurt.

And I guess what it comes down to is this: "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but [when] the desire cometh, [it is] a tree of life." ~Proverbs 13:12 My desire is the Lord's return. That will put an end to all problems. My poor health, my doubts, my fears, the divisions that I see among believers and which cause me such pain. Those will all disappear. How I long for that day!

"In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." ~1 Corinthians 15:52



"But thanks [be] to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." ~1 Corinthians 15:57

Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
May God bless you all this week.
Rachel

Monday, March 21, 2011

Time Goes On

With each passing day, you are as young as you'll ever be again and as old as you've ever been before. This is not an original thought of mine, but something my mom read and shared with me a few months ago. Even so, let it sink in. Today, you are as young as you'll ever be again and as old as you've ever been before.

What will you do with today?

What did you do with yesterday that made today better? What did you do with yesterday that made today worse?

Verse like 1 Corinthians 10:31 have a lot to say: "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God!"

Make use of today. Good use. Use it to worship God, to help those around you worship God. Do this by cultivating a spirit of godliness in yourself as well as those around you.

As Woodrow Kroll always says at the end of his program, "Have a good and godly day. For of what lasting value is a good day if it's not also a godly day?"

Thursday, March 17, 2011

A week of time away...

Last year this time, life was a lot different. We were heading out for Spring Break in Tucson and had a lovely time there.
I was so thrilled about the Butterfly Garden we visited--butterflies are my favorite flying creature.
We're leaving tomorrow for Virginia. I'm so excited, I know I won't get any sleep tonight. We're taking a plane to South Carolina and then driving the rest of the way...home.
We're moving to Virginia in June and I'm really happy to be living so close to relatives. Both my mom and dad are from the same town (the one Daddy's retiring in) and all except a small few of my extended relations live there. It will be quite a change for me--going from City Girl to Country Girl, Military Brat to Civilian. I think I'll like it, though. My mom's concerned that I'll be disappointed with Country life and long for groups of friends and large shopping centers. And I probably will...
But God knows best. He's so good to me. He planned, even before Grandaddy's birth in 1910, to have my Great-Grandfather live for 91 years and die two days ago. And have the funeral coincide with our Spring Break trip.
My Dad grew up on Grandaddy's Milk Farm and was very close to both his Grandmother (who passed away last year) and Grandaddy. Both of my parents always remarked how delicious Grandmother's apple pie was. Daddy did a lot with his Grandpa and says he can still remember going to see his first movie with him. I'm so thankful my Jesus kept my Great-Grandparents alive so long. I have wonderful memories about them and feel so lucky to have known them. I will miss going to Grandmother and Grandaddy's house after it is sold.
But God knows best.
It's so wonderful to have an all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving God.
Have a lovely break, if you are taking one.
Hopefully I'll have plenty of pictures of Springtime in the Country to share next week when I return.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Tea and Scones

I love drinking tea. It not only tastes good, but it has so many health benefits. Black, white, and green teas all contain antioxidants, which are extremely important for protecting your body from cancer, among other benefits. They also contain some caffeine, which is a good booster in the late afternoon. :)

I love herbal teas too. I drink chamomile when I'm nervous, peppermint for pain or if I have an upset stomach, raspberry leaf for general health, ginger for dizziness...the list could go on and on.

And what goes better with a good black tea than scones? After trying many different recipes, and deciding what we liked best, my sister and I made this recipe. I won't make any claims that it's the best scone recipe in the world...but it is good. ;)
Note: this recipe was made for high altitude! You lowlanders, make changes accordingly.

Basic Scones รก la Barton

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
heaped 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
scant 1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, cubed
3 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and place a baking sheet in it. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spices, and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the sugar. Mix together milk and sour cream in a measuring cup. Add to bowl and mix to form a soft dough. With floured hands, turn dough out onto floured work surface and use your hands to shape it into a thick 7-inch round. Cut the round into eight wedges. Using oven mitts, carefully take the heated baking sheet out of the oven. With a spatula, transfer the scones to the baking sheet. Bake in the upper part of the oven until browned and well-risen, 10-12 minutes. Cool the scones on a wire rack. Serve with butter, clotted cream, or strawberry jam.


I have not made this yet, so I don't know if it actually works, but here is a recipe for making clotted cream (since everyone seems to agree that you can't buy good clotted cream at the store).

"Don't start with milk or your yield will be too small. Start with cream. Raw, unpasteurised cream gives the best results. I can't give you a recommendation for raw cream in your area but in California Claravale's raw cream is the best contender for the job that I have found. Organic Pastures version works too. You can even make an ok version with pasteurised cream (I tried Straus Organic), but raw is definitely the best thing to use.

Set aside several hours, this is a long project. Pour a pint of cream into your largest, non reactive, clean frying-pan. I use a large All-Clad fry pan, you need the largest surface area you can get. Put over your lowest heat setting, I use 'warm' on my ancient electric stove. If you use gas, I am guessing you will need a diffuser. After about an hour, a crust will have formed on the surface. Scrape it off with a non-slotted spoon into a bowl, keeping the crust facing upwards. Repeat 3 or 4 times until most of the cream has thickened and been scraped into the bowl. Refrigerate over night. The next morning you should have a thick, gloopy, knobbly-surfaced cream which you can spread onto a freshly baked scone." Recipe from this blog The comments on the original post also give some good advice.

Enjoy! And let me know if you like the recipes. :)
May God bless you all richly this week,
Rachel