Serve, give, fight, toil, labor

"Teach us, good Lord, to serve Thee 

as Thou deservest;

to give and not count the cost;

to fight and not to heed the wounds;

to toil and not to seek for rest;

to labor and not to ask for any

reward save that of knowing that

we do Thy will,

 O Lord our God."

--Amy Carmichael

Get into the boat!

"'Get into the boat!' Thou didst whisper,

At first how I feared to obey;

I looked not at Thee, but the storm clouds,

The darkness, the waves, and the spray.

But then came the words, 'Will you trust Him?

Will you claim and receive at His hand

All the definite fullness of blessing?

Launch out at thy Master's command!

Thou art willing, my Lord, could I doubt Thee?

Hast Thou ever proved untrue?

Nay! out at Thy Word I have ventured,

I have trusted. Thy part is to do."

--Laura A. Barter-Snow

Birthday Soup

Oh my...this was THE BEST birthday soup I have ever spooned into my mouth! Even the little girls thought it wasn't too bad! And for a squash soup, that's saying something!

Acorn Squash Bisque

 1 small onion, chopped

1/4 c. chopped celery

2 T. butter

2 T. all-purpose flour

1 tsp chicken bouillon granules

1/2 tsp dill weed

1/4 tsp curry powder

Dash cayenne pepper (opt.)

2 c. chicken broth

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk

3 c. mashed cooked acorn squash

Salt and pepper to taste

5 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled.

In a large saucepan, saute the onion and celery in butter. Stir in flour, bouillon, dill, curry and cayenne until blended. Gradually add broth and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add the squash, salt and pepper; heat through.

In a blender, process the soup in batches until smooth (or use one of those handy stick blenders). Pour into bowls; garnish with bacon.

Yield: 6 servings

Note: would be WONDERFUL with a slice of focaccia, ciabatta, or other artisan-style bread...the soup is the perfect thickness for dipping! 

And truly, unless you try this, 

you will have no idea how wonderful it is.

Even if you're a squash-hater.

You aren't allowed to have an opinion until you try it,
my mother says.
:)

 

...as you have believed

"Go; let it be done for you as you have believed."

Matthew 8:13

"'Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.' 

Oh Father! There are so many things right now that I have to know--is it You?!? Are You calling me to this? Is that what You want me to do? It looks so impossible! But oh if it's You, please call me clearly!!

"He said, 'Come.'

So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus."

 Oh Lord, I begin with faith! And so far as I have faith, You meet it. 

You are indeed all-powerful! 

But there seems to be a direct relation between my faith 

and what You do in my life.

Troubles come.

Persecution comes.

The way is hard.

Fear takes hold.

"But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink..."

Oh Father, what happened? 

Your power is just as present, just as able to hold me up now as before. Why am I sinking? Have I let my fears overcome my faith? Have I wanted to walk by sight not by faith? Have I wanted to walk by my own reason instead of trusting Your Word? In my heart, do I only want to "come" as long as it looks safe?

Walking by faith got a lot harder when 

He asked me to walk on H2O!!

And I begin to sink.

 

 "he cried out, 'Lord, save me.'"

I may be having trouble walking on water, as yet...but when I'm sinking I sure know where to run! Only You can save me, Jesus!

"Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him"

Even when we are faithless, He remains faithful.

"saying to him, 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?'"

Ouch.

Do we wonder where the mighty deeds of old are? Perhaps we should look to ourselves and ask instead where the faith in Almighty Creator God is--the God who spoke this world into existence.

The lack of mighty doings rather glaringly speaks of the lack of mighty faith in a God who can move mountains.

Oh God, give us boundless faith that unleashes Your boundless power in our lives!

"Come."

Matthew 14:28-33

Worms

"For He knows our frame;

He remembers that we are dust."

Psalm 103:14

Men plow the land with heavy machines, sharp tools, and hard labor. They sweat and work and have to go over the earth multiple times for anything decent. Running into rocks, roots, and clay soil.

God uses earth worms.
Talk about His ways being higher than ours!

Soft, unintrusive, dirt-processing animals that slowly work to break up even hard, stubborn ground. Aerating the soil--preparing and improving it for better plantings and growth.

Yes, God knows our frame; remembers we are but dust.
And yet...He delights to prove His greatness by gaining great glory for Himself through the weak and unlikely.

But for our lives to bear fruit and bring Him glory means that we
must: accept His call--no looking back,
faithfully obey--trusting in His provision,
joyfully follow--because we love Him,
and could do nothing less or else!

It may mean you're as invisible as an earthworm underground. No matter! You're doing His work! In His strength! And if He can receive glory through the simple, steady work of the earth worm--He can receive glory from the faithful working out of His will in your life, whatever and wherever it may be.

"For it is God who works in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure."
(Philippians 2:13)

"Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?"

(Job 26:18)

(worm photo courtesy of wikipedia.com :)