The Mothership

I sat watching Mary give her song of praise through the lens of the television. She recites a song as if from memory and through the screen I can sense a longing in her heart. A longing to BE with her maker. She portrays what the honor of carrying the savior in her heart truly meant to her.  Mary’s Prophetic Song 46  And Mary sang this song:      “My soul is ecstatic, overflowing with praises to God! 47  My spirit bursts with joy over my life-giving God! [ aj ] 48  For he set his tender gaze upon me, his lowly servant girl. [ ak ]      And from here on, everyone will know      that I have been favored and blessed. 49  The Mighty One has worked a mighty miracle for me;      holy is his name! 50  Mercy kisses all who fear him,      from one generation to the next. [ al ] 51  Mighty power flows from him      to scatter all those who walk in pride. 52  Powerful princes he tears from their thrones      and he lifts up the lowly to take their place. 53  Those who hunger for him will always b

2 - 32oz. Containers chicken broth 2 - 10oz cans of Condensed cream of chicken (I use a gluten free, organic version) Water  1 tsp. Dried thyme 1/4 tsp. Salt 1/4 tsp black pepper  5 chicken legs 4 chicken thighs or 3 chicken breasts (thighs will give you a richer flavor) 4 Large carrots, peeled and sliced 1 white onion, chopped 4 celery stalks, chopped 2 bay leaves 4 oz. dried wide noodles (I use egg noodles) 2 handfuls of chopped kale OR 1 cup of frozen peas Multigrain bread or rolls to eat along with it.  Recipe : In a large pot on the stove combine the broth, condensed chicken soup, thyme, salt and pepper.  Take the 2 small cans that the condensed soup was in, fill them each up twice to add water to the pot (four fills in total). Stir altogether. Add chicken, carrots, onion, celery, and bay leaves. Bring pot to boiling; reduce heat to low, but still bubbling. Simmer covered for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked and vegetables are tender Remove chicken from the pot. Cool sligh

1 cup butter, softened  1&1/2 cup packed brown sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 can of pumpkin  4 cups all-purpose flour 2tsp baking powder  2 tsp cinnamon  1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp ginger 1/2 tsp cloves 1&1/2 cups chocolate chips 2 cups chopped walnuts  Icing/glaze 1&1/2 cups powdered sugar 2-4 tablespoons of almondmilk  1tsp Cinnamon  Heat oven to 350. Lightly grease cookie sheets.  In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Stir in the pumpkin.    In another bowl put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Add to butter mixture by spoonfuls beating well to combine. Dough might seem stringy. Stir, with spoon or spatula, the nuts and chocolate chips into dough slowly until well combined.  I use two soup spoons to drop onto cookie sheets. Grab a hunk of dough with one spoon and scrape dough off with the other - probably 2 tablespoons in estimation. Doug

She sits gazing...gazing at what I am not sure. I am blinded by the light emitting from around the outline of her silhouette.  She is bathed in a radiant glow that also gives off an aroma.  I step closer to realize the woman is scented in a fine perfume. She is not concerned of others. Nor the details of her physique.  But she has her eyes on one thing... The light that emits from her is because of her faith...it has saved her. She is peace. She is radiant. She exudes joy, wonder, and forgiveness. She is the presence of peace because she has made His heart her home. I see all of this, taking in each detail without even seeing the details. Details of the heart are not something one can see at first glance. But as you study them they become the dominant features. Her spirit is so in tune with God's because her spirit is God's. She shows abundant love because she has been forgiven much. Her hands hold an alabaster jar. All of her senses pointedly looking and activating to the one

I love zucchini bread. But it usually has a ton of butter and a ton of sugar. So I experimented a bit. This still has sugar but a lot less than my normal loaf AND it was super moist!  This makes two 9x5 loaf pans.  Recipe: 4 cups shredded zucchini, about 2.5 regular sized zucchini  2 smashed bananas 1 cup applesauce  1/2 cup maple syrup 3/4 cup honey 2 tsp pure vanilla extract 4 cups whole wheat flour Cooking spray 1 tsp salt 4 tsp cinnamon  2 tsp baking soda 4 tsp baking powder 1/2 bag chocolate chips 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional  Preheat oven to 350.  Line 2 9x5 loaf pans with parchment paper. Spray with cooking spray. Set aside.  Shred the zucchini. Set aside.  In a large bowl combine the banana, syrup, honey, applesauce, and vanilla.  Stir in the shredded zucchini.  In a separate bowl combine the flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder. If it seems really dry, add in small amounts of milk ( I used almondmilk). Do not overmix, but add enough so that it seems “wet.” Di

This can be a stand alone dish or a side dish  Ingredients: 1 spaghetti Squash Olive oil Salt, dried oregano leaves, and powdered garlic 1-2 big slicing tomatoes, sliced into at least 6 slices  1b of ground beef or meat substitute  Salt, Oregano and garlic 5-8oz. Of a spicy cheese, shredded Fresh basil Chopped red onion Warm oven to 425. Slice squash vertically and remove seeds of squash so it is in two halves. Brush some olive oil on the inside of each half. Season with salt and garlic powder. Place squash with insides facing down on cookie sheet. Bake for 40 minutes till squash is aldenté and able to pull out in shreds.  Towards the end of the squash cooking, begin cooking your ground beef; or I used a meat substitute. I sauté the meat in the pan, adding salt, garlic, pepper, and oregano till fully browned. Set aside Grease a 7x11 glass pan. Slice tomatoes into 12 or so slices. When the squash is finished baking, let it cool for a few minutes. Then with a fork shred the squash into t

This woman and I have parted ways before…   The first time she was gone for a week at camp.   When she left for college.   When she moved out of our apartment and married her husband (how dare she).   When I moved to New Jersey   the countless vacations she dare to take without me.  Each time I am sad. I deal with my sadness in many ways but more than likely my sadness moves with tears. Tears as I sit and think about the countless ways she has supported me most recently and pretty much all my life. Tears of the fun adventures we have been on and now take our families along too. Tears of the times I dared be upset with her. Tears of how she is ALWAYS putting other people before herself. I can’t even remember the last time she said, “no! That’s a bad idea.” to me because she is always along for the shenanigans.  She is just lovely.    She is leaving me again. And the tears are rolling. They have been rolling for weeks. It stings a little harder because of course she and her hus

In church we have been going through a series titled "Emotional by Design." Knowing I am emotional is not a mystery to most of you. However, if for some reason this is the first time you've stumbled upon my writings, this is something that is integral to the understanding of my mind.  Writing about how emotional I am, or why it is a good thing and not a bad thing or how God has wired me, is not for this post. But, I did want to give you backstory of where something came to mind. During one of the services my pastor was discussing healthy emotions and unhealthy emotions. I went back to thinking of a time when my emotions, thoughts, and every part of my being were unhealthy. My heart immediately rushed out to the years of my adolescence. The actual feelings of loneliness, depression, comparison, and insecurity flooded my body with physical reactions. Isn't that amazing that the memory of a feeling has the ability to bring you back in to a crippling state of anxiety and

Sometimes when I need encouragement or others do, I feel like God will show me pictures. Within those pictures there is some type of encouraging word and more often than not it ties in with a scripture I’ve been chewing on recently. Here is one such picture and maybe you’ll find encouragement in it.   I’m standing in our small/large group worshiping with our good friends. The worship song is “Champion” by Dante Bowe. I stand among a room full of friends and I hear silence besides the praises and prophecy upon their lips. And the world falls silent.  “You are my champion Giants fall when you stand Undefeated Every battle You’ve won I am who You say I am You crown me with confidence I am seated, in the heavenly place Undefeated, by the power of Your name” And along the lyrics flow from our lips as incense. As I stand listening I simply ask, God what do you want me to hear right now. “VICTORY…Jesus has given me…when I open up my mouth miracles start breaking down…”

 These were so yummy - and I am slightly less bloated after eating them than my normal enchiladas which you can find here. When I make enchiladas, I ALWAYS make this topper to go with them and it gives them that added flare. Just in time for Cinco de Mayo.   Ingredients: 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed cooking oil (I used avocado) 1/2 onion, chopped 1, 8oz. container of mushrooms, chopped 1 cup tomatoes, chopped  salt 1 tsp. each of Cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder  1 container of plant based cream cheese 1 cup of corn (can use canned, or frozen or fresh off the ear) 1 cup of lactose free shreds (dairy free cheese shreds - I used Daiya) 1, 14oz. can of enchilada sauce (I like the green sauce, but use red if you like)  tortilla wraps (I used whole wheat, you can use whatever kind you want)   Recipe: Preheat oven to 350. Drain and rinse the can of black beans. Over medium heat in a saute pan, heat oil and saute onions, mushrooms and tomatoes. Sprinkle salt, and add other

It fascinates me how intricately woven we all are, one from another. We each have desires, abilities, and strengths that God so tightly knits into our souls that sometimes they come spilling out when we least expect it. What an exciting moment when you minister to someone's heart due to the overflow of what your heart has cultivated! From the goodness that he has placed in us, we continue to pour out even more than we dreamed...if we look to him.  When we pour out from the inflow of Him in our strengths, true Kingdom cultivation happens. In OUR strengths. Not someone else's strengths, but the strengths that are so different from person to person. When you think of specific details and attributes of who God created you to be, there in lies truth about your identity in HIM. Your identity is so different than mine because that’s how he intended.  It's also in the strengths that the enemy can speak the loudest. The attributes God has so tenderly loved and placed in our hearts

This salad is always a fan favorite and super duper easy to prepare when you have limited time. The acidity of the balsamic mixed with the bite of arugula and onion really draws in those taste buds. I will put the portions here for both how I make for our household and then for large parties. This salad does not keep for more than a day as the dressing will wilt the arugula and could become slimy. You can always mix the dressing ahead of time and then add to the greens as needed.  Recipe for Home: 1.5 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar 2 Tbsp. Avocado Oil 1 tsp of honey or less Kosher Salt (just a dash) pepper  5 ounces of arugula  Pine nuts Grape tomatoes,  halved (about 10) 1/8 Red onion, diced or thin slices Instructions: In the bottoms of a large bowl mix the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper. Whisk together. I usually add small amounts of the kosher salt and pepper because they can be overpowering.  Place the arugula in the bowl and some of the tomatoes, onions, and pine nuts

There is nothing anyone could have said. Nothing anyone could have done to change my mind. I was fat, not worth a lot of conversation or even time, and most of how I behaved or performed was all wrong. This is where my worth and identity rested, and the value I held in my life. Which, now that I have a daughter, I would never envision for her story. Her worth and purpose are nowhere near connected to her weight. This month is Eating Disorder Awareness month and even though I was never truly diagnosed as having one, I most certainly had one. And I'm sure someone you know was just like me. I was not healthy...in any sense of the word. Not mentally or physically. I was starving myself; not just sustenance, but bread of life. I had friends. I had a boyfriend, and I was a straight A student. There was no convincing me I was successful, and beautiful. My family and friends did nothing but TRY to lift me up. No one tore me down; it was all a mind game that I had played in my own head. I&#