What I am loving these days… January 27, 2009

I’m back…I didn’t intend to be missing in action since the giveaway…but I just never got back and then I  have been struggling with a piece that a friend of mine (kimz) suggested that I put on the proverbial shelf and move on…

So I am moving on…I thought I would share a few things that are making my life full of happy…

This lactose-intolerant gal is loving…

During my first pregnancy, I developed an intolerance to milk…and now that it has been almost 20 years…I am so glad that there are so many brands of soymilk…but Silk is my favorite…and I also love their creamer too.

Lasagne in a pinch…

Is this the greatest invention ever…seems like I tried some brand of no-boil lasagne years ago and the recipe recommended adding boiling water or something like that…anyway it was an expensive disaster.  But these noodles make lasagne a snap…I made a large batch of sauce a couple weeks ago and made spaghetti one night and froze the remaining sauce and made lasagne tonight…it is a thing of beauty.

Great read…

Living Prayer by Robert Benson

Thanks Joanne for the endorsement.  I really loved reading this book especially because Robert Benson is so humble and earnest in his desire to live a life that is carved by prayer.  It felt a bit like I was listening to a friend talk about meeting with the Savior over a cup of tea.  It was a delight.

I underlined a lot of the first part of the book and then decided to just sit back and read…I will underline…when I read it again…here’s a couple of quotes…

**We cannot hear the Word because our own words are in the way
We cannot be filled with God until we are not so full of ourselves.  Our hearts and minds, wonderful as they are, are simply too small.  We cannot give our hearts to God, or anyone else for that matter, as long as they are too heavy for us to lift.**

**In any life of prayer, one will live through and pray through seasons of great certainty and conviction.  Seasons when one is acutely aware of belonging to God, of being chosen and being marked for some particular time and some particular place and some particular work for the kingdom.

There must also be seasons of prayer in which you must pray for suffering, for brokenness, for the most blessed of the gifts that make us the Body of  Christ, and that make that Body available to be shared with any and all of us.  You can’t be multiplied enough to be shared.  You can only be broken enough to be shared.**

New Study…

Already this study of the book of Esther has been eye opening…such a familiar story…but I have a feeling that this story is going to invade my own life story.

Words…Words…Words…

The word(s) or word phrases that I have been meditating on for this year are…

The other side…you can read more here…

I’m trusting Him that He is sticking close as I head to the other shore in different areas of my life…He’s with me and the other side is a foregone conclusion…because He has declared it…I just need to remember that more often when storms pop up out of nowhere.

My scripture for this year is Psalm 34…

It’s all about Him and in this 22 verse psalm LORD is used 16 times…which leads me to my second word of the year…good…this psalm uses it 4 times…

“Taste and see that the LORD is good” (8)

“but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing” (10)

“Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days” (12)

“Turn from evil and do good;” (14a)

Good…Who God is…two blessings and a command…it’s all good.

That’s a little bit of what I have been up to while I deal with hitting the writing wall.

Next time…I will share with you my all-time favorite cookie recipe…it’s pretty incredible…trust me…it will be worth the wait.

Tell me what you are reading…eating…drinking…what verses have been hard hitting lately…what are you studying in the Word…I would love to know!

Helen

We have a winner… January 16, 2009

Good morning…I am a little late getting this posted…

It has been a fun week of tea…I have loved reading all your comments on what your favorite hot beverage is…I even got an email from a friend that had tried the London Fog tea latte with a friend and they loved it as well.  Courtney and I have been making our own and we call them the Oregon Fog…and it has actually been a bit foggy some mornings here in Portland.  It has actually been a sweet time for us to brew our tea in a pot and relax during the evening together…a nice new ritual in the making…and a mini bonus…I don’t find myself wanting a snack…because the tea has been our dessert.

I was able to randomly give away some tea packets and it was a lot of fun as well…probably my favorite was to my neighbor who is a grandmother who has been caring for 4 grandchildren…she gets so little rest…when I asked her if she liked tea…her eyes sparkled and I ran inside to get her a package…I told her to put her feet up once the kids are all at school…she said…I’m not waiting…I’m doing it now!  God has redeemed my drawers and brought a little cheer to spread around.

Now down to business…I thought I would ask Caleb to pick a number between 1 and 12…first he picked 13…then I asked him again trying to explain it better so he picked 1000…

So…it must take a high school education, so once I returned from dropping Caleb the number guy at school…I asked Carlen who had just returned from her 7am math class…can you say ugh…but those numbers were churning around her brain and she was happy to pick a number…so the winner of the giveaway is:

 

                                                                 9

That number corresponds to Kierstan…

So congratulations Kierstan…no mailing needed…I will bring it to you on Monday at Bible study…sorry I am adding a few teas to your drawer…

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for reading A Work of Heart…you all make my day!

Helen

Note…I was just going to press publish when my phone alerted me of a new email…it was a comment from Gayle…who actually would be comment number 13…is Caleb prophetic…anyway, send me your address Gayle and I will send you a package of teas…you can email me at  wassuphelen at yahoo dot com. 

 

Giveaway Reminder… January 14, 2009

Just as a reminder…there is still time to leave a comment and be entered for the giveaway.

Just read the post below…answer the ultra-simple question and you will be entered.

I will be picking the winner on Friday around 9am (PST)…

Thanks for all those who have entered…it has been fun reading your comments.

Happy Hump Day,

Helen

What I did this afternoon… January 11, 2009

I spent some time this afternoon writing a post…this is not that post.

I pressed “save draft” and went to assemble dinner.  My mind wandered to what I had been writing…not very well, I might add and God said…

“No.”

“Uh-uh.”

“Not now…maybe later.”

So that post…if it is supposed to be published will be just that…maybe later.

But I was going to tag a little something on to the tail end of that other post…so here it is…thus the incredibly original title to this post.

On Friday, I visited a Starbucks with a couple of girlfriends.  I wanted to try their new drink London Fog Tazo Tea Latte…my all time favorite tea is Earl Grey and this drink is a combination of Italian Bergamot, lavender and vanilla…our server was so nice and gave each of us gals a couple coupons to try their new tea lattes…they passed but I was overjoyed…it was divine!  Check out your Starbucks and you might be able to get your hands on a free coupon and a special card for $2 tea drinks after 2pm. 

Anyway, I got to thinking…I wonder if I could duplicate this at home…so I opened my tea drawer…I actually have two…and inside I found this…my friend Kim had given me a can of this wonderful tea awhile back…I had forgotten…since becoming more of a coffee drinker, I have much neglected tea.  Last night, I brewed a pot of tea, heated up some fat-free half and half added a packet of Splenda and made my own tea latte…alas no foam but it was really yummy.

I have a lot of tea…I won’t go into details but it was a lot…they are skinny drawers but nonetheless…I am not sure if I heard that there would be a shortage of tea soon or what but it was a bit embarrassing.  I won’t even try to go into excuses…I just have overbought and underused this item.  But instead of staying amongst my shame of so much when many have so little…I made these today…

I had myself a little tea party…

I made these little tea packets…each contains a variety of about 10 tea packets and the ones on the bottom just contain assorted green teas.  I used leftover letter stickers and had fun.  I am going to give them to neighbors or friends or anyone who could use a lift…Courtney is going to give a couple to her tea loving friends and I am sending some to work with Carl for his co-workers. 

Now one drawer is empty…the other drawer holds the teas that we drink most often…Earl Grey of course, Earl Grey Green which is wonderful, the Earl Grey with lavender, some mint, some bedtime tea, a little chamomile, some peach tea and that’s about it.

I have been really…I mean a really big winner lately in giveaways…so in that spirit…I am giving away a  packet of my tea assortments

and

For the Love of God by D.A. Carson Volume 1

I talked here a bit about how I am reading through the Word this year…this book has the program of taking you through the Old Testament once and the Psalms and New Testament twice.  Each day there is a one page reading based on one of the places you have read…I am using the second volume but have a brand new volume one waiting for someone.

Leave me a comment and tell me what your favorite hot beverage is and you will be entered to win…that simple…I will choose a winner the morning of January 16th…

So please enter…I am off to heat up the tea kettle and curl up with a good book…

Helen

Steady… January 6, 2009

 

I started reading through the Bible again this year.  I thought that I would “take a break” after finishing cover to cover but I was wrong…I am glad that I was.

I am not reading it chronologically although that was incredible.  I am following the M’ Cheyne’s  calendar of daily readings.  Last year, I missed being in the New Testament regularly.  This reading program takes you through the Old Testament once and Psalms and the New Testament twice in the course of a year.  Each day has a reading from 4 places in the Word…or you can cut this in half and make it a two year plan.  God has been teaching me that I need to be thankful for the gift of time but I don’t have to rush…the Christian life is a journey and journeys are not sprints.  There are so many ways to be in His Word…perhaps you want to focus on different books of the Bible and really take your time and study a book at a time.  Maybe there is a certain word that keeps coming up…do a word study. Whatever and wherever God leads you…immerse yourself in His Word. 

My friend Cheryl is reading the Word this year using the Message and she has such enthusiasm that I decided to break out my old copy and use it as well for my daily readings.  How many times have we begun the year reading Genesis?  It can seem so familiar…but reading it in a different translation can make it come alive.

Yesterday I read this in Genesis 5:

“Enoch walked steadily with God” (v. 24)

I am used to the NIV translation of “Enoch walked with God”…but adding the word steadily made me think.

When this life is over, will these words be said of me…that I walked steadily with God.  I don’t want a walk that is tossed by lots of drama…there may be drama in my life but I want the steadiness of my walk with Him to be evident…His steadfastness to me overrides all that might try to shift my focus.

I like to rush…sometimes it is necessary to avoid being late…other times it is just a habit.  I have expressed that I have problems with both knees…at times they are extremely painful.  In December I found my hobbling more pronounced because I was trying to walk just as quickly as I used to…it was not possible…it was foolish…I hurt myself further. 

Today and for the last few days…my knees have improved a great deal…as Caleb and I were walking to  his school’s front door this morning, he stopped and said from BEHIND me…Mommy, you are walking so fast! 

 He is used to waiting for me a lot these days because I can’t keep up with his spry legs…okay using the word “spry” really makes me feel old but I am sticking with it…but as I looked at Caleb and agreed with his pint sized assessment, I realized that I had pushed aside the months of aching legs in an instant and returned to my normal routine without batting that proverbial eyelash.  Were we running late…no, we were early…there was no need to rush…no need to risk setting my progress back…I needed to take my walk slow and steady…embracing gratitude. 

Today I could have walked at a gentle and even pace with Caleb…held his hand…carried on a light conversation with him…but instead I forged ahead at great speed.

I want to walk steadily through my life…with others…with God…throughout my day.  I want to rise to meet Him not to have something to check off my “to do” list but as my first thought…longing…inclination for the day…a day that begins and extends with Him…walking steadily with my God.  I don’t want to miss being with Him because I have made him routine.

Will you slow down and take a leisurely walk with the Savior with me?

Memory Work… January 1, 2009

 

I have been blogging a lot in recent days…I like it!  So make sure you scroll down to see what you have missed…I have been a bit reflective…I guess it goes with “out with the old, in with the new”…

I want to challenge you as so many others are to make a plan to memorize God’s Word.  I don’t think I have to even list all the benefits of this often neglected spiritual discipline…but I will tell you what Tim LaHaye states as the pluses of memorizing scripture:

• It will give you victory over sin
• Helps you overcome worry
• It will give you confidence in sharing your faith
• It speeds up the transformation process
• It will assist you in discovering God’s will
• It helps in your other Bible studies
• It outfits you for unlimited service to God

I want to share with you three blogs that are promoting scripture memorization.  It is easy to say…that we will just do it ourselves…alone. That is perfectly fine.  Having accountability last year, even in a cyber kind of way, was really helpful to me…it worked…as I wrote in my year end reflections…I read through the Bible with a blog group, I kept at my commitment to rise early to meet with the Lord and I also memorized in a bigger (mega) way than I had in a very long time.

The new year brings with it the temptation for me to try and do everything…and I want to leave some room for what God hasn’t told me yet… so I am going to follow the LPM blog’s idea to memorize 2 scriptures per month.  Twice a month you will find what I am going to work on my sidebar…and I am sure there will be times where I will post what I learn as well…I guess, I decided that I don’t want to feel like I have to blog on a certain day…I think I need a break from just finishing up the cover to cover posts…

My scripture for the next two weeks is:

“Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in him,
for he shields him all day long,
and the one the LORD loves
rests between his shoulders.”

Deuteronomy 33: 12

If you feel like you would like to gain some momentum in memorizing scripture, here are three great ways to begin:

Joanne at The Simple Wife  is memorizing one scripture (your choice) per week…called Memory Monday.  Click on her name for more information. You will just love her blog in general…so you should do yourself a favor and click over right now.

Beth Moore and the gang at  LPM blog  are memorizing 2 scriptures per month.  You can pick hers each time or choose your own or one from the gazillion of verses left in the comment section…seriously, I didn’t get through all of the hundreds of scriptures that are being memorized but I must say that just after about 20 minutes of reading them I had tears streaming down my cheeks…what an awesome God we have!

Ann Kroeker is sponsoring  January Mega Memory Month  where you pick something mega-sized to commit to memory.  Ann’s blog is wonderful as well and she was so encouraging during the October MMM with lots of helpful tips and she personally encouraged each one of us to keep at it…what I gleaned the most from that time besides the Word was that there is nothing wasted when we attempt to memorize…even if we aren’t always word perfect…it is all good…

What excites me is that this must just delight the heart of God…so what are you waiting for…grab your index cards and delight in his statues.