Archive | October, 2008

Singing to our Children

By on October 10, 2008 in building the family

I have greatly treasured the sweet moments of rocking my daughter before bedtime each night. I love taking a moment to pray over her and sing worship songs to her. My heart’s cry is that she might come to treasure and know Christ from an early age. He name means “grace” and literally “gift” and thus the Lord has shown me the importance of laboring in prayer that she might be a gift carrying God’s grace to others.

While reading Girl Talk recently, I was blessed by this post of a simple tradition:

“Right after my first child (who is now 7 was born) I heard Joni Erickson Tada talk about how much hymns meant to her immediately after her accident.  She recommended choosing “Life Hymns” for your children.  So my husband and I have done just that.  Each child (there are three living children) has their own hymn.  We have chosen it before they were born and sing it to them the first time we hold them.  We sing it each night before they go to bed – and before each nap.”

What a treasure and legacy! She goes on to share the value of instilling these solid Biblical truths that are so powerfully conveyed in hymns as a means of providing her children with strength during the storms of life.

I loved this idea! I began praying over the last week or so about what hymn I could adopt for Karis. After her birth a dear older woman prayed over Karis that she would have a voice and be a singer to praise the name of Jesus. This has always stayed with me…one of those things you store up in your heart. While at a mission conference this past weekend, we heard “Blessed Assurance” be sung. The Lord confirmed in my heart that this was for Karis.

“Blessed Assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.

This is my story, this is my song.
Praising my Savior all the day long!”

For the entirety of the hymn, visit here.

That is my prayer for my little girl…that her life story would be one of a worshipper of our precious Savior! I have been so blessed to hear my husband start to sing it as well when he has the opportunity to put her to bed…it’s precious to hear her daddy sing over her too!

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Q & A: Freezing Food

By on October 10, 2008 in recipes & kitchen tips

Melissa asked:

I was wondering if you do any freezing of soups or sauces, etc.  If so, what do you freeze them in?  You mentioned about the harmful chemicals in plastics and I wanted to know if you had other suggestions.

Yes! I almost always make a double or triple batch of any soup, chili, spaghetti sauce and beans for example. If I have leftovers that I know will not get eaten in time, I will freeze those as well. This helps avoid waste. I frequently make larger batches of baked items and freeze those as well. This makes it easy to pull out a batch of frozen food on a tiring day and re-heat it on the stove or oven.

All soups, sauces, leftovers and beans of any sort freeze very well in quart size glass jars or any glass container. I use quart mason jars as they take up the least amount of space and you can store several side by side on a freezer shelf. They are also very cheap to come by! Make sure to leave about 1-2 inches of breathing room at the top of the jar for expansion, otherwise your jar will break. I have had this experience on several occasions, so play it safe! Make sure the items are completely cooled as well. Store in refrigerator to cool before transferring to freezer. Keep the lid on the jar loose as well until it is completely frozen. That way if it expands beyond capacity it will just lift the lid of rather than breaking.

I still use Ziploc bags for freezing breads, frozen fruits, berries, and such, as I have not found an alternative for those items. Ziplocs are convenient because they do not take up very much room, thus working well in my limited freezer space. Ziplocs are considered in the “safe” category as long as you don’t re-heat items in them in the microwave or such. They are a #5 plastic.

Hope that helps!

Any other tips to share anyone?

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Further Thoughts on Wife Dressing – Part 3

By on October 9, 2008 in building the family

While reading the Word the other day, the Lord gave me some encouraging insights on the topic of Wife Dressing which we discussed a few weeks ago. Check out part 1 & part 2 if you haven’t already for practical tips and encouragement on serving our husbands in our dress. This is just a little addendum to those posts with some Scriptural encouragement for us all!

Dress for A King

“She makes coverings for herself, her clothing is fine linen and purple.” (Proverbs 31:22)

This really spoke to me as a beautiful example of a godly wife who takes thought to her clothing and appearance. Fine linen and purple were often garments worn in the courts of a king. I don’t believe this is encouraging expensive spending (especially as you balance it with the Scriptures included below), but rather  a change of mindset in that this woman was dressing in a manner as if her husband were a king! She acknowledged his leadership role in the home by acting as his queen! What a beautiful picture! Ultimately as well, we are dressing for the true King – King Jesus!

Dress Yourselves with Godly Character

“Strength and dignity are her clothing.” (Proverbs 31:25)

But overall, she knew and all of us must be continually reminded that what is most important to clothe ourselves in as woman is that of godly character. Our husbands will be most served and blessed as they see us radiate the fragrance of Christ, as they witness us putting to death the deeds of our flesh and submitting ourselves to the Spirit of Christ. They will be ultimately served in their roles as husbands and leaders as we submit unto them and rejoice in their progress and accomplishments.

“Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold and pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for a women making a claim to godliness.” (1 Timothy 2:9-10)

There is a proper balance! We must not be overly consumed with the outer that we loose sight of developing inner beauty -that of a meek and quiet spirit. Hense my encouragement to maintain a 10 minute a day appearance check. Serve your husband first and foremost by spending time in the Word of God, by cultivating Christ-likeness, and then make yourself look glorious to your husband by a simple appearance check, maybe a little makeup, but most importantly a smile and the radiance of Christ shining through you!

“In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external–braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.” (1 Peter 3:1-4)

This passage goes on to remind us of Sarah…the greatest gift we can give our husbands is by actively putting our hope in God, as Sarah demonstrated, and submitting ourselves to our husband’s leadership.

Younger women, you can practice this truth now as well. Cultivate inner beauty and outer beauty will naturally flow!

“Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.” (Proverbs 31:30)

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Simplifying the Holidays – Giveaway!

By on October 8, 2008 in frugal & simple, news & updates

Are you overwhelmed with the thought of yet another holiday season? Do you desire a peaceful holiday season and yet purposefully Christ centered? How can you begin now to pray and plan how God might have you and your family invest in making this a profitable and God-glorifying time of the year?

It might seem a little early to start thinking of the upcoming holidays, but what better way to keep the holidays simple but through a little planning and foresight! I am looking forward to sharing a few ideas that I have been blessed with over the next few weeks in our Simple Living Series, but for now, I would like to kick it off with a little giveaway!

The 12 Week Holiday Planner for Christian Families by Sheri Graham (mother of five) is a great tool for any family desiring to keep the Christ-centered focus in the holidays without being overwhelmed. Filled with practical and useful charts, planner pages, the Jesse Tree Devotional and other useful information, you will be equipped to keep your light shining this season!

Sheri says, “My desire in putting together this eBook is to provide a tangible way for you to plan out your holidays so they are enjoyable, less stressful, and more filled with the things that really matter.”

This 146 page e-book includes:

*Weekly plans for the 12 weeks prior to Christmas

*”Sheri’s Tips”- tips to make your holidays meaningful, shared throughout the ebook

*Thanksgiving Ideas

*Christmas Craft, Gift, Decorations and Menu Ideas

*Memory Making Ideas for the Family

*Ideas for Baked Items to Share/Give Away

*Ideas for Meals to Freeze for Use during the busy weeks

*Supplies to stock up on ahead of time or when on sale

*Ideas for a Holiday Baking Schedule

*Kids’ Gift Idea List

PLUS!!! “The Glorious Coming: A Jesse Tree Celebration of Advent” – Jesse Tree devotionals which include devotionals, ornaments, and instructions to make your own Jesse Tree!

I am so thrilled to share this resource with you all and am finding it very helpful already as I start taking simple steps with the use of these materials for planning our purposeful Christ-centered holidays!

Click here to view more details!

To join in on the giveaway, please leave a comment below and feel free to share one idea you have found helpful for simplifying the holidays.

Giveaway ends: Tuesday, October 14th 5:00pm PST. Winner will be randomly draw Tuesday evening and announced next Wednesday.

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Pasta Presto

By on October 7, 2008 in recipes & kitchen tips

This is one of our all time favorite special dinners! It works especially good for guests when you want to make something simple and yet delicious and appealing to all tastes. I would not consider it to be the most frugal of dishes, but it is one that you can definitely cut back on the amount of meat to suit your tastes and budget!

My sister-in-law sent me the original recipe a long while ago and it has been passed around so much since among family and friends. At every event I have served it there are more requests for the recipe.

1 package (16 ounces) brown rice penne pasta (preferred due to the low amount of phytates over other whole grain pastas, unless sprouted)
2 teaspoon olive or coconut oil (coconut is best over high heat)
4-5 cups (1/4 inch thick) sliced red bell pepper (approx. 4 large bell peppers), each cut in half crosswise (I have also used various colored bell peppers in combination together with great results!)
1 teaspoon sea salt, divided
16 ounces Italian sausage (I love this with chicken Italian sausage from our local Trader Joe’s – delicious! I usually get by just fine with 1/2 pound)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup (about 1, 5-6 oz small container) crumbled feta cheese
1 (15 oz can) black olives, sliced (or kalamata, if desired)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Undercooking is best, as it will continue cooking when you add to the other ingredients.

Saute the bell peppers and 1/2 teaspoon salt for 2 minutes in olive or coconut oil. Remove casings, if necessary, from the sausage. Add sausage, oregano, and garlic to pan; cook for 4 minutes until sausage is done; stirring to crumble. Add pasta, 1/2 teaspoon salt, cheese, olives, and black pepper; cook for 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently.

Yield: 6-8 servings

Enjoy! Especially great as leftovers!

Adapted originally from a Cooking Light recipe.
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Mission of Motherhood: Discipleship

By on October 6, 2008 in building the family

“I don’t just want my kids to be moral. I don’t just want them to know all the biblical rules for behavior…I want them to leave my home with a hunger and passion to know God personally and to be used by him to accomplish great things for his kingdom. I want them to personally hear God’s voice and have his Spirit’s gentle touch and impression on their hearts as they read the Scriptures and struggle with the issues of their lives.”

Thus begins chapter 5 of The Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson. The call is prominent throughout this chapter to guard ourselves against focusing on trying to meet external standards while the most important deep spiritual needs of our children go unmet.

I love the new light given on Jeremiah 9:23-24, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,’ declares the Lord.””

We must ask ourselves: What is my focus? Is it on developing intellectual success (boasting in wisdom) in making sure they get the best grades, getting into the best university, mastering all forms of skills in writing, artistry, sports, or musicians? Am I giving over attention to social status (boasting in might) in helping them achieve high-status positions? Finally, am I consumed with measuring up financially (boasting in riches) by comparing our financial status with other families, or by giving too much attention to purchasing toys and items that will make our children happy?

Even with having just a young child myself, I have found it very easy to dwell frequently upon the future, considering that if I plan it all out now she will go even further with such a great head start!

While all these things very well can be worthy goals, yet “we must constantly keep in mind that, in God’s eyes, the issues of intellectual prowess, social success, and financial development are peripheral at best.” We are incapable of controlling these areas perfectly in the long run anyway…we will fall short! But “any parent in any station of life has the ability to reach his or her child’s heart for Christ and his purposes. All that God requires from us is a desire to serve him and a trust that he can make up the difference for the things we lack.”

The challenge for us mothers today is to focus on the heart! All the going in the world from sports events, to AWANA, to any form of lessons will not make our children spiritually deep or alive. It is about coming to the Savior and spending time with him on our own as mothers and together with our children. Rather than dwelling on the future, I can actively cultivate the important things now!

More practical suggestions and ideas in chapters to come…the question today is: are our priorities in balance?

Did anything stand out to you in a unique way from this chapter? Please share how you were blessed or challenged!

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Menu Plan – October 6-12

By on October 5, 2008 in recipes & kitchen tips

We are praising the Lord for a wonderful weekend spent up in Seattle at the Mission Fest gathering. We enjoyed manning the LightSys display and talking with people about the exciting opportunities we look forward to (Lord willing) in providing technology, computer and web services for both missionary organizations and missionaries alike. I enjoyed visiting a few sessions and get stirred up afresh on the importance of incorporating the Great Commission in every aspect of life. We will be sharing a little bit more this week on what God has been stirring in our hearts…

I am also thanking the Lord for the arrival of my blender! It has been disfunctional for the past two months as I have been waiting a back ordered part on warranty. I honestly had given up hope and yet it arrived this weekend safe and sound. We enjoyed smoothies this morning and what a treat! They are back on the menu!

Continue Reading →

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Traditions in the Home

By on October 3, 2008 in making a home

“The home should be a haven where family traditions and rituals reassure its residents that life, even with its turmoil and difficulties, is indeed worth the effort. Those traditions that make your family unique will go with you wherever you travel and be the human rock to which you can cling.

“Home should be a source for gathering strength for the challenges of life, a living album for remembering the past and your heritage, an oasis for finding joy to celebrate the present moment, and a reservoir of energy and optimism that enables you to recharge your batteries to go out into the future highways of life.”

~ Dorothy Patterson, A Handbook for Ministers’ Wives

Quoted in Practicing Hospitality by Pat Ennis and Lisa Tatlock, which includes a dedicated chapter on developing hospitality towards your family and cultivating family traditions. Wonderful encouragement! Another great resource is Treasuring God in our Traditions by Noel Piper.
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Q & A: Soaking Pasta

By on October 2, 2008 in recipes & kitchen tips

My inbox has been overflowing as of late with various questions and frequently there are many quite similar to each other. While I love reading and hope to provide a little assistance in response, time does not permit me to respond to every e-mail as I would desire. I have decided it might just be best to present a weekly Q & A post or two, as needed, to address these questions. Please forgive the delay it has taken to respond to many of your questions. Look for the answers here in the future…if I have them that is! ;)

Laura asked:

Have you soaked your grains when making homemade pasta? How do you do it?

Charmayne asked a similar question:

In Nourishing Traditions, she does not cover pasta as she says that the pasta is not soaked, sprouted, etc. I was surprised that she had very little to say on pasta as it is a staple in many homes and it is a huge part of the Italian culture. Do you know of any recipe/book that covers soaking/sprouting pasta grains?

My research and discussion on this topic has proven that pasta is one that unfortunately cannot be soaked including that of soaking store bought pasta or in the process of making homemade pasta. You actually can purchase sprouted pasta made from sprouted grain from Food for Life, but I have yet to try it. Personally, I am not a huge fan of their products as I have found them to be incredibly dense and lacking flavor. This may or may not be the case with the pasta. There are recipes available for making your own sprouted grain or sourdough pasta if you are really adventurous. Weston Price provides a recipe for Sourdough Egg Noodles and Rejoice for Life has a recipe for sprouted or sourdough pasta. Go for it!

The option we choose as a family is using brown rice pasta. Brown rice has the lowest amount of phytates and thus a limited consumption of it is not too problematic. We use either Trader Joe’s brown rice pasta or Tinkyada brown rice pasta (our source is through Azure Standard). Both are excellent and delicious, although more sticky than the average pasta.

I know many of my readers have alot of ideas and knowledge, so feel free to share!

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Q & A: Facial Care during Pregnancy

By on October 2, 2008 in bellies & babies, natural & green

Brittney asked:

During pregnancy I’ve been breaking out a lot (on my face and other areas – with little bumps that you can feel but not always see). Wondering what facial care method you use and any you might recommend. I’ve been researching a bit and have heard of oil facial care (hesitant about that) but can’t find any other facial methods that people say are natural and work. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Great question Brittney and it happens to just be one I am dealing with currently but have not started to find any solution to the problem. I seem to only deal with red splotches during pregnancy and it drives me crazy. Currently, it comes and goes and I keep my facial wash routines pretty basic…water and soap! SO we are passing on this question to the readers. Any natural solutions to share to help us poor pregnant ladies?

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