2/07/2011

But God...

We have all found ourselves in the midst of hardship, bearing burdens that seem to drain us of the very life within. BUT GOD. We may experience days that seem bleak and be tempted to give up. BUT GOD. We have a blessed assurance that God sees our every circumstance; our every need. When we are lost and all else has failed to give us hope of ever returning, we can know that God is our Redeemer and He alone will watch over and keep us from all harm. No situation is ever too despaired for God to step in and prepare a way to escape.

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And your father hath deceived me, and changed my wages ten times;
BUT GOD suffered him not to hurt me.
Genesis 31:7


But as for you, ye thought evil against me; BUT GOD meant it unto good,
to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Genesis 50:20


And he was sore athirst, and called on the Lord, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised? BUT GOD clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he was revived.
Judges 15:20


And Saul sought him every day, BUT GOD delivered him not into his hand.
1 Samuel 23:14


BUT GOD will redeem my soul from the power of the grave:
for he shall receive me. Selah.
Psalms 49:15


My flesh and my heart faileth: BUT GOD is the strength of my heart,
and my portion for ever.
Psalms 73:26


Who can forgive sins BUT GOD alone?
Mark 2:7


And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt:
BUT GOD was with him.
Acts 7:10


BUT GOD raised him from the dead.
Acts 13:30


So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth;
BUT GOD that giveth the increase.
1 Corinthians 3:7

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: BUT GOD is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
1 Corinthians 10:13


For indeed he was sick nigh unto death: BUT GOD had mercy on him.
Philippians 2:27

Whatever your situation is today, there is a BUT GOD moment waiting for you.

2/06/2011

Pizza Bites

This recipe was described to me in 3 words -
Incredibly. Easy. Amazing.

I added one more to the list - Sold.

I mean, who wouldn't want to spend 10 minutes in the kitchen, place a pan in the oven for a few minutes, and then emerge with an Incredibly Easy and Amazing order of hot, cheesy pizza bites? And if those 3 words are not enough to convince you to try this recipe, let me tell you that between my roommate and I we've made 3 batches in 2 days. And I'm already planning to make another one on Tuesday.

You'll need: 1 batch of pizza dough (I cheated and used Festival's pre-made stuff), about 40 slices of pepperoni, about 20 cubes of mozzarella cheese (again, cheated and used string cheese), 2tsp. italian seasoning, parmesan cheese and 2Tbls olive oil.


 Take a pinch of dough, flatten into a circle. Place 2-3 pepperoni slices and one cube of cheese onto the dough. Keep the size uniform for the sake of baking evenly, but there really is no right or wrong as to the size. Smaller sizes could be made for an appetizer, larger for a dinner.


Fold the edges upward and press together, forming a ball. Place seam side down in a greased pie plate.


Mix the olive oil and seasoning together; lightly brush over the dough. Sprinkle a bit of parmesan cheese on top.


Bake at 425F for about 15 minutes or until center of dough is cooked thoroughly. Dip in your favorite pizza sauce and be prepared to want to make this again tomorrow! :-)

2/05/2011

To Be Desired

"Please, Mommy...."

"Pleeeeease!"

The high pitched tone of my then-7-year-old voice would not be quieted. I had looked at, drooled over and even memorized parts of the American Girl magazine during the greater portion of my young life. If I was expected to live another day without owning one of those dolls, I was convinced that I wouldn't even survive until lunchtime. 

My determination finally won the battle and I convinced my parents to order the doll. But there was a catch: I would have to pay the entire cost. Mom retrieved a thick white envelope from the safety of her dresser drawer, and I eagerly pulled it's contents out onto the bed. A detailed tally of the crumpled bills showed that I had saved up just enough money to make the long awaited purchase. No matter that I would be spending every penny I had earned - I was getting an American Girl doll! And oh what a happy day it was when Kirsten arrived! I can still remember the excitement I felt when taking her out of the box and hurrying over to a friend's house to show off my treasure.
:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

The days of playing with dolls are far behind me, but I think about Kirsten every so often and marvel at how greatly I desired to have her as my own. It seems a little silly now to have been so desperate for such a trivial thing, but the desire within my young heart was such as it nearly consumed my every thought. Read what Mr. Webster has to say about the matter:

def. desire: to have a longing for; to stress the strength 
of feeling; to imply strong intention or aim.

If asked, I'm sure that you could tell your own story about something you have shared a similar desire for. But today I ask this question: What does GOD desire?

Think about it. Is there really anything that God could want? After all, He is God! He created the entire world, so couldn't He just make something else if He wanted it? Of course He can, but the truth is that God has already created what He desires most - YOU! And His desire for you isn't just a temporary feeling - He desires you with a fervent passion. So great is His desire for all people that when sin appeared and threatened to sever our relationship with Him, that He came to earth himself to be our Salvation!

And yet even with His great longing for us, He cannot have us until we decide to surrender to Him. I don't know about you, but I feel very humbled knowing that God Almighty wants to have a personal relationship with me. It makes me want to get rid of all the uncleanness in my heart and become filled with a beauty like the one David wrote about in the Psalms.

 "Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; 
forget also thine own people, and thy father's house; 
So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty, 
for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him." 
Psalm 45:10,11

What does the King see when He looks at you? What does He see when He looks at me? The world we live in gives us plenty of opportunity to develop our own agendas and promote an outward attraction. Are we careful to engage our time in activities that cultivate a beauty within our hearts?

I challenge you to go about today with the purpose to be filled with a heavenly beauty. Turn from how you lived yesterday. Today, trade your sorrow for His joy; your worries for His peace; your complaints for His praise. 

Live your life as one that attracts the desire of the King.