The Condition of the Heart

The religious person feels justified in keeping the commandments and doing all the right things to please God and man. But in contrast to what we read in the Old Testament, we see Jesus changing the rules in the New Testament. In the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 5, Jesus emphasizes how it is the condition of the heart that pleases God, rather than outward acts alone. Jesus says, “Don’t assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.”

The sixth commandment in Deuteronomy 5:17, is “Do not commit murder”; but Jesus clarifies, “I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Fool!’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says, ‘You moron!’ will be subject to hellfire….” (HCSV). So we see that with God, it is the condition of the heart that is plain before Him. He is more pleased with our relationships to one another than our offering sacrifices of praise and prayer to Him with an unforgiving heart.

In reading 1 John, we are reminded that love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. “The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (4:7-8). Furthermore...

God’s love was revealed among us in this way; God sent His One and Only Son into the world so that we might live through Him. Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation (sacrifice) for our sins. Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and His love is perfected in us (4:9-12).

This is how we know that we remain in Him and He in us: He has given to us from His Spirit. And we have seen and we testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God--God remains in him and he in God. And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him (4:13-16).

Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me and sending your Son, Jesus, to be my Savior. Help me to see that you love me unconditionally. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, and help me to forgive and love others you have placed in my life. In the name of Jesus, I pray. -Amen.

Godly Character

I was encouraged by the letter from Paul to the believers in Corinth. He reminds them that we are to not be a stumbling block to others, or to allow circumstances to alter our faith in God. Whether in the good times or the bad, God asks for our all.

"But in everything, as God's ministers, we commend ourselves: by great endurance, by afflictions, by hardship, by pressures, by beatings, by imprisonments, by riots, by labors, by sleepless nights, by times of hunger, by purity, by knowledge, by patience, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the message of truth, by the power of God; through weapons of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, through glory and dishonor, through slander and good report; as deceivers yet true; as unknown yet recognized; as dying and look--we live; as being chastened yet not killed; as grieving yet always rejoicing; as poor yet enriching many; as having nothing yet possessing everything."

 Lord, please stir in us the Holy Spirit and help us to develop a godly character. Strengthen us to serve you in gladness and to not lose hope. -Amen.

Treasuring God's Word

I have imported some personal reflections from another blog I started and abandoned. It is a collection of daily bible study to build up my faith and encourage others. The idea for this entry came from reading Psalm 1, a reminder to me and my family that we should be meditating on God's Word day and night. So then, why? Here are a few reasons from the Old and New Testaments.

1. To educate myself and my family. 

In Deuteronomy, Chapters 5-6, Moses reminds the Israelites that they were rescued from the hands of Pharaoh in Egypt and instructed to fear the Lord, so that they would enjoy prosperity and preservation despite their enemies. They were instructed to not turn aside from the commandments of God, to not turn to the right or the left, so that they might live, prosper, and have a long life in the land they were promised to possess. Concerning God's commandments, they were told to...

“Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:7).

2. To take the road less traveled, the road to obedience and righteousness.

In the first chapter of Psalms, King David contrasts the two ways that a man can take in life, the way of the righteous, or the way of the wicked.

“How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join the group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. He is like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.”

“The wicked are not like this; instead they are like chaff that the wind blows away…they will not survive judgment, and sinners will not be in the community of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to ruin” (Psalm 1).

3.  To be equipped for every good work.

In 2 Timothy, Paul reminds Timothy to not be ashamed of the Gospel, to be loyal to the faith, and to be a worker approved by God, capable of correctly teaching the Scriptures. In Chapter 3, Paul warns that there will be difficult days ahead, when people will be corrupt and lack understanding; however, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (v. 16).


So it is my desire to be obedient in this task, to be faithful to reading and applying these truths to my life and to be a positive role model for my children and family and friends.

May we be blessed with understanding, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to apply God's Word to our hearts and minds, in the name of Jesus, we pray. -Amen.

The Best Cookies Ever

It took only about 30 minutes, but I made the best cookies ever. I came across this recipe in an older cookbook, but it has always been one of my favorites. It’s great for baking on a budget, too--only a few staple ingredients: flour, sugar, butter, baking powder, and almond extract.

With this morning’s cold and stormy weather, I was content to be reading and listening to the rain. As I was getting sleepy, the kids were getting hungry. Remembering that Lillian ate only half of her Frosted Mini Wheats, I thought it couldn’t hurt to make them a little treat?

Problem 1. We have no chocolate chips. Can any dessert be good without chocolate in it? Ah, yes! Almond cookies!

Problem 2. Convincing children that a cookie that starts with “almond” can be good. Luke muttered, “What kind?” I answered, “Well, they’re really sugar cookies, but they have an almond flavor, but not really. Trust me--you’ll like 'em!”

As I shaped the dough into balls, Luke rolled them into sugar and put them on the cookie sheet. His skepticism turned into anticipation. “Well...they smell good!”

The result? They were perfect! Light, soft circles of sugary goodness. I poured another cup of coffee and delighted in the heart-warming outcome. We took a picture just for the blog--just in case you, reader, find yourself in a storm and out of chocolate chips.

Almond Cookies

2 sticks butter or margarine, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 cups flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp almond extract
Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Yields: 18 cookies

It's so beautifully arranged on the plate - you know someone's fingers have been all over it.

~Julia Child

Spoken from the Heart

ISBN 978-1-4391-5520-2
Scribner, May 2010

I’ve been reading the former First Lady’s book, “Spoken from the Heart”. It is truly a Texas treasure. She speaks of her growing-up years in Midland, her relationship with her parents as an only child, and how she came to know George, enjoyed raising her two girls, Barbara and Jenna, and faced the reality of enduring politics and public service.

What surprised me was her sincerity in describing her feelings as a daughter, friend, wife, mother, and First Lady. I found myself breaking down in tears as she recalled her childhood, and then also again during the events of 9-11. I didn’t want to read that chapter, but I did, and it opened up the flood gate of emotions that all Americans must have felt on that horrific day. She explains how she dealt with the media’s opinion of her during those many years, and how she leaned on the help and advice of many friends and advisors. The book closes with how she and George were relieved to return to private life, yet they were sad to say good-bye to the many people they worked with at the White House. She often longs for a quiet, anonymous life, similar to her childhood in Midland, but she settles for the busy, post-presidential life in Dallas and in Crawford, at the Prairie Chapel Ranch.

I was blessed by her book in that it was indeed “spoken from the heart”.  Great time was put into recording specific details about both personal and national events during their presidency; but in her notes, she recorded how she felt and the people she met during the highs and lows of the decade. Her pride in being a mother, daughter, and loyal wife is evident and contagious. I was left knowing so much more about her complex and interesting life. This is a must-read for all Texan moms, of course.

White Chicken Chili

Our family got back from a long road trip to Amarillo. I started to write about West Texas, but my entry was turning into a book, so I stopped. Maybe that will be for a later date. We all needed a change from the typical fast food and Valentine's candy, so I searched online for something good to eat.

I had all the ingredients for White Chicken Chili, and I found a great recipe here. I'm not familiar with this author, but she has many tasty recipes listed on her page. I made a few modifications, like cutting the ingredients almost in half to serve 4-6. I also didn't have Tabasco, so I used cayenne pepper.

Ingredients:

1 can (16 oz or so) of white beans (Northern beans)

1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped

1/2 stick light margarine

1/2 of 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup chicken broth (find the kind with no msg)

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 cup 2% milk

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

3/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 can (4 oz) mild green chilis, drained and chopped (can use less to make milder)

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or about 1 lb.)

some extra margarine or oil to cook them in

Optional condiments: grated Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese, chopped tomatoes, sour cream

Instructions:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, add margarine or oil. 
2. Coat the chicken with salt, pepper, and chili powder. Cook the pieces in the skillet for five minutes, do not turn it over until after 5 minutes. Then, flip the chicken and cook the other side until nicely browned.
3. Remove the chicken from the pan. When it is cool, you can shred it with your fingers or a fork, or leave it as is.
4. While waiting for the chicken to cool, cook the onion in the same pan with 2 Tablespoons of margarine or butter until the onion is softened. Set aside.
5. In the same heavy pot, melt remaining 3 Tablespoons of butter or margarine over medium to low heat. Whisk in flour. Cook and whisk constantly, for about three minutes.
6. Stir in the onion, gradually add the broth, half and half, milk, and continue whisking.
7. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes.
8. Stir in the cayenne pepper, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. 
9. Add beans, chilis, chicken. Continue to cook and stir over low heat for about 20 minutes.
10. Serve alone or over rice, with cheese, tomatoes, etc.

The original recipe called for a cup of half and half, but I used 1/2 cup, with 2% milk to make up the difference. My version was still spicy, but delicious! We had enough for about 4-6 servings, if served over rice. Enjoy!

A man is in general better pleased when he has a good dinner upon his table, than when his wife talks Greek. ~Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)

The family who eats together, stays together. ~Anonymous

Wii and Me

We enjoyed another snow day today. I think this was the fifth day within a two-week period, but it was still fun waking up to that phone call. This would have been my third consecutive day to work out at the gym, so instead, Sarah set me up a profile on the Wii Fit Plus. It was a Christmas present for all of us, but so far, I had only watched from afar. Too lazy. Turns out, it's a lot of fun!


Luke is the champion of the Super Hula-Hoop. Sarah scored big on the Ski Jump. Lillian likes to bowl and run. Tim and I took turns trying to upset Sarah's 1st place standings, but she held on to a few. After trying about a dozen exercises, including running in place for about 15 minutes, I only burned about 180 calories. Not too effective, but I provided some inexpensive entertainment for my family :)


I think Luke and Lillian hugged me more today than they have in a long while. What a nice feeling.

This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

A happy family is but an earlier heaven. ~George Bernard Shaw