Auntie Phee knew some things

Auntie Phee kept referring to scones as skons. I was a little embarrassed for her and correctly called them scones. BUT! Guess what I found out as I was looking for skon recipes. She was RIGHT! She told us they were from Scotland, I brushed it off. But, it has been so fun finding out the 85 year old grandma was right.


There are two ways to pronounce scone. "Skon" is generally used in Scotland and Northern England and "Skoan" is used in the South.
Scones are believed to have originated in Scotland and are closely related to the griddle baked flatbread, known as bannock. They were first made with oats, shaped into a large round, scored into four to six triangles, and cooked on a griddle either over an open fire or on top of the stove. 

Read more: http://www.joyofbaking.com/SconesIntroduction.html#ixzz0V3sM9VNc

 

So fun. 

Today if you hear His voice ..

I have a fern frond from our trip to New Bern, I think it was last fall. Could it have been just that short of a time ago? Golly, how life as changed. It was Don and I, Erin and Ethan, Benjamin and Elisa (and missing other folks the whole time) on that trip. Lovely time. Bittersweet now, but at the time I fully embraced it.
I kind of, stole, the frond from the beautiful garden we went to - it was my souvenir.
I had intentions of putting into my scrapbook. It's on my bulletin board now, waiting.
I look at it quite often cause 1. I love plants 2. it brings back a sweet memory.
The point of my post is that the frond is losing it's color. It's no longer the beautiful green it was when I picked it. It's fading. Just like the memory of our trip. A week after the trip I could have given you a lot of details but now, many of the details are gone and just images in my mind remain. I look at the pictures and am reminded of our warm, happy trip. I am sad the frond is fading, I wish I had stored it so it would still be nice but instead I have enjoyed it all these months. And as a result it is fading. Well, I'm sure you can all tell where I'm going with this. Our lives and our days are like the frond. Fading. I thought about that and I was sad. I felt such a loss. But being the daughter of the Creator of the universe I get to have eternal perspectives as well as practical ones for the here and now. So, my faded fern frond represents our days gone by but as I look at that frond on my bulleten board I only have to turn my head just a bit to see the beautiful leaves and garden the Lord is displaying today.
Today the Lord has made a whole new day to be enjoyed. I see the beautiful leaves on our trees. The colors are magnificent - just like their Creator. Every day, there is new life. Every day the Lord is here with us. Loving and leading us. Ever so patient with us redeemed sinners. Blessing us with answers to prayers and provisions. The manna the Lord provided only lasted one day.

Give us this day, our daily bread.

I guess that is where the Lord lives. This day.
I know He will be there for me tomorrow. And I know He was with me yesterday but it's in today that I experience His life changing grace.

Does that mean I'm not sad about my frond? No, I'm sad about it. I'm sad that happy time is gone. I wish I was there again I would freeze it and never let it end but it's not to be. That time has past - but outside ... there is new life today. New souls that need love. So today I will see what the Lord has done.  And only by His grace will I look and see His goodness and be blessed and fed - my daily manna.

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts .... But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.

  Hebrews 3

Is there any more felicity then to weed in the rain?

Today, after taking a nap I got up and went outside to tackle those weeds in the gardens that had been plaguing me for months - I know that's a long time. BUT, today I went out. The weather was overcast with a warm, moist breeze. The ground looked like it had rained so I put on my ole beat up rain boots and went outside. Lovely.

God's marvelous creation was stunning. The leaves on the trees were delightful. Just a bit of creativity from the mind of a magnificent Creator. I wonder how much of that He makes for our enjoyment. He puts in us a love for beauty then He makes beauty all around us. Thank YOU wonderful Creator!

Got the weeds in the back garden. I had to wear long sleeves and long gloves because the weeds were so high. I know, terrible shame.

But, now it is weeded and I have a new plan. Don and I are low maintenance folks, involved in many things so our yard needs to be low maintenance to manage, so I am going to take the wood from around the garden that is right off of the back porch and just let the grass grow there. I will have two hydrangea bushes still and they will lend lovely color and form. I also weeded the other side garden - faithful garden. It lives even with much neglect. I am going to get garden cloth to put on it and then put mulch on top. That will keep all the weeds down. Love that garden cloth. Part of the reason I don't weed the gardens like I should is that I get such uncomfortable reactions to the bug bites. And like most of us I have this great vision of how my yard is supposed to look and when it doesn't then I get over whelmed and don't do anything at all. Now that is done next I have several bushes to transplant. Another project for another day.

Of course, as I was weeding I was reminded how our gracious God will pull sin out of our hearts. It gets all grown in there with all the other stuff. But, it's good to get it cleaned out. Unfortunately some roots are left in there and they rear their ugly weeds but with the help of the Lord we keep cleaning out the garden till one day that plant will no longer grow there. That is the same with the sin in our hearts. We keep getting renewed by the grace of God until that sin is no longer living in there.

Hallelujah what a Savior!

Although not a planting illustration Corrie Ten Boom had a great story she would tell. It was about a flashlight. Our life is the flashlight and we want to be a light for the world. Our first step is to ask Jesus into our hearts - he is the first battery. But, we are still not a light for the world, something is preventing us from being the light, we are missing the other battery. But the Lord is unable to put the battery in our flashlight (or our hearts) cause something is already in there taking up the space. As the Lord cleans out the debris in the battery compartment of the flashlight he is pulling out what is taking up the space. He pulls out things like pride, selfishness, bitterness, anger, hatred. When the Lord is able to get that out of the battery compartment it's then that He is able to put in His Spirit of love and power.

That's when we get to be a light to the world, when we are full of the love of Jesus. His love is wonderful.

 Supremacy of love

No hatred because that is murder in God's eyes.

See the Corrie Ten Boom video 

Actually, it's an interview from 1974 Corrie tells us about the love of Jesus.

John 2

Here are some interesting bits of Bible history.

After Jesus talked to Nathanael in John 1 Jesus and His disciples WALKED about 60 miles north to the wedding at Cana - a little village high in the hills above Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. This must have taken about three days walking time.

At the wedding the water jars were used to provide water for Jewish ceremonial cleansing. The water was to cleanse the feet of everyone who entered the house. The water was also used for hand washing before a meal. Not only did Jews wash their hands at the beginning of a meal but also between each course. If this was not done, the hands were technically "unclean". These very large jars each held 20 -30 gallons of water.

My personal favorite - When Jesus turned the water into wine not only did Jesus show He cares about the cultural traditions of every day life but when he made wine he made THE BEST wine, no second rate stuff from Him.
I guess that's what He will do with us as He transforms our lives from plain ole water to the best wine.

Thank you God for food

Beautiful Sunday morning smoothie

greens, homemade frozen jam, fresh cranberries, cranberry fruit cocktail,

strawberries and an orange.

 MMM ... it was good 

You can see all the good chunks of actual food in there.

 

 

strong and healthy  

As for the "pulse" or vegetables that Daniel asked for, pulse (from the Latin "puls") specifically refers to legumes such as lentils and beans, but in this instance may simply have been a generic term for vegetable foods of any sort. Babylon, situated on the fertile alluvial plain beside the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, was as agriculturally bountiful as Palestine was barren. The Babylonians used sophisticated irrigation systems to water their rich soil, and a variety of grains, legumes, and vegetables would have been grown by them. Lettuce was grown in the famous hanging gardens of Babylon as early as the 7th Century BC.
While Daniel's primary motivation for refusing Nebuchadnezzar's food was to remain ritualistically clean and undefiled, he seems to have been confident about the nutritional adequacy of his proposed vegetarian diet, and this certitude was verified by the results of his test.

http://barquentine.tripod.com/chap5.html

10 Reasons to Homeschool

10. Your kids never miss the bus
 9.  Reading the Bible and prayer are allowed in the classroom.
 8. You don't have to make up snow days. 
 7. You don't need a note from the teacher when you visit the doctor.
 6. You can wear pajamas all day long, if you like. 
 5. Recess can last two hours on a nice sunny day.
 4. Your children don't have to begin learning to read until they are actually ready.
 3. Playing with Lego's can count as learning.
 2. The principal and the teacher can kiss and hug in front of the students.
 1. You get to experience God's handiwork as your children develop and grow right before your eyes. 

www.nche.com

At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. Daniel 1:15

This is the market in Hillsborough that I go to on Tuesdays after Auntie Phee's.

It's a small establishment but it is well stocked with lots of beautiful produce. Not all of it is organic or locally grown but there is a large selection of organic, modestly priced produce. Still more expensive then Walmart - but, please let me get away from Walmart.

This is an ad that explains about it....

Weaver Street Market is a natural foods cooperative focusing on providing you with a wide selection of organic, fair trade, and locally grown products. We work directly with local farmers to provide the freshest produce, milk and dairy products, and humanely raised meat at an affordable price. Our breads and pastries are baked fresh in our Hillsborough bakery every morning, and our hot bar, salad bar, and grab-and-go meals are served for you daily to take home or enjoy with us in our indoor café and outdoor patio. As a cooperative, all of our profits are returned to owners, donated to our community, or used to strengthen the cooperative for your benefit.

Open 7am-9pm seven days a week.

We currently have three recurring weekly events at the Hillsborough store.

Open Mic: Every Thursday from 6:30-8:30pm

Wine Tastings: Every Friday from 5:00-7:00pm

Food Sampling: Every Saturday from 3:00-5:30pm

Community Non-Profit Day: Every third Sunday from 11:00-1:00pm

Let's go - they have a wonderful food bar with hot and cold food.
The wine tasting might be fun too.
Today I got a beautiful bunch of greens for our smoothies. A huge pomegranate, an over priced wonderfully flavored brie. Since it's just Don and I this week I got some grass fed beef.
Loved it. It's flavor was good but I was more impressed knowing the purity
the product with out all the stuff added. I also found out a lot of their eggs are free range. Cool.
I am mostly staying on the outside isles. I am avoiding a lot of the prepackaged 'organic" stuff. The outside isles are full of great food, who even needs the packaged stuff. Although, I did get a non aluminum body deodorant which I am very happy with.
Am I to pathetic, so happy to be at a wholesome grocery store? I could SO live in Hillsborough.

“The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:8

This is the first time in 30 YEARS Don and I have had a week without children. 30 years is a long time. I'm pretty excited to have this quiet week. Part of the fun is knowing that it's temporary - like a vacation.
We had a great visit with Benjamin this fall break weekend. Plenty to do this week. On Tuesday, I guess I will go to Auntie Phee's by myself. and then I will go to the Hillsborough market by myself too.

Thursday is a fellowship day with Bible Study Fellowship and it's at my house - who is going to help me clean to prepare? I need the windows in the dining room cleaned and who knows the last time it was dusted in there.
Not to mention vacuuming. We'll see how it goes. Hopefully, I will get the dining room shining but I have to do the bathroom too - of course in order to get to the bathroom you have to go through the kitchen. Oh my. That's just about the whole house!
I'm not really stressed, I'm mostly kidding. My joy will be to have the ladies over. I'm sure all will be just fine.
I hope to make some really fun cookies as a little gift for them to take home. I think I read it in my Southern Living magazine. Candy corn cookies - I will put them in a plastic bag with a ribbon that has a Bible verse attached to it. Something like sweetness of the Lord.

Another big event I have coming up is my Reformation Fellowship. It's not this Friday but I think the Friday after. At the fellowship we are all to have picked out a character in Reformation history and tell everyone about them and if they want to be really fun - dress like them. I'm thinking I am just going to make a big roast and serve it with vegetables. I will make it a simple meal. If others ask to bring anything I will ask them if they would like to bring something from their time period. Who knows, we'll see how interested people really are.

- We are homeschool parents with kids all grown up, still playing and having fun.

Next weekend has got a great conference - I have never been to it, I have seen pictures and I know about some of the speakers. Godly folks that love the Lord - can't wait.

http://www.simplydevoted.com/ctg/ctg.html

Tonight is apologetics - should be fun. We are supposed to bring our hard questions and hopefully get an answer. I'm thrilled with the number of young folks that are attending. Half of the reason they come is that they love the teacher - respect him and listen to every word he says, may not do it but they are listening.

The house is quiet, I think I will call and check on our poor Ben - pray for his recovery from his biking accident. I"m sure he will be fine but it's going to be a long 6 week recovery time.
I guess I should also think about dinner.

"If the Word of God forbids female ministry, we would ask how it happens that so many of the most devoted handmaidens of the Lord have felt constrained by the Holy Ghost to exercise it? … The Word and the Spirit cannot contradict each other."
Catherine Booth - Salvation Army

The Husband Of the Year Award

http://www.thatwasfunny.com/husband-of-the-year-awards/1492

Here

http://www.thatwasfunny.com/husband-of-the-year-awards/1492

Bible Study notes

Interesting thoughts from the notes given to me at my Thursday morning Bible study

Book of John written many years after the other gospels.

John was going against his current Jewish culture because the only people who were baptized were non-Jews who wished to become proselytes of the Jewish faith. Israelites were never baptized. They presumed they belonged to God already - they didn't need to be washed. John's words hit home, these people realized that to be an Israelite was not enough; they, too, needed cleansing from sin. One can imagine how water baptism offended the Pharisees.

Ezekiel 36:25"I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean

" Zechariah 13:1 "On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David ... to cleanse them from sin and impurity. -- Thus the people were wondering if this John was the Messiah.

John the Baptist was the son of a priest so he too was considered a priest by descent.

When John said he was not worthy to untie the straps on Jesus' sandal, he gave himself a very low position because in that time era a disciple could serve his master in anyway but to untie his sandals - that was a slave's work, too demeaning for even a disciple to do.

Andrew and John's response to Jesus, which seemed to take place so quietly and simply- but was in fact, the first trickle of the little stream that grew to the mighty river of Christianity destined to fill the whole earth.

On every occasion when Andrew is singled out in the Gospels, he is always seen bringing someone to Christ - his brother Simon, the boy with the loaves or the Greeks

Jesus looked at Simon. In the original language, this word describes a special, very concentrated and penetrating gaze that would pierce the core of Simon's soul.

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

I had a great day with Auntie Phee and Leesi - tea, scones, email and typing wore out Auntie Phee. We left her smiling and heading to lunch. Afterward we went to a really nice Good Will in Cary, NC. Some really nice stuff in there. One mans junk is another mans treasure. I got two red serving plates with hearts on them. (Valentines day of course, .89 cents)
Then as we were making our way home Leesi saw the sign for New York pizza and using her last one left at home face she talked me into going - I had veggie pizza, it was good. Elisa had peperoni and LOVED it cause she was STARVING - no drama queen there.
Two more stops - the market in Hilborough. Farm fresh produce, locally grown. Wonderful selection of beautiful breads. Local dairy and local meat. Wonderful salad bar. It's fun to go to as well as spend my money there. That is every retailers goal I'm sure.
Lastly, finally got to Home Depot and bought my fabric for my landscaping.
A wonderful chat with Zackary on the phone - a Bible study of the last chapter of Mark with him. God knew what a blessing Zackary was going to be.
Made really good chili, ate with Don before he was off to a men's prayer meeting. Now here I am. Still need to clean the kitchen and finish my homiletics for BSF then I should be done. I'll probably be done around 10:00. Busy day.