Bible Journaling: Philippians 4:8

Philippians 4:8 is a verse that sticks with me all the time. Mainly because I have a hard time keeping my mind in a positive place. I am someone who will let things get to me and just pull me down into a hole that is hard to crawl out of. 

Because of this, I spend a lot of time fighting my own mind. I have to remember to take my runaway thoughts and let them go and think of better things.

And to help me with this I turn to Philippians 4:8 which says "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think of such things."

I know that I have to think on the good. Because there is so much good. And when I get into a thought funk I will miss it. It will just pass me by. And so I actively work on keeping my mind focused on the "true, right, noble, pure, lovely, excellent and praiseworthy"- it really helps make my days better. And it keeps me focused more on God and not myself.

Bible Journaling: Exodus 14:14

Bible journaling has become all the rage on Pinterest.

I've seen many pictures pop up as I would go through my Pinterest feed of beautifully made pictures to describe Bible verses.

As I looked more into it I became more and more intrigued. Because I love decorating with words. I love seeing words become pictures to give a visual expression of what is being said.

So I wanted to dive into it myself.

First things first: Pick a Bible that has wide margins and is in a translation that I like. I wanted it to be a hardcover binding so that it will lay flat and be sturdy when I work in it.

I chose this one:

It's not too big in size. Has readable print and wide margins. It's perfect for me.

And once I got it, I grabbed some colored pencils. I opted for pencils because I wanted to option of erasing if I needed and wanted to keep it as simple as possible for me. But I still wanted many color options and minimal fuss. Some people like to use paint or crayons, or painters pen. Some like stickers and glue and glitter. There is really no wrong way to do this.

And then I needed to choose my verse. I decided to stick with a verse instead of a big chunk of scripture. I wanted to be able to keep it simple and meditate while I created.

I chose Exodus 14:14- "The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still."

This is one of my favorite verses. That is why I chose it to start my Bible Journaling. You can read this chpater of Exodus here.

The Israelites were being pursued by Pharoah and his army after fleeing Egypt. They were at the shore of the Red Sea and could see the Egyptians approaching. They began to fear. They began to question what they were doing. They began to question God. And Moses tells them: "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still."

And Moses then listened in obedience to God and lifted his staff and the Red Sea parted before them.

You see, this was not a time for battle. This was a time for obedience. The Lord was already prepared for the fight. They just needed to follow his instructions and he would take care of the rest.

For me, it's all about getting out of God's way. I don't have to prepare to fight. I don't have to be in the battle. Instead I can hang up my gloves and step aside and just listen to God. And he will take care of the rest.

Have you dabbled in Bible Journaling?

I'll share more as I continue to add in my study.

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Homemade Sub Bread

Lately we are busy! It seems almost every single night there is something to do and we are rushing through dinner. There are even nights we aren't even able to make it home. So what are our dinner options? Either some kind of fast food, which for this family of 5 could cost us around $30-$40, or bring something from home that is easy to take along.

And our preferred easy travel food are sub sandwiches.  Everyone can have just what they want on their sandwich so there is no complaining and it's filling with chips and fruit on the side. It makes a full meal and that makes this mom happy!

And I have completely embraced making our own Sub Sandwich Bread. I have found that the store sub bread just never quite makes the cut. It just lacks flavor, is typically too thick and makes sandwiches too dry. But this homemade bread can be as thick as you like and is soft and just plain yummy!

Give it a try and see how your family likes it. And it's super easy.

Homemade Sub Bread

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups bread flour

2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp oil (I use olive oil)

2 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp yeast

1 1/3-1 1/2 cups warm water

1. Set the stand mixer with dough hook. In bowl add flours, salt, oil, sugar, yeast. Combine on lowest setting for 30-60 seconds.

2. Slowly add water to mix while mixer is on. (start with about a cup and if it looks too dry slowly add a little more at a time until dough is wet)

3. Once a dough has formed knead on medium low for about 5-7 minutes and the dough is no longer sticking to the sides of the bowl.

4. Dump dough on to a clean counter a knead until it forms a smooth ball.

5. Place in an oiled bowl and cover with dishcloth and let rise until double in size, about an hour.

6. Once dough has risen, remove from bowl and divide into 6-8 pieces and shape to desired size and length.

7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and let bread rise for about 30 minutes.

8. Bake in oven for 10-15 minutes. At 15 minutes, you'll have a crunchier crust and a soft inside and 10 minutes is soft all around bread.

9. Let cool, then slice through the middle and add your favorite sandwich fix ins!

I have found that this bread goes great with just about anything! Enjoy and let me know how your sandwiches turned out!

Goals for 2016

To say that 2015 has been a hard year would be a complete understatement. It has been the hardest year of my life. So much has happened.

I don't want to be vague but I also do not want to delve into the hurt and the pain and the work that has taken place.

I was not able to complete many of my goals for 2015. I didn't read as many books as I wanted to. I didn't run a single step, let alone a mile. I ignored my blog completely. There was so much that I wanted to say and so much that I couldn't find the words to express.

So for 2016 I need to a whole new set of goals.

1. Have new family pictures taken
2. Read 12 books
3. Read 24 books
4. Have 12 out of the house, kids free dates with Michael.
5. Have weekly in home dates with Michael.
6. Post 2 blog posts a month.
7. Write a Bible Study
8. Complete Mario Maker "100 Mario Challenge" on expert level
9. Have weekly Bible studies with the kids
10. Paint the kitchen and bathrooms
11. Paint my bedroom
12. Lose 25 lbs
13. Make a pretty cake all from scratch
14. Crochet a blanket for Michael
15. Write a short story
16. Complete gift projects that I started for the kids
17. Finish Dragon Age Inquisition with Michael
18. Drink water daily
19. Identify one good thing everyday
20. Encourage my family daily

And there you have it. My 2016 goals. I'm hoping that these are all achievable. Wish me luck as 2016 begins. I'm ready for a new year and new goals.

If you want to follow me as I update my goals throughout the year you can go to my Goals Page.

How Veggie Tales Ruined Church for Me

Well, that's really an exaggeration.

Veggie Tales didn't actually ruin church for me but what it did was ruin a specific phrase. If you have seen Jonah: The Veggie Tales Movie you may understand exactly what I am talking about.

The final song in the movie is Jonah was a Prophet and in this song they sing the phrase probably 4 bazillion times and every time they say "Jonah was a prophet" it is followed by an "ooh, ooh". And now, for the life of me, whenever the phrase "was a prophet" is uttered in church my mind sings "ooh, ooh".

There seems no stopping this madness! I am fully aware that this movie is 13 years old. That is how long that this has been a problem for me.

So I will be sitting in church, listening to the sermon, enjoying myself and then they will say:

Isaiah was a prophet....

my head then will sing "ooh,ooh"

or

Jeremiah was a prophet... ooh, ooh

Micah was a prophet... ooh, ooh

and on and on and on.

Do you know how many prophets there are? This can just go on forever. And then my head will be full of this song for the rest of the day.

And now I will share it with you so you can also enjoy it in your head too!

Wolves, Songs and Nice People

Have you seen Into the Woods?

source

This movie has become a quick family favorite around here.

The movie is about many fairy tale characters that end up meeting and having adventures in the woods. It's a musical so there are songs that get stuck in your head and will find yourself singing at odd times during the day.

But surprisingly, to me, these songs have messages that resonate deeper than just the entertainment value.

This is my opinion on one of the songs that has been sitting with me. I have no idea is the author was going for this. Or was aiming to make the audience think, but the words spoke truth to me.

The song that I want to talk about today is I Know Things Now. This is sung by Little Red Riding Hood after she has been rescued from the belly of the wolf that had devoured her.

Here are the lyrics: you can hear the song here

Mother said, "Straight ahead"
Not to delay or be misled
I should have heeded her advice
But he seemed so nice

And he showed me things
Many beautiful things
That I hadn't thought to explore
They were off my path

So I never had dared
I had been so careful
I never had cared
And he made me feel excited
Well, excited and scared

When he said, "Come in"
With that sickening grin
How could I know what was in store?
Once his teeth were bared
Though, I really got scared

Well, excited and scared
But he drew me close
And he swallowed me down
Down a dark slimy path
Where lie secrets that I never want to know

And when everything familiar
Seemed to disappear forever
At the end of the path
Was granny once again

So we wait in the dark
Until someone sets us free
And we're brought into the light
And we're back at the start

And I know things now
Many valuable things
That I hadn't known before
Do not put your faith
In a cape and a hood

They will not protect you
The way that they should
And take extra care with strangers
Even flowers have their dangers
And though scary is exciting
Nice is different than good

Now I know
Don't be scared
Granny is right
Just be prepared

Isn't it nice to know a lot
And a little bit not

Red is admitting to not listening to sound advice that she was given and she knew that what she was doing was wrong. But there was an excitement of the unknown and even the "bad". And isn't that what sin does for us? It gives us the desire to have what we know isn't good for us because it seems exciting. Who doesn't love a bit of excitement? But with sin comes pain and punishment. And it's never just the person who commits the sin that has to deal with the pain.

You see, because Little Red listened to the wolf and strayed from the path that she was meant to follow gave time for the wolf to get to her grandmother. A path he would not have taken if he had not delayed Red's journey. And her grandmother was gobbled up. Yup, I'm telling you, that granny was caught up in the consequences of the sin of her granddaughter.

Because the wolf sucked her in. He seemed nice. And a lot of times in life we confuse "nice" with trustworthy. But in the song she says "Nice is different than good" and that speaks tons to me. People can be nice. They can say nice words and do nice things but it doesn't mean that they are good. Good is a completely different concept. Goodness is not being "nice". I've known plenty of people who are nice but are not good. And I've also known those who are good but not necessarily nice. 

Good is doing what is right. It may come in a way of challenging people in their lives, which isn't always nice. Or revealing truths to people that they need to hear. Good can be nice but it doesn't have to be.

Nice is a portrayal of what you are on the surface. Nice is what you want people to believe that you are. But in truth, nice is not what people are all the time. Even good people aren't always nice.

And I've had to learn this lesson. Nice is different than good. And I want to surround myself with those who are good. Those who believe in truth. I would rather be hurt in truth by someone good than lead along by someone "nice" who is hiding their true self. Because it will all come out eventually anyway and it hurts more from the liars who are nice.

And I have been hurt deeply by the "nice". Because I confused nice with good and nice with trustworthy and nice with kind. When people who are trustworthy and good and kind can be nice but they are also good but not all nice people are.

And what is good? Good is doing what is right. Good is following God and his son's example. Because, who is good? Jesus is good. And I strive to be like Jesus. I want to be good.

I want to do what is right and live the right way.

I want to be more than nice.

I want to be good.

Homemade Salsa

Last week while I was grocery shopping I was in the produce section when I smelled the most wonderful smell.

Fresh cilantro!

And it gave me a hankering for homemade salsa.

Jarred salsa, refrigerated salsa just can't compare to the the taste of fresh made salsa. And it's so easy to make! I'm going to share this quick basic recipe that I used.

Homemade Salsa Recipe

3 cans diced tomatoes

1 large yellow onion chopped 

1/2 red onion chopped

1 bunch of fresh cilantro chopped

2 jalapenos seeded and chopped (add seeds or more for heat)

Pour tomatoes in their juices into a large bowl. Add all remaining ingredients salt to taste, mix. Cover and put in the fridge to let the flavors all come together for a couple of hours. Enjoy!

If you prefer your salsa less chunky, you can throw everything into a blender or food processor to blend it together.

It makes a lot. So I canned some in mason jars as well. 

Teamed up with veggies or tortilla chips made this a simple snack or a side to a meal.