Trust

"And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff- no bread, no bag, no money in their belts- but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. And he said to them, 'Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.' So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And he cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them." Mark 6:7-13

Can you imagine the trust that the disciples must have had to go out into the world, with nothing but what others provided for their needs? Of course, Christ knew that they would be cared for and given the grace to go through whatever was put in their journey... but they had to trust him. And, by all accounts that we are given, they did just that. They passed the test, and they ministered to others, and they came back and they shared all they had done and seen with Jesus. I can not even begin to imagine the different stories that they had to tell, and how they interrupted each other to slip in little details. Maybe some hung back at moments, not wanting to share the moment that touched  them most with a crowd, but wanted to simply hold onto it as something precious. Possibly there were some who waited until the general excitement was over and they were in the boat to slip apart and ask Jesus' opinion on something that had happened, with no interruptions so that they could be completely open and honest. There were surely some, like Peter, who just could not stop exclaiming about how wonderful it was when God provided in such-and-such a way, or when this person finally got God's truths. But not matter how it worked out, we know that they were given a taste of how the Lord would provide and work through them, and wanted to share it with Christ. And now, Jesus noticed their need for a quiet supper, and they headed for a desolate place.

But the crowds, followed, and Jesus had compassion on them. They were lost, and they needed a shepherd. And so, he immediately stepped in and taught them "many things". It went on, and nobody wanted to leave- this time of listening to Jesus teach was too precious. So they stayed, getting hungrier and hungrier, but still not hungry enough to abandon the Word of God.

And Jesus had compassion on them again, and told the disciples to feed them.

And the disciples doubted.

"Shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?", they asked. Should we go buy bread that would cost 7 months worth of wages to feed these people? Would it be enough? Where would we find that sort of money?

How soon they forgot the trust that they had just learned. Forgot the moments of need that God had given supply for, that they had just been so eager to share.

He doesn't reprove them. 'For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust." Psalm 103:14. He could have rebuked them- and does, often. But right now, he simple goes about providing for them again.

"And he said to them, 'How many loaves do you have? Go and see.' And when they had found out, they said, 'Five, and two fish.' Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men."

And once again, the disciples were given a proof of his love, of his care for them, of the utter trust that they could have in their Savior. It wasn't the last they would need. Hours later, Peter would be told to walk across the water, and would do so... until he sunk in doubt of his Maker. But again, the Lord raised him up, proving that His grace was sufficient for him.

And no matter how often we doubt him, how many times we are given a clear sign that he knows all and he knows best, how often we lose trust, he holds us in his hand, as well. He is patient with his children. And we can trust him, even when the way he is going to work in may not be seen by us.

It will be a never ending lesson. But the Lord is patient towards us.

Thankful Thursday, 12/03/15

~How Mama and Daddy use our Christmas decorations to point to Christ :).
~Sitting in the living room enjoying being with my family.
~And cooking in the kitchen laughing with them :).
~A clean oven (I don’t know what happened during Thanksgiving baking, but it became obvious it needed done before we cooked again, hahaha… it was a bit smoky in the kitchen… haha!).
~Leftovers ;).
~Rags to clean with.
~Planning out Christmas surprises :)!
~Cute baskets :).
~The anticipation we have of Christ’s second coming, as we look back to his first coming! Do any of the rest of you celebrate Advent :)?
~Encouraging and edifying relationships with other believers.
~That nothing -nothing!- can separate us from the love of God!!!! How wonderful!!!!
~For the way that the Lord uses others to build us up.
~For the many reminders that the Lord has given us to praise Him! We have so much to praise him for throughout the entire year… “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32) Blessings all ours, with ten thousands besides!”
~For this quote I found on the above verses… “Observe what God has done for us, on which our hopes are built: He spared not his own Son. When he was to undertake our salvation, the Father was willing to part with him, did not think him too precious a gift to bestow for the salvation of poor souls; now we may know that he loves us, in that he hath not withheld his Son, his own Son, his only Son.”
~This Christmas season and all the excitement and planning and joy and additional reflection on Christ’s gift of His life to us that it will hold :).
~Watching Josiah delighting over a picture book about a mouse. He is sooo sweet!
~Getting to read through the New Testament with an awesome group of dear friends :).
~The prophecies that have been fulfilled.
~And the promises we can trust him to keep :).
~Pinecones and red berries :). Literally my favorite Christmas decorations set against greenery, heehee :).
Blessings,
Bri :)

Homemade Salted Caramel Mocha!

♫ I went into the coffee shop, to get myself a mocha... ♫

That song has a strange place in our Christmas. It has no merit aside for memories of one goofy night at 3 a.m. Haha :). Anyway...

We loooove the Salted Caramel Mocha from Starbucks, haha :). Daddy had it while on a business trip last year, came home, and ordered some for us to try the first time he went shopping after that, haha! It's now our favorite fall coffee. Mama was hoping it would be out when she and I stopped at Starbucks for my birthday in September, but it wasn't, so she settled for second best. No kidding, ten minutes later they started switching out their signage to the fall menu, Salted Caramel Mocha having the predominate spot of honor. It was too funny!

I made one in our own kitchen this morning, and thought I'd share it with you :).

You'll need to mix together

1 & 1/2 TBLS cocoa powder
1 & 1/2 TBLS Sweetner
1/8 tsp xanthan gum
and 1/16 tsp salt

Make sure you mix it before adding liquid, because if you don't, the xanthan gum is just little pieces of gel in your drink instead of helping make it creamy :P.

Then add

1/2 cup coffee
1/2 cup milk (warm it before adding)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
and 1/2 teaspoon caramel extract.

Stir it well, and voila :)!!! Drink it... or, whipped cream on top makes it even better :)!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!! Thankful Thursday, 11/26/15

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!” -Psalm 100:4

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all :)! This week I am thankful for...

~Getting to hold tiny babies at church :D. A couple of people walked by and asked me if I “didn’t have enough children around me at home without “stealing” other families'”, and, of course, the answer is, um, NO! Haha :). Besides, we don’t have ANY that small currently , heehee ;). ~My water tumblers. I enjoy having cups with lids that I can take wherever and not have to worry about, haha :).
~Todd Agnew’s “Do You Hear What I Hear” Christmas CD. It’s a tradition in our family to listen to it while decorating for Christmas :).
~For getting all the decorations out and the lights on the tree :). ~And our pizza party afterwards :).
~My Aunt Heather, who celebrated her birthday this week!
~Daddy changing the light bulb in our closet, yay! It’s so much easier to function when you can see ;).
~Getting my yarn chest cleaned out :). It’s been bothering me for a couple months, and I decided on a whim that enough was enough, haha.
~I’m also thankful to have found five of my missing crochet hooks. Apparently Abbi likes to stick them in her leftover ball of yarn and then just through it in the chest, instead of replacing them in the cup. Nice to know where to look, and to have found them before I start on Christmas presents :).
~Commentaries on God’s Word :).
~The Christmas stocking tree Daddy made a few years ago :). It’s got pegs for each of us, and they are long enough to double them up, so it should work for many years, haha :).
~A homemade Salted Caramel Mocha :)!
~My morning routine :).
~New tree lights. Because, no kidding, some of ours have burnt out in the two days we’ve had them up. I’m also thankful the burnt out BEFORE we got all the ornaments added to the tree, haha!
~“Pardon for sin, and a peace that endureth, blessings all mine, with ten thousands, besides.”
~A good deal on some layering shirts yesterday.
~The special crocheted blanket that my great-grandma passed on to me :).
~My baby brothers little arms around my neck :).
~Lavender essential oil.
~That the fundraiser that I shared the other day had made their goal in two days :)!!!! Any extra money will buy formula for the smallest children :).
~Kleenexes, haha :).
~Paper plates.
~A dishwasher! While we are doing so much baking, that is a very great blessing, haha!
~But, I am also thankful for the time spent washing the dishes that out dishwasher might not be able to handle. Because, though, I might not have time to do them all, I do love washing dishes :).
~For the Pilgrims and the example they set as they put nothing before the word of God. Not comfort, friends, family, safety. They gave all to set an example to others of how God would work through those who followed Him without withholding anything.
~A national day set aside to dwell on all that God has done for us. When we think of how full of mercies our life here has been, and then remember that we have yet before us the blessing of dwelling with God for eternity, how thankful we should be!
~The family gathered around me today, and the loved ones too far away to be here, but who I am thinking of and thankful for.
~Historical documents, and for historians who have put together informative documentaries based on God’s Hand in history, to teach us about the past.
~The wonderful food we will be eating today ;).
~And Salvation, God’s greatest gift to me of all!!!!!

Blessings to you all,

Bri :)

PJ Party for Pleven!

We've been working on Thanksgiving cooking this afternoon, and the cranberry sauce, which I will absolutely not be eating ;), is making the kitchen smell wonderfully delicious and Christmas-y. Too bad it's taste does not appeal to me...

But, while I am waiting for the maple twist to finish rising, I wanted to share this with you :).

In a few weeks, one of the ladies who has adopted from Pleven (for those of you who remember me talking about Penny, this is her Mama) is getting a chance to go back to Pleven. There is a need for 90 pairs of pajamas in the orphanage, and her family is raising the money to provide those. They need it quickly, though, if she is going to be able to take them with her, which would be best. You can read more about what is going on here. Prayers and donations would be so helpful to them! You can also join their FB group to keep an eye on their progress.

While she is there, she will be getting to interact with several of the little ones there... several sweet little ones, 3 and under, who have recently been listed, and others among the older ones, including adorable Owen and precious Tiya. These two have been on Reece's Rainbow for several years now. I can not wait for their families to see them! During this holiday season, they have no family to celebrate with. How thankful we can be that we are blessed with people we love being around us!

I need to be finishing up my maple twist now :). I hope you each have a blessed Thanksgiving!!!