Foodie Sows Some Oats

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Paula

As I read other foodie sites and watch trending recipes, Overnight Oats seem to be right up there with anything healthy and easy to prepare. I’m all for it. Once I tried them, they became a favorite way to start the day. Fiber, protein and some kind of fresh fruit and…wow. Tasty.

But then, I really like my oatmeal. No matter how it’s prepared. One of my most requested recipes every time I share them is for Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies. Here you go.

Eating oatmeal just plain makes sense. One half cup of dry oats–that’s a single serving–contains 4 grams of fiber. That’s 16 percent of your total fiber needs for the day. The recommended daily intake of fiber is 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Oats also contain the minerals manganese, selenium, phosphorus, magnesium, and zinc. That little package of goodness also provides 5 grams of protein and less than 1 gram of sugar.

Those Overnight Oats are looking better all the time, now aren’t they?

Sara Bonham, an athlete, scientist and product developer, has written a great article listing some of the benefits of eating oatmeal you may not be familiar with. She did the research (so I didn’t have to) so it’s not just her opinion. A couple of pieces of information on that list were news to me.

Since I keep bringing up those Overnight Oats, how about I help you out with a basic recipe and some variations you can try? It’s also sort of trendy to prepare them in those pint mason jars, but you can use whatever works for you. An empty peanut butter or a jelly jar will work. Some people just mix them up in the bowl and put them in the fridge overnight.

I like mine with plain Greek yogurt and a mix of berries, but I’ve seen some combinations that sound pretty tasty. (Almond Joy!) And the combinations are endless when you consider people use such ingredients as nuts or chia seeds, dried fruit, fresh fruit, nut butters, pumpkin, spices, and quinoa. All mixed in with humble oatmeal, a pantry staple that’s inexpensive and healthy.

Hey, is your family like mine was when I was growing up and you sometimes like to have breakfast for dinner? Oatmeal is making its way into pancakes these days too. Try these, maybe.

This foodie is hoping you begin to put oatmeal into your diet if you haven’t already done so. Oatmeal: it’s not just for breakfast anymore.

Eat hardy.

A Three-Word Prayer for Serenity

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Paula

The graphic below shows a prayer, commonly referred to as the “Serenity Prayer,”* attributed to Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr and reportedly written in 1926. Niebuhr was a Lutheran pastor and theologian.

After knowing only the first four lines of the prayer, which I learned in 1984, it wasn’t long before I became acquainted with the entire thing. Even though at the time I hadn’t made a decision to follow Christ, the words made sense. Years after that, I was reciting the whole prayer from memory at a weekly small group.

Today, I believe the three most important words of this prayer aren’t, as some people choose to see them, acceptance, courage and wisdom. They are

“God, I surrender”

For me, surrendering to God creates a serenity and peace I can’t otherwise know.

SerenityPrayer with gull

*Usually Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer is quoted using only the first four lines shown here.

Stars Shine in Sunshine

Posted on July 26, 2016 by Paula

A fellow blogger has offered a writing challenge. Bukkypraiz has requested we write a haiku poem.

Haiku is a Japanese style of poetry with strict forms. While there are other ways to write a haiku, this form is most recognizable and popular. Three lines in which the first line has five syllables; second line, seven syllables; and third line, five syllables.

Haiku poetry most often is distinguished by appealing to the senses. They create a word picture and are written in the present tense. Here is my offering for the challenge, which required using the word “Shine.”

Stars Shine in Sunshine

Stars come out at night

but also shine secretly

concealed by sunlight.

Here’s a bonus haiku of mine written many years ago.

River Talk

Slow river murmurs

secrets to the shore, and in

the reeds it giggles.

The Red Letter Life: A Book Review

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Paula

Hello, Media Monday, when we talk about books, movies or music. Today’s offering: “The Red Letter Life: 17 Words From Jesus to Inspire Simple, Practical and Purposeful Living” by Bob Hostetler.

The adjectives in the subtitle of this book, The Red Letter Life give us a hint into Bob Hostetler’s message for living as a disciple of Jesus. Hostetler writes with purpose; his message is practical; and his writing is simple so anyone can understand it.

Hostetler has delivered his message in a ‘pure’ way: truth, grace, simplicity and clarity of thought are all in place. Sure, he uses his knowledge of Greek to explain things. But he only does it to enhance the message. I never got the feeling I was being talked down to because these explanations are not overdone.

The seventeen words chosen are excellent choices and indicate the author’s careful study of Jesus’ message and mission. From “Come” to “Go,” every word inspires us to deeper relationship with Christ and a call to carry out His mission as commanded. Often, we get to see Jesus, his disciples and the people He encountered with fresh eyes. Expect some “Aha” moments.

Hostetler has a way of telling stories which not only lend themselves to giving meaning to his message, they often are entertaining and sublime. That’s the way Jesus Himself told parables. Overall, his heart and personality shine through. He makes being a Christian sound challenging and enjoyable at the same time. After reading The Red Letter Life, I would enjoy sitting down with the author, simply talking about our respective spiritual journeys.

While not your typical Bible study text (with questions for participants to explore), the book could certainly be used as such because Bob offers a challenge at the end of each chapter. At any rate, the book begs to be discussed. Lately, I read less Christian non-fiction than I used to, choosing more often to study the Bible. While there is no substitute for God’s Word, there are certainly excellent supplements. This one happens to be one of them.

You can find Bob–a speaker, blogger and pastor, in addition to being an author–in “Stuff I Read.” He’s the One Prayer Daily fellow.

Foodie Tosses a Salad

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Paula

We usually post our recipes and cooking tips on Friday, but this Foodie lost track of her days. I thought it was Saturday. Well, just this once, let’s call it Salad Saturday. Now that we’re harvesting so many vegetables in … Continue reading →

Turrets of the Castle

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Paula

Today’s challenge was easy as far as selecting a subject. Not so easy getting the shot since this home sits on a busy street corner. My favorite elements of the structure, which we call The Castle, are the turrets. People live in the house, but probably feel like they’re in a tourist attraction. If you have friends visiting, it’s customary to drive by with them so they can see it too.

The Castle Architecture

Castles are cool. And I’ve liked dwellings made of stone since I was a child. This home sits in one of the historic neighborhoods of our fair city.

Strength Over the Long Haul

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Paula

“Just like a tree that’s standing by the water, I shall not be moved.” ~ traditional Christian hymn

How we respond when trouble comes into our lives does two things, in my estimation. Our responses can reveal our character. They can also develop our character. How we respond also reveals what we believe about God. In other words, how we see his character; his personhood, if you will.

At my age, I’ve been through numerous troubles. Some of them never happened–they were all imaginary and caused by nagging worries and fretting. Some of them were hardly worth mentioning. I was acting spoiled and being petty to think I had it so bad (Insert ‘pet peeves’ here). But in truth, I’ve also seen troubles hard enough to put my faith in God to the test.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

The way I see it, whether I’m 21 or 61 (as I am now), those troubles come not to test my maturity at a chronological age, but to test my spiritual maturity. I believe our growth in spiritual maturity begins the moment we respond to the initial promptings of the Holy Spirit. We may not know who that is when we first respond, but later, we realize that it was him speaking to us and drawing us to God.

I’ve been slow to move at times, needing to repeat an experience to finally understand what God wants me to know about him. Over the years, however, I’ve kept in mind something I read early on from A.W. Tozer’s, “The Knowledge of the Holy.”

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

Even after reading that book almost 20 years ago, that truth stays with me. Look in the table of contents of Tozer’s book and you’ll see he included each thing that makes God who he is. We can’t separate holiness, goodness or majesty from wisdom, love or justice. God is. Period.

May I go out on a limb and say his immutability–the unchanging nature he owns–explains why we can’t leave out any of his attributes? Nor can we forget that God will always be who he says he is. This unchanging nature is one reason I’ve discovered that God gets me through those troubles better than I can do it myself. (Insert “I change my mind” and “I can be moody” here.)

He guides me, comforts me, has each situation under control. And he gives me strength. I’ve seen it over the long haul, and that strength is only equal to the faith I have in him. Whether it makes sense at the time or not, I have to believe he’ll do what he says he’ll do. Formerly, when my faith was less strong, the realization that he was involved so intimately in my trouble often came later. Now, that knowledge is instinctive.

Trusting him has helped me get through some trouble recently. I wish I could tell you how safe I feel because of it. But it’s beyond words, and that’s probably what God intends. He doesn’t need to be understood as I sometimes think I should be.

Agree with me that Jeremiah the prophet is right when he says a person who trusts in the Lord and has confidence in him is blessed. Does that necessarily mean God gives us gifts so we can make our lives better? I think not.

I believe it means the blessing is the gift of God himself. The God who–because he is who he is–gets us through our troubles and gives us strength for the long haul.

Treasures

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Paula

Let me tell you about my little Bible with the bonded leather cover.

It was one of the first Bibles I purchased for myself when I finally decided to go back to church and get serious about following Christ. Mom might not have approved of my scribblings in the margins or the highlighting and underlining, but this surely has helped me to make this Bible a Treasure.

Obviously, this little Bible has seen a lot of use. In fact, I’ve used it so much and marked it up so much that I’m sometimes stymied to find a passage unless I have this one in front of me. Measuring 6 5/8 inches x 4 3/8 inches, the type is pretty small. That’s okay; I can still read it with my old lady reading glasses.

My “treasure,” which is the subject of today’s blogging photo challenge, was with me in a near-fatal auto accident thirteen years ago next month. It has brown stains from transmission fluid on some of the pages. That’s okay too. A couple of years following the accident, I decided I’d better have the strap sewn back on by a local tailor before it fell off. It was hanging on by a thread as a result of the beating it took. When I mentioned that feature to a friend she said, “Kind of like you were.” She knew the details of the accident and how blessed I was to be alive.

For this photo, my Bible is open to John chapters 15-17. Chapter 17 is one of my favorite passages in the Bible because Jesus prays for us. To think that Jesus knew he was going to his death and wanted to talk to his Father about us sometimes makes me weep.

Those words are treasures to me.

Sew and Sew

Posted on July 15, 2016 by Paula

The challenge today is to depict a “connection.” With this photograph, I’m showing you how crocheted edgings are being connected to pillowcases. On the occasion of my mother’s funeral, Dad told us five sisters to go through some of Mom’s things to pick out something we’d like. We went through the drawers in the buffet where she kept her large tablecloths and found these edgings which her mom, my grandmother, crocheted. I’m guessing they were done some time in the 60s. She died late in that decade.

I took the crochet work home and cleaned them up because after all that time, they’d yellowed. Now, after connecting the edgings to the pillowcases, each of my siblings and their spouses are going to get a little bit of Grandma after all these years.

They’ll also have a connection to Grandma they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to make.

One Size Fits All

Posted on July 13, 2016 by Paula

When it comes to God’s grace, don’t worry about whether you qualify.

Don’t worry about whether or not the things you regret doing disqualify you.

God’s grace is immeasurable and one size fits all.

How can I be so sure? Where do I come off telling anyone they can count on God? Believe me, I understand how someone would have doubts. I did.

In fact, I remember the day when I was having a telephone conversation with a friend and a light bulb went on, so to speak. You could say the light of Jesus shined into my life and I became aware of the darkness I’d been living in. I realized how many were the sins I’d committed. That was hard to admit and I wasn’t sure I even wanted to use the word “sin.”

But there I was, crying about it. And I felt dirty. I knew I needed forgiveness, but wasn’t sure God could forgive all the things I’d done. Or failed to do.

Furthermore, it sometimes seems God isn’t doing much to make this world a better place. How can so many terrible things be happening around us if God is in control like Christians claim he is? How can we trust a God who seems absent?

I wish I had an answer to that. The best I can do is point to history. Look at how people have been behaving–or not behaving–since the beginning of time. Things aren’t worse even though it may seem that way. People have been hating, terrorizing, killing, stealing, lying, gossiping and just plain acting out for several millennia. Do you feel betrayed right now? Alienated? Misunderstood? Left alone? Jesus experienced the same. He understands every trouble we can ever know.

All I know is what I’ve found to be true because of what God tells me is true in the Bible. He says his grace is there no matter who we are and no matter the size of our sin. Believe it or not, I also count on having personally experienced grace. Ask anyone who’s been walking faithfully with God for a while and they’ll tell you his goodness and grace never fail.

Not long after that disturbing telephone conversation, I made a decision to recommit my life to following Jesus. I read and re-read the Bible and became familiar with the gospel. Not just the Gospels, as in books of the Bible, but what the message of Jesus’ birth, life of ministry, death and resurrection meant. I joined a small group of women who met regularly to pray, study scriptures and talk about living life according to God’s plans.

I then understood grace. With that understanding and the peace and hope I’ve experienced, I’m sure. God’s grace is big enough to cover my sin and the sin of anyone, no matter what it is.

Go ahead and put it on today. Come under the cover of God’s free gift of grace. You may not feel like it fits yet. But God will even appeal to your logic, telling you it’s all you need if you’re willing to believe him.

“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool” (Isaiah 1:18)

The Fruitful Life

Monthly Archives: July 2016