Mess Up

Messing up really sucks sometimes. It's a horrible feeling. On Friday I was responsible to cook for 50 bible school students. Oh yes, I thought I had it all planned out. Ha! Let me tell you a secret... Potatoes scare me. They are ticking time bombs of potential messing-up-ness! But, I decided to face my fear and add potatoes in alfredo sauce to the menu, thinking; "Okay this is only for 50 people, I will just be really careful and not mess up on these potatoes." Guess what? I messed up. Alarmingly, I noticed that they were completely overcooked (those darn church stoves are beastly) and it was all my fault! The recipe was very specific in stating "do not overcook!". So... what to do? Throw out 20 pounds of potatoes? Preposterous. I can't do that. So, with advice from my best kitchen buddies- Lesya, Natalya, Dasha, and Liliya we decided to turn the pitiful mess into mashed potatoes. And this brings me to the conclusion- sometimes mess ups turn out to be not-so-messed-up. Maybe the dish did not look so delicate and shapely, but it was creamy and flavorful. Now, next time you make a mistake, blame someone else (haha) take a deep breath and look at the big picture- it will be alright.

Philipians 4:13

This truth will never get old.

 It is phenomenal. 

Read it,

 breath it in,

 soak your soul in it,

 live it out.

Faithful

"Through the covenant relationship we've entered by the blood of Jesus Christ, the God of all creation is loyal to us. Loyal. Can you fathom it?"

 2 Timothy 2:13 "If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself."

"Because God signed His Name to this covenant with the blood of Jesus Christ, He will remain faithful to it no matter what happens. After staking His own Name on it, He'd have to disown Himself to be unfaithful. I shudder with the implication of such a binding covenant. The reality of God's loyalty does not make me comfortable. In a way I cannot explain, it drives me with urgency to be faithful in return." -The Patriarchs by Beth Moore pg. 73

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Peek of Spring

The grass withers and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the LORD. And so it is with people

 I found this little treasure on a walk. God is awesome. He shows Himself in such beautiful ways.

 

Just Push

A man was sleeping one night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light, and God appeared. He showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might.   So, this the man did, day after day. For many years he toiled from sun-up to sundown, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all his might! Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain. Since the man was showing discouragement,  the Adversary (Satan) decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into the man's weary mind. (He will do it every time!) "You have been pushing against that rock for a long time and it hasn't moved." Thus, he gave the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man. Satan said, "Why kill yourself over this? Just put in your time, giving just the minimum effort, and that will be good enough." That's what the weary man planned to do, but decided to make it a matter of prayer and to take his troubled thoughts to the Lord. Lord," he said, "I have labored long and hard in Your Service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?" The Lord responded compassionately, "My child, when I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to Me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back shiny and brown; your hands are callused from constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. True, you haven't moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. That you have done.  Now I, my friend, will move the rock." 

At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what He wants, when actually what God wants is just simple obedience and faith in Him. By all means, exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know that it is still God who moves the mountains.

Heavenly Chocolate Cupcakes

I had fun making these!

Yeild: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full.
3. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Frost with your favorite frosting when cool.

 http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chocolate-Cupcakes/Detail.aspx