Concerning Self Denial

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

Matthew 16:24-26 NIV

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For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.

Titus 2:11-13 KJV

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Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Galatians 5:24,25 NASB

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Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:16-18 ESV

Friends,

I just read a news report where 3,000 Christians are fleeing the Norther Iraq Province of Ninevah.  They are being persecuted, and are being threatened . They may lose their very lives.

Please, keep the Christians in the Persecuted Church in Iraq in your prayers tonight.

According to a statistic from www.persecutedchurch.org ,  there will be an estimated 165,000 Christians who will die this year for their faith in Christ.

May God bless & protect  these souls who are in harm's way -- and may they stay strong in their love for the Lord!

~ gloria ~

I have found a few people that feel its wrong to stock up on things like food, medication, water etc...in the event of a total economic collapse..Not sure I understand why it would be wrong? The bible says to not store up our treaures in heaven, I think this means material posessions. We are not to worry about what we will eat and drink. This does not say not to be smart and stock things you and your family may need. There was a little joke going around at one time about a man who was in a flood and he was on the roof of his house and man in a life boat came by and tried to help him and them a helicopter tried .....both times the man said he was waiting on the Lord.....the man dies and goes to heaven and then ask God, 'why didn't you help me'? God reponds by saying, I sent you a boat and helicopter...this is not exact but you get the point...God will help those who help themselves...We are not stocking up because we do not trust God, we doing this because God says to trust him and he told me years ago to be prepared, took me a while to figure out what He meant but He clearly showed me to take care of my family and others if need be...He has continued to provide land and other things we need ion ways I would have never imagined.....Are those out there like me untrusting? Nope, we are wise and making sure our families are ok and many of us are thinking of others...I have made it clear to people in my life that if a the time comes they need help, I am here, I have land to give them a place to go and I will have food for them...this is not selfish...and we are not scared, just following the Lord...I am one that thinks ahead...if I do all of these things and nothing happens...so be it....but if it does...I am prepared...Now is the time.

~Kris

The "financial" woes of our nation are on the hearts and minds of many in our nation right now. 

I am not surpised in any way by the economic crisis we face. What did Americans think would happen when it has lived on a steady diet of debt and allowed our government for decades to get deeper and deeper into national debt? It does not take a rocket scientist to understand that our nation's economic crisis is due to poor financial management. We can't point a finger at our nation and it's leaders without taking a good look at our own lives. Americans are addicted to debt. YES, I say addicted.  Pretty strong words, ya think? Americans want everything and they want it right now. They want their government programs and don't realize that everything comes with a price tag. They want their new cars, new homes and fancy electronic gadgets and don't think twice about putting down plastic to pay for it.

Then there is the concern over the upcoming election. Most of my loved ones and friends are very concerned about things. They are concered about the moral and social demise of our nation.  They are concerned and rightfully so.

So now what?

I was talking the other day to a good friend. She was expressing her family's reponse to our economic woes....... there was concern in her voice...... she was worried...... her response is to stockpile food and get a gun.

Now I want to say that I think it's great to have a full pantry, anytime of year and under any enconomic state we may find ourselves in.  But, I do not believe our trust should be in what  "we are doing" or "what we can do" or what our "government" plans to do or will do. I believe , whole heartedly that our trust is to be in the Lord. The Word of God tells us that the Lord watches over the sparrow and even the lilly of the field is dressed beautifully!   When times get tough, we need to earnestly place our trust in the ONLY safe harbor of  security  --- the Lord!

" Trust in the Lord with all your heart , and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths."  ~~ Proverbs 3: 5 & 6

Too many Americans have forgotten this proverb.

Many have invested heavily in the stock market. My husband was a broker for a few years. He could tell stories about what goes on in the stock market.  It's really just a more polished way of gambling.  I am sorry if that offends some of you.  Many are seeing their retirement funds disintegrate before their very eyes.  In the news the past few days there have been reports of some committing suicide because of their financial woes.

What is happening here?

Friends, let us not dispair! Let us not put our trust in our stocks, our savings account, our food storage or even our guns! 

May I gently encourage you to place your trust in the ONLY SAFE SECURITY we have -- and that is the Lord God!

" It is the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is His faithfulness."  ~~ Lamentations 3: 22 & 23

Great is His faithfulness! He will not fail us !!   Let us not turn to "man made" answers to our problems. Let us seek His face, humble ourselves and He has promised us that He will heal our land. 

My prayer is that all of us will seek His face, seek a closer walk with Him ..... and trust, trust, trust that He will provide, protect and continue to shield us!

~ gloria ~

Whew, another week over and I'm off this weekend!!! I fear I have a sinus infection which with the drainage is making my tummy quite touchy. Uff da, not how I want to spend my weekend. Yesteday I spent in bed. Warmed up chili for supper along with the last slice of garlic sourdough bread.  I also did a load of laundry but decided to save the rest for either today or tomorrow.

I'm thinking of putting my clothsline up as it's suppose to be warm and breezy  today and tomorrow. I can hang clothes out for what will probably be the last time this year. I've some line to put up in the basement for the lighter items. I've found that by turning on a small fan those items dry fairly quickly. The heavier items end up taking on a musty smell so I use the dryer for those.  Anyone else have that problem and what do you do?

I'm planning to also clean up and organize the garage so I can put my truck in it. Since the move I haven't taken the time to do that.  It's quite a mess right now and with the snow right around the corner I'd better get a jump on that. I'll also do some yard work - lots of leaves laying around out there and bird feeders to put back up. The birds have been looking. I'll take the mower out for the last time and mulch the leaves then leave it all until spring. The mower will then go to the storage unit and snow blower will come out to prep.

Sigh, I'll need to pull out the bread maker at some point too. I can't make a full size loaf in the toaster oven so may as well use the maker.  The last loaf I made in it was heavy so will have to play with the gluten amt.  I love the recipe from Jackie Clay at Backwoods Home Magazine ( http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/clay78.html ) but haven't been lucky at making it with the bread maker.

I'm about out of granola so will probably make some of that as well. I've got to finish cleaning church this afternoon so I'm thinking I'll mix the batch up at home and bake it there (remember, I have no oven, just the toaster oven) since I have to be there anyway. I'm hungry for oatmeal cookies so will mix them up, bake up about a half dozen and freeze the rest. I've found it works out nicely. Just scoop the dough and place on lightly sprayed cookie sheet, place in freezer until frozen and put in freezer bag. This way it's easy to only bake up a few at a time. I like how soft and chewy they turn out too. I use Crystal Miller's recipe for these.

Well, I'd better go do some chores. I wish you all a wonderful, blessed weekend. I hope you are blessed with good weather and good health to enjoy it. See you all Monday night!

Michele

God delights to increase the faith of his children. We ought,
instead of wanting no trials before victory, no exercise for
patience, to be willing to take them from God's hands as a
means. Trials, obstacles, difficulties, and sometimes defeats,
are the very food of faith.

      -- George Müller

I am crazy about turnips. My kids think I am odd!

Tasty Turnips
4 strips bacon
2 cups diced white turnips
1 cup diced potatoes
3/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup cream
Fry bacon until crisp; chop and set aside. Combine vegetables, 1 tbsp
bacon drippings, seasonings and sugar; add water just to cover. Cook
until tender, then drain. Add cream; mash. Add chopped bacon; mix well.
Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings

submitted by Mrs Walter Sager
Orchard Park Grange, No 1335
Orchard Park, New York
National Grange
Bicentennial Year Cookbook (1976)

I am going to try to remember as many as possible, but my kids have said some really funny stuff over the years. 

One time we were in Altoona, and we got behind a car with one of those Penn State paw print magnets on the back.  Cameron was about 2 at the time, and he yelled, "Look!  A clue!"

One Sunday, Dave was getting ready to take the kids to Sunday School and he put Emily in his truck and buckled her in.  When he shut the door, the window on the side of his cap shattered.  Cameron looked down at all the glass and then looked and Dave and said, "That sucks."

Here is a conversation I overheard toward the end of last month:  Emily said, "Cameron, when is my birthday?"  Cameron said, "I think it's in Secember.  Hey, TODAY is Secember!"  She said, "Is TODAY my birthday or is it on the 26th like yours?"  He answered, "I'm not sure, but I think it's on a weekend."  By the way, her birthday is in December...

One night, Dave was trying to do something and I overheard him saying, "Damn!"  Cameron said, "D-A-M"

The other day, I packed Cameron's lunch and I gave him an apple, a pudding cup and a sandwich.  Dave asked him if he ate his lunch and he said, "I forgot to eat my sandwich and my apple."

Ok, apparently, I need to think about this some more.  I can't remember any more.  I'm sure more will come to me later, so I'll do another post...