The sacraments of ordinary things

     I'm comfortable for now sitting at my desk. Outside my window the roses are blooming, the birds are feeding and the squirrels are chasing one another. The books inside the cases that stand on each side of my desk have kept my mind occupied this morning. It's been a  nice respite from all the changes going on in my life. My books are like faithful friends. You know the voice of a friend  that brings comfort and cheer. The ones whose hugs are genuine. The ones whose love blankets you like an old quilt does. The voice that touches something inside that hasn't been touched in a long time.  The voice that helps bring clarity or a surprise laugh.
     One favorite book inside my bookcase is "The Reflective Life" by Ken Gire.  It was these words of his that jumped off the page this morning. "Books in a way are sacraments that make the communion between an author and a reader possible. The white paper and black ink are the means through which one heart is revealed to another. But the paper and the words are merely the elements of the sacrament. What is sacred is the heart that writes the book and the heart that sits in silent communion to take and read what has been written. The words that are read are small, wafer-like things. But sometimes, on some page, God humbles Himself to come through some of those words and touch the reader's heart. It is not the words that are sacred but God who is  sacred . . . and the person to whom He comes."
     He goes on to tell a special memory of his mother and how she made him sugarbread as a summer treat when he was a boy. His sugarbread was a slice of white bread with a smear of margarine and a sprinkling of sugar. He tells the reader it was always given with a smile. He still makes sugarbread but its the memory  of how he was looked after and loved that is special now.  He says, "sacraments are ordinary things through which something extraordinary is offered. An ordinary bush ablaze with God's glory. Tablets of earthly stone engraved by a heavenly hand. The divine Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us. . . .  Should we even expect Him to speak in the everyday moments of our lives?  Something from heaven offered to us through earthly hands? Coming to us like a sacrament. Letting us know that we are looked after and that we are loved."
     I'm spending time this morning reflecting on the times I've had Him offer something to me through sacraments that came through earthly hands. And I am thankful and ask for His help that I may always be aware of any He sends my way.

Worthy of a Song

     Ever heard a phrase that lingered over your mind? I did recently. It was a question I heard Beth Moore ask her audience. Is your life worthy of having a song written about it?  Your first response might be like mine was. Who? Me? Yes. . . You and Me!  Next response-what kind of song?  
     Her question was based on a person named Deborah from the Book of Judges in the Bible. Chapter 4 of Judges tells her story and Chapter 5 is a song about that story. If you don't know her story, I think you would find her to be quite an interesting woman. She has something to appeal to everyone. I would surely  like to sit down and have a chat with her. Her life was certainly worthy of a song. Ours should be as well.
     I'm not a song writer. I can plan piano and sing some. I don't know which  words would best capture my life. I would hope the word LOVE would be one of them. You can be sure I would like the notes to be happy ones- ones that would bring a smile to the listener's heart.
     It's a good question. A question I want to linger and make a permanent mark in my mind and heart. What about you?  Let's sing our life out loud and sing it out strong.  Who knows?  One day it may turn into a song!

My new favorite recipe

I've tried many new recipes in the past couple of years. This one is at the top of the list. It is easy and so delicious. It is Pecan-Crusted Fish.  Recipe follows.  Hope you will try it. You won't be disappointed.

4 fish filets- 6-8 oz. each.  I used tailapia
2 Tbsp. Honey-Dijon mustard
2 tsp. water
1 cup pecans

Heat oven to 400. Line a rimmed baking pan with non-stick foil. Finely chop pecans by hand or in a food processor. Spread the pecans out on a sheet of waxed paper or use a large plate. Put honey mustard in a small cup and stir in the 2 tsp. water. Brush one side only of the fillets with mustard mixture, then press fillets into the chopped pecans. Place on baking pan. Bake 10-14 minutes until pecans are lightly toasted and fish is just cooked through. Yum!  Per serving: 425 cal, 32 g pro, 7 g carb, 3 g fiber, 31 g fat (only 4 g sat fat) 100 mg chol, 188 mg sodium.

I haven't tried the mustard and pecans on chicken yet but I plan to.  Healthy and delicious.  Hope you enjoy!
You can also substitute other types of fish and other nuts. No other seasoning is necessary, the mustard adds lots of flavor. We serve ours with asparagus or another green vegetable.

Give Away

Here's something very simple we can do today. Give something away. Need an idea?
Here are two. First one is a HUG! Don't you need one yourself?  Give one and I'm sure you will get one back. It may not be from the same person but maybe so.
Second idea is to make something.  I can almost hear some of you sigh.  Don't you remember when you were a child? Most of us loved it when it was craft time.  It doesn't have to be something big.  Think!!! Look around!!! I have hundreds of ideas of things to make.  It can even be something from your kitchen.  Here's the easiest one I can think of.  Make a peanut butter sandwich for someone. Remember when you made a heart on top of the peanut butter with jelly.  Surely you did that, didn't you. If you didn't it is HIGH TIME you tried it. It will make you smile. Not to mention what it will do for the person you give it to.
I just found a great idea for popcorn to share with you. I didn't know that there is some talk that the packaged microwave popcorn isn't healthy because of the chemicals they put in it.  Well there is an alternative that will cost less and is natural.
You will need a brown paper sack, some clear tape, 3-4 Tbsp. of uncooked popcorn, and whatever seasonings you want to put on top.

To make the popcorn-simple place the uncooked kernels in your paper sack, fold the sack over twice and tape it. Lay it flat on the table and press out excess air. Lay it in the microwave on the side for 2-3 minutes. Times will vary of course with individual microwaves. When you hear 1-2 second intervals between popping. Take the bag out, shake it a few times and open carefully. Add 1 tsp. melted butter and/or other seasonings.  Enjoy!
   I leave you with this story I found.

A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day the woman met a traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share some food. The hungry traveler noticed the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left rejoicing in his good fortune.  He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.

"I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable the stone is and I give it back to you in hopes that you will give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone."   

                         "The Wise Woman's Stone"

                            Author Unknown

Growing up

     This morning I was reading over some old journals of mine. I love to read old entries I have forgotten. Here's one on growing up.

     You grow up into the person you believe you are. We always ask children what do you want to be when you grow up and then what happens?  Do these children grow up to become the person they know inside they are? Hardly, I think. Why?  They listen to the wrong voices in the world. The more they listen- the more they believe the wrong voices.  Then who they knew inside they should be becomes vague, so very vague until so much time passes they don't remember at all. How sad.  Is this why we become so sad?

     Sometimes I write snips and pieces of favorite books in my journals. One favorite is "Windows of the Soul" by Ken Gire. He wrote this.

"The future can fill your lungs with refreshing air and your heart with hopeful dreams. Do you hear it? Somebody calling your name, only in a language you can't quite understand? Have you recognized your calling or to what you have been called?  Do you recognize your name?"

    If I look back over my life I can put frames around the things that have brought me joy. If I look I see pictures. When I listen, what do I hear? Do I hear it above all that has called to me over the years. In a graduation address, author Frederick Buechner said, "The voice we should listen to most as we choose a vocation is the voice that we think we should listen to the least, and that is the voice of our own gladness."

    Life passes quickly.  My hope is that we all find the joy that our God intends for us to have.



Love's Focus

   I awoke this morning with a rapid succession of thoughts about love. The first one was how much God loves me. The second was how much I want to love him and others more. The third being that it is only possible because God loved me first and I receive His love for me.   Later on in the morning I thought of something my husband, Mike had done for which I was grateful. As I continued to think about his love I saw the parallel to my first thoughts of the morning. I realized that I spend more time thinking of how much Mike loves me than I think of loving him. (It should be obvious by now that I have a wonderful guy!)
     My focus of Mike's love for me has not created selfishness in me- quite the contrary. It has made me want to love him more and to give to him more. It has placed me in a position to receive more of his love and more of what he wants to give to me.  I know that God is love and that it is possible to love him because He loved me first. The only place I can get love to give away is from Him. As I focus on how much God loves me I will be able to receive more of His love. The more I receive means I have more available to give away, first to Him then to others.
     Happy Valentine's to all you family and friends who love me. I am very blessed to have you to love me. Your love is sweet and very precious to me. I want you all to know that. I have another desire and it is for everyone to know the breadth and length and height and depth of the love of Christ Jesus.

The Spirit of Love

     The song by Faith Hill, "A Baby Changes Everything" is becoming one of my favorite Christmas songs.  It tugs at this mother's heart as she remembers her babies and ponders how Mary cherished holding baby Jesus in her arms.  I imagine she had many of the same emotions we have as mothers and some of the same questions. I am grateful for this mother who trusted God to give birth to our Savior. Her faith in God and her willingness to sacrifice her life to be a mother was a gift she gave to all of us.  I'm sure she would agree with  us that "a baby changes everything."  That baby's life and death certainly changed everything for me.
    My prayer for all of us this Christmas is that we will make this holiday all about His love for us and in turn our love for all others. Let us remember that God is love. Let us also remember that we  love God  because He first loved us and that without love we are nothing and that nothing we do apart from love will have any lasting significance.  The "spirit of love" is truly what Christmas is all about. I agree with the words of H. Drummond- "You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have really lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love."  
                                                                  Merry Christmas with love, Pamela