It's All Jesus :)

"Because of the way that [Jesus] lived and the way that He died, because of His substitutionary sufferings and His vicarious obedience, the Lord our God accepts us. What a preciousness there is in Him to overcome our lack of preciousness! What a sweet fragrance to remove our bad aroma! What a cleansing power of His blood to take away sin such as ours! What glory in His righteousness to make such unacceptable creatures be 'accepted in the beloved.' (Eph. 1:6)"

--Spurgeon

(Morning and Evening, March 28)

"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

Galatians 6:14

Aslan's Country...

"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world...Probably earthly pleasures were never made to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. If that is so, I must take care, on the one hand, never to despise, or be unthankful for, these blessings, and on the other, never to mistake them for something else of which they are only a kind of copy, or echo, or mirage. I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death; I must never let it get snowed under or turned aside; I must make it the main object of life to press on to that other country and to help others do the same."

--C.S. Lewis

St. Patty's Day Dessert

I'm always a little stumped on the 17th of March, to know what kind of dessert to make. 

Chocolate isn't green! 

Seriously...how many sweet things are typically green? The only flavors I can think of are mint, pistachio and lime. All have potential. But I've been in a citrus mood since yesterday's orange cake.
So 

Key Lime Cheesecake 

it is!

 Above you have the easy part of this recipe. Cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, egg, and lime zest. All was going quickly and pleasantly

UNTIL...

...I needed 1/3 c. of lime juice.

Which required 12-14 little bitty key limes to be squeezed.

*whew*

But it was worth it. 

:)

Tea treat!

Found myself in need of a "tea treat" recipe to bring to a friend's house today....and oh boy was this the right recipe to make! The glaze that you spoon over the top makes it so MOIST!!!! Although...I didn't read the recipe right, and poked the top with the handle of a spoon instead of using a toothpick. 

I would recommend the toothpick. :)

Orange Yogurt Cake

1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

zest of 2 oranges

1 c. granulated sugar

3/4 c. plain yogurt

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/3 c. oil

Orange syrup:

1/4 c. freshly squeezed orange juice

2 T. granulated sugar

Orange Glaze:

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2-3 T. freshly squeezed orange juice

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9-in. round cake pan. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine orange zest with sugar. In a large bowl, mix together the yogurt, sugar and zest with a whisk. Whisk in eggs. Mix till smooth and add vanilla.

Add flour mixture to wet ingredients. Mix just until incorporated. Add oil and mix well.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and cake springs back when touched lightly near center. Cool for 15 minutes before removing from pan. While cake is cooling, make syrup and glaze.

For syrup, combine orange juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.

For glaze, whisk together powdered sugar and orange juice, adding more sugar or juice if needed.

Poke holes in warm cake with a toothpick. Spoon GLAZE over the cake carefully, and allow to soak in. Cool cake to room temperature, and drizzle with glaze.

Consistent Witness

Are you alive? 

Then see that you prove it by your actions. 

Be a consistent witness. 

Let your words, works, ways and tempers all tell the same story. 

Let not your life be a poor lethargic life, like that of a tortoise or a sloth—let it rather be an energetic stirring life, like that of a deer or bird. Let your graces shine forth from all the windows of your life, that those who live near you may see that the Spirit is abiding in your hearts. Let your light not be a dim, flickering, uncertain flame; let it burn steadily, like the eternal fire on the altar, and never become low. Let the savor of your religion, like Mary's precious ointment, fill all the houses where you dwell. Be an epistle of Christ so clearly written, penned in such large bold characters—that he who runs may read it.
Let your Christianity be so unmistakable, 

your eye so single, 

your heart so whole, 

your walk so straightforward 

that all who see you may have no doubt whose you are, and whom you serve.

--J. C. Ryle

Psalm 62:5-8

"For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,

For my hope is from Him.  

He only is my rock and my salvation, 

My fortress;  

I shall not be shaken. 

On God rests my salvation and my glory; 

My mighty rock, my refuge is God. 

Trust in Him at all times, O people; 

Pour out your heart before Him;  
God is a refuge for us."

Psalm 62:5-8