Tuesday, March 27, 2018

Passion Week - Resurrection Cookies (Recipe)

Photo Credit
This is a recipe that I made with my children several times over the course of their growing up years. What a great way to teach the Biblical account of the Resurrection!

You will need:

1 cup whole pecans
1 teaspoon vinegar
3 egg whites
a pinch salt
1 cup sugar
a zippered baggy
a wooden spoon
scotch tape
Bible


Instructions:

These are to be made the evening before Resurrection Sunday.  

Preheat oven to 300 degrees *** (this is very important --- don't wait until you are half done with the recipe). 

Place pecans in zippered baggy and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces.  Explain that after Jesus was arrested He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read: John 19:1-3.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 teaspoon vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross He was given vinegar to drink. Read: John 19:28-30.

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life. Read: John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl.  Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers and the bitterness of our own sin. Read: Luke 23:27.

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read: Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read: Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

Fold in the broken nuts. Drop by teaspoonsful onto waxed paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read: Matthew 27:57-60.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door, and turn the oven OFF.

Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read: Matthew 27:65-66.

GO TO BED!

Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read: John 16:20-22.

On Resurrection Sunday (Easter) morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie.  Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first Resurrection Sunday (Easter) morning Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read: Matthew 28:1-9.

What a great way to share with your children the fact that we do, indeed, serve a risen Saviour and His name is Jesus! Praise be unto the Lord! 

Happy Passion Week!

Until next time...
~Rebecca

Recent and related posts that you might enjoy reading...


Resurrection Rolls







Monday, March 26, 2018

Happy Homemaker Monday - March 26, 2018

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
and all the sweet ladies of 
Happy Homemaking Monday!

Good morning, Sweet Ladies! 💗

I pray that this post finds each and every one of you healthy, happy, serving the Lord with gladness, and ready and willing to face the week ahead, with all its challenges, head-on and full of joy! Happy Passion Week! 🌴

I must subconsciously be in spring-cleaning mode or something. Yesterday afternoon, over lunch, my husband and I pulled Jesus of Nazareth up on Amazon Prime and watched the full 6+ hour movie (something we haven't done in years), but, while watching, I worked on various projects, some that were on my to-do list for this week anyway, and some that weren't, including sorting through and cleaning out four dresser drawers full of craft stuff and reorganizing them into marked and labeled containers. It felt soooo good to get that done.

Then, I went to bed late (after midnight) and woke up this morning full of energy! (What in the world???) I bounded out of bed, and immediately set to work on my weekly "home blessing". By 9:00 a.m. it was finished! The only thing that I have left to do is shampoo the livingroom carpet and wash the cat's bedding, which I plan on doing immediately following finishing this post. 

Wow! 😲 I don't know what's going on, but I hope it continues!!! LOL! 😆

Let's get started on this week's post...shall we?

Right now I am...

Finishing breakfast and enjoying a cup of tea while I work on this post. I'm also enjoying the view out my office (the Van Gogh room) window and listening to the distant thunder roll, unhindered, across the tall-grass prairie. 

Not real clear, but this is taken from where I sit at my desk, through a
window and storm glass, that desperately needs a good cleaning, and
a window screen...looking across the road toward the neighbor's barn. I love the
tree that grows there in the middle of the field and, of course,
the green grass and the purple patches of henbit in bloom.
On the breakfast plate...

Cottage cheese on sprouted, 7-grain toast and Irish breakfast tea

The weather...

Cloudy and 56 degrees. We're supposed to get up to around 70 today with thunderstorms this morning, afternoon, evening, overnight, and throughout the day tomorrow. The ten-day doesn't look too bad, but the temperatures are going to be just a little cooler than what I'd like for them to be...highs in the upper 50's and low 60's during the daytime, with nighttime temps in the 30's and 40's. ☔

On my reading pile...

In addition to daily Scripture reading, I'm still reading Following God's Plan For Your Life by Kenneth E. Hagin and Walk the Walk - Getting Fit with Faith by Leslie Sansone. I finished the last chapter of Live Long, Finish Strong by Gloria Copeland last week and am getting ready to start the 8-session DVD series and guidebook and journal that goes with it. This is honestly one of the best books I've ever read. 📕



Following God's Plan For Your Life by Kenneth E. Hagin
Walk the Walk - Getting Fit with Faith by Leslie Sansone
Live Long, Finish Strong by Gloria Copeland
Life in the Spirit Study Bible - King James Version
On the menu this week...

Note: We're still working on eating up that cabbage around here! It's a good thing that we like it...huh??? 😆

Monday - bison roast with potatoes, carrots, and onions 
Tuesday - roasted turkey breast, baked sweet potatoes, and fried cabbage
Wednesday - chili turkey dogs and baked potatoes
Thursday - baked chicken breast, brown rice (freezer), and fried cabbage
Friday - homemade pizza
Saturday - leftovers
Sunday - ham, deviled eggs, cottage cheese, veggie tray, and dip

On my 'to do' list...

- Monday - Plan the week ahead, do my weekly "home blessing"laundry, shampoo carpets (if I have time)
- Tuesday - Grocery shopping
- Wednesday - Take car in for an alignment, return bear trunk to MDC in Joplin
- Thursday - Pick up car from shop, attend a seder dinner @ dd's
- Friday - Work, boil and dye eggs
- Saturday - Work, have an egg hunt for the grandlittles
- Sunday - Celebrate Resurrection Sunday with friends and family, church with lunch following

In the craft basket...

I finally get a pair of pinking shears AND located my sewing machine after the move. Am ready to start working on those shopping bags. In fact, I got 11 of them cut out yesterday afternoon!



Looking forward to this week...

Celebrating Passion Week and the Resurrection of our Lord, as well as, all the special things planned with family and friends. 💜

From the camera...


Resurrection Sunday 2010 - Granddaughters Liz and Audrey
Resurrection Sunday 2010 - Grandlittles Audrey, Liz, T.J. and
  Silas are in search of eggs and candy, but they remind of fairies dancing
on the lawn. This has always been one of my favorite pictures.


Scripture passage...




Well, Ladies, that's it for this week! I pray that each and every one of you have a blessed and beautiful week ahead!

Until Next Time...
~Rebecca

Recent posts that you might enjoy reading...


Passion Week - Jesus' Final Week (Reading Schedule)




Thursday, March 22, 2018

Passion Week - Jesus' Final Week (Reading Schedule)

As Passion Week approaches I am reminded of the many in-depth Bible studies that our family has done throughout the years concerning the "final week" in Jesus' life and all that it entailed. Here is a reading schedule that our youngest son and I followed several years ago that covers the Triumphal Entry through the Resurrection. My plan, starting this Sunday (Palm Sunday), is to follow this schedule myself as I focus my heart and mind on Holy Week and all that Jesus endured that final week of His life wrapped in human flesh for my sake and for yours. Would you like to join me?


Have a beautiful and blessed Passion Week!


Until next time...

~Rebecca




Sunday (Palm Sunday) - The Triumphal Entry


    Matthew 21:1-11


    Mark 11:1-10


    Luke 19:29-44    


    John 12:12-19


Monday - Jesus Curses The Fig Tree


    Matthew 21:18-19


    Mark 11:12-14


                     Jesus Cleanses The Temple


    Matthew 21:12-13


    Mark 11:15-18


    Luke 19:45-48




Tuesday - The Authority Of Jesus Questioned


    Matthew 21:23-27


    Mark 11:27-33


    Luke 20:1-8


                        Jesus Teaches In The Temple


    Matthew 21:18-23:29


    Mark 12:1-44


    Luke 20:9-21:4


                        Jesus' Feet Anointed


    Matthew 26:6-13


    Mark 14:3-9


    John 12:2-11


Wednesday - The Plot Against Jesus


    Matthew 26:14-16


    Mark 14:10-11


    Luke 22:3-6


Thursday - The Last Supper


    Matthew 26:17-29


    Mark 14:12-25


    Luke 22:7-23


    John 13:1-38


                      Jesus Comforts His Disciples


    John 14:1-16:33


                      Jesus' High Priestly Prayer


    John 17: 1-26


                      Gethsemane


    Matthew 26:36-46


    Mark 14:32-42


    Luke 22:40-46


Friday - Jesus' Arrest And Trial


    Matthew 26:47-27:26


    Mark 14:43-15:15


    Luke 22:47-23:25


    John 18:2-19:16


                        Jesus' Crucifixtion And Death


    Matthew  27:27-56


    Mark 15:16-41


    Luke 23:26-49


    John 19:17-30


                       The Burial Of Jesus


    Matthew 27:57-66


    Mark 15:42-47


    Luke  23:50-56


    John 19:31-42


Resurrection (Easter) Sunday -The Empty Tomb


    Matthew 28:1-8


    Mark 16:1-12


    Luke 24:1-12


    John 20:1-10


                           To Mary Magdalene In The Garden   


    Mark 16:9-11


    John 20:11-18


                           To Other Women


    Matthew 28:9-10


                            To Two People Going To Emmaus


    Mark 16:12-13


    Luke 24:13-32


                            To Peter


    Luke 24:34


                            To The Ten Disciples In  The Upper Room


    Mark 16:14


    Luke 24:36-43


    John 20:19-25


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Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Spring 2018 Bucket List


Well...winter is officially over and it's the first day of spring 2018! I'm so thankful!

Normally, I'm content is any season (fall is my favorite, then spring, then winter, then summer), but, this year, once we got past that first good snow, I was ready for spring! Winter seemed to just drag on and on! I'm so glad it's spring! 

“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease" (Genesis 8:22).

Here are some of the things that I'm looking forward to this spring and hope to accomplish throughout the course of the season...

1. Write my spring bucket list
2. Plan my spring menus (these will be posted each Monday in my weekly Happy Homemaker Monday posts)
3. Read the account of Christ's death and resurrection out of all four gospels 🕮
4. Dye Easter eggs 
5. Have an egg hunt for the grandlittles
6. Do a nighttime egg hunt
7. Watch Jesus of Nazareth 
8. Eat a Russell Stover's Maple Cream Egg with my oldest daughter on her birthday (it's tradition!)
9. Celebrate Resurrection Sunday (church and lunch with family and friends) 
10. Pick a bouquet of pretty yellow daffodils 
11. Celebrate spring birthdays with the grandlittles 🎂
12. Attend KCM's Victory Campaign 2018 in Branson
13. Celebrate Passover by reading the Biblical account and preparing (or attending) a seder meal 
14. Plant a tree for Arbor Day (I'm really wanting a sugar maple for the front yard - this might be a good time to look into it) 🌳
15. See Indian paintbrush blooming on the prairie
16. Plant a vegetable garden 🌱
17. Celebrate May Day with a basket of fresh flowers 🌷
18. Eat fresh strawberries
19. Plan and complete spring programs at work -

     A) Lunch For a Bear (Library) 🐻
     B) Birds of a Feather (HS) 🐦
     C) Legend of the Indian Paintbrush (Library)
     D) Poetic Prairie (HS)
     E) Fox in the Forest (Library)
     F) Nature Weaving (Public) 🌸
     G) Let's "Stick" Together (Public)
     H) Missouri Frogs and Toads (Library) 🐸

20. Celebrate Mother's Day by sharing flowers with the ladies at church, my daughters, and daughters-in-law 🌺
21. Eat fresh asparagus
22. Listen to spring peepers 🐸
23. Celebrate Memorial Day weekend with a cookout 🍔
24. See a brand new baby bison 
25. Plant sunflower seeds
26. Include fresh dandelion greens in our spring salads 
27. Go with my friend, Laura, on a Herceptin "date" (includes a trip to the cancer treatment center with lunch following)
28. Observe a bird's nest with eggs in it and watch until the babies hatch 
29. Attend Spring Training at Cuivre River State Park
30. Hike all six trails at Prairie State Park

      A) Drovers
      B) Coyote
      C) Gayfeather
      D) Path of the Sky People
      E) Path of the Earth People
      F) Sandstone

31. Start going through those totes in storage that I didn't make it to over the winter months
32. See a prairie chicken
33. Put up at least one new birdhouse in our yard
34. Make at least two new shopping bags from 50# sunflower seed bags
35. Put out feeders for the hummingbirds
36. Get my herb wheel in place and plant herbs in it (this is an old wagon wheel that we had at the old place; moved it over here and forgot about it; it's still in storage)
37. Get a clothesline up
38. Get started on our moon garden 
39. Go camping with my husband
40. Take a walk in the rain
41. Put up a new birdhouse 
42. Get blinds put up on south-facing windows
43. Make jelly

That's what's on my spring bucket list. What's on yours?

Until next time...
~Rebecca

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Winter Bucket List 2018











Monday, March 19, 2018

Happy Homemaking Monday - March 19, 2018

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
and all the sweet ladies of 
Happy Homemaking Monday!

Good morning, Sweet Ladies!

I pray that this post finds each and every one of you healthy, happy, and serving the Lord with gladness! HAPPY SPRING! (Only one more day to go and it's official!!! Woo-hoo!) 🐣🌷🍓

Last week didn't go quite as planned. Our son-in-law's grandma took a turn for the worse and ended up in the hospital. It looked like he and our youngest daughter might not make it down for our St. Patrick's Day get-together at all, but, in the end, rather than come down and spend a couple of nights like they normally do, they managed to make it down just for the day...for which we were thankful. One day with them was better than not seeing them at all. We ended up with a houseful of family and friends with close to thirty in attendance. It was a fun day for everyone. Unfortunately, I didn't get a single picture! 😞 I'm hoping that I can talk someone into sharing with me that did. 😉

Let's get started on this week's post...shall we?

Right now I am...

Finishing up my breakfast while I work on this post.

On the breakfast plate...

Eggs, toast, and a steaming hot cup of Irish Breakfast tea

The weather...

We had rain overnight, but the sun is shining this morning. It's 51 degrees at the moment with a high of 60 according to the forecast. Tomorrow looks cool (49 degrees), but, after that 60's and 70's all the way through the foreseeable 10-day.

On my reading pile...

In addition to daily Scripture reading, I am reading Following God's Plan For Your Life by Kenneth E. Hagin and am still reading Walk the Walk - Getting Fit with Faith by Leslie Sansone, and Live Long, Finish Strong by Gloria Copeland (only one chapter to go - VERY good book!!!)



Following God's Plan For Your Life by Kenneth E. Hagin
Walk the Walk - Getting Fit with Faith by Leslie Sansone
Live Long, Finish Strong by Gloria Copeland
Life in the Spirit Study Bible - King James Version
On the menu this week...

I've not done very well at sticking to plan recently, but am going to redouble my efforts this week and try to stick with it all the way through. 

Monday - pasta, sauce, salad, and homemade bread
Tuesday - ham and beans and cornbread
Wednesday - roasted chicken tenders, baked sweet potatoes, and steamed cabbage
Thursday - homemade turkey Italian sausage and fried cabbage 
Friday - homemade pizza 
Saturday - leftovers
Sunday - leftovers

On my 'to do' list...

- Monday - Plan the week ahead, do my weekly "home blessing", laundry, go shopping
- Tuesday - Celebrate the first day of spring, update Winter Bucket List and create and post Spring Bucket List, and get together with my friend, Carla
- Wednesday - Meet oldest daughter-in-law for breakfast at Mary's; preschool programs at the library - "Lunch for a Bear"
- Thursday - Take a friend to her hair appointment
- Friday - Work - Spring Break Program - "Black Bears of Missouri"
- Saturday - Work - Spring Break Program - Nature Bingo
- Sunday - Church - Celebrate Palm Sunday



In the craft basket...

I had some wheat straws left over from some Christmas ornaments that I made a couple of years ago, so last night I soaked them, then sat down and made a few St. Bridget's crosses with them.

I also ordered a new pair of pinking shears so I can start work on those sunflower seed shopping bags soon. 😊





Looking forward to this week...

Doing the preschool programs at the library and spring break programs at work...especially the one on black bears. The Missouri Department of Conservation loaned me a trunk that contains a real bear pelt, rubber footprints, rubber scat, reading books, stickers, pamphlets, and all kinds of other goodies in it. The children are going to love it! 🐻

From the camera...


They did a prescribed burn Tuesday at Prairie State Park. This is the short, quarter-mile loop behind the nature center. You can see how the trail snakes it's way through the blacked and burned prairie.
A charred bison chip.
Ever wonder why this area called Prairie State Park was never farmed? There's your answer! It was too rocky! Most of what is known as Prairie State Park is virgin, native, tall-grass prairie. These rocks actually preserved the prairie by preventing the plowing under of the native plants and grasses that grow there.
Scripture passage...



Well, Ladies, that's it for this week! I pray that each and every one of you have a blessed and beautiful week ahead!

Until Next Time...
~Rebecca

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Happy Homemaking Monday - March 12, 2018