Prayer And Support For Haiti

I awoke again this morning with Haiti heavy on my heart and in my prayers. I cannot even fathom the devastation that has hit that country. I, like most of you, am praying for them but at the same time wishing there was something tangible I could do to help. What I can do is give of my finances. While I know that no matter how much I give it will barely make a dent in the needs, I also know that if each one of us gives even a few dollars, it will add up and it WILL help. 

The president of MFI, Bob MacGregor and Pastor Henry Mears were in Haiti for a week long Pastors Conference and had just left the afternoon before the earthquake hit. Many of the pastors they had been meeting with are from those areas hit the hardest and they are in desperate need of our prayers and support during this time.

Pastors Marc and Lisa Honorat are great pastors that we are connected with in Haiti. Their organization, Haiti Arise has been key in response to the hurricanes that have ravaged Haiti in recent years. They are proven in addressing both the natural and spiritual needs of the people of Haiti. Haiti Arise has feet on the ground in Port au Prince. To make a disaster relief donation to this ministry go to: www.HaitiArise.org

Here is a list of Urgent Prayer Points from their website: 

• For lines of communication to open up- That is most important, as we can’t find out what the status of things are until then.
• The young people we have in our community who are working or going to school in PAP, for their safety.
• For us to assess and find out how we can strategically help in the Disaster Relief and rebuilding process. This will be our focus now for a few months.
• The families in our community, for their homes and safety.
• The team that is there now from Nelson, BC and the next team going from Red Deer, Alberta that together we will be able to meet the people's immediate needs.

Rejoice In ALL Things

This month Pastor Frank has been doing a series at church titled "Rejoice-Life With Attitude". This past weekend he was speaking about rejoicing in ALL things, so he did things a little differently than the usual weekend services. He did a live interview during each of the services with Joy Ross, a very good friend of mine, who has had to make a choice to do just that. Joy grew up vision impaired, but a little over a year ago she lost what little sight she did have. She shares in this video what that journey has been like, and how she CHOSE to pull herself out of depression and despair and begin to live a life filled with joy.

This interview is both moving and inspiring. I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch it.

Dec 13 Message from City Bible Church on Vimeo.

Mary, A Woman of Courageous Faith

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"

The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."

"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.

Luke 1:26-38 (NIV)

Can you even imagine what that moment must have been like for Mary? Here she was, this young peasant woman, being approached by an angel. She must have been wondering what on earth was about to happen in her life that the Lord felt she needed an angel to walk her through it. The angel, sensing that, was quick to quiet those fears and reassure her that she had found favor with God.

And then he went on to tell her that although she was a virgin, was going to give birth to the Son of God. The SON OF GOD! Seriously, can you imagine???

The fact that God chose Mary tells us what a remarkable person she was. We can see by her response why God chose her. Even though she was stunned, and probably a little self-conscious to have such a conversation with an angel, when she asked the question, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?", it wasn't the message from God she was questioning. She was just wondering how on earth this was going to happen, since she was a virgin?

I am always impressed and challenged by Mary's response to this news. "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her. She didn't try to convince the angel why this would be a bad idea. Rumors would be circulating once the news became public. Her reputation was going to be ruined. She would be ridiculed. She could even be stoned for getting pregnant while engaged to someone else. And yet, her response was one of total willingness to do whatever God called her to do.

She would tell about the visit from the angel, but who in their right mind would believe such a story? Her parents? Joseph? Her in-laws? The Rabbi? It wouldn't matter to Mary if no one believed her. That would not stop her from believing. She was willing to take whatever came her way as a result of believing God. Even if it cost her everything, including the man she loved, she would be obedient. What a courageous faith she had.

I wish I could say that I have always responded just like Mary did. But, the truth is, there have been times have tried to reason with God before I obeyed Him. But as I've gotten older, I realize that everything God does in my life is good. And I've learned that obeying Him immediately and completely is always the best choice to make. I pray to have a heart like Mary's. A heart that never questions God's plans for my life, a heart that immediately and completely obeys His every call.

Imperfect People ~ God's Perfect Plan

Ah, December. What a wonderful time of year.

I’m one of those people that likes to celebrate Thanksgiving. And then move on to Christmas. I know a lot of people who put up their tree before Thanksgiving. But, just so you know, I am not one of them. You will never see my Christmas decorations up until the smell of that fabulous turkey no longer lingers in my home. Not that either is right or wrong, it’s just my tradition.

Once that turkey smell is gone, however, I kick into high gear for the next week. For me, the week following Thanksgiving is always busy with getting the church decorated, which is a great way to work off all of those yummy garlic mashed potatoes from the week before. Between all the moving of heavy buckets containing tree parts, moving huge wreaths out of storage and hoisting them to the top of a 12 foot ladder to hang them above doorways, not to mention all the walking involved, etc. etc., I feel that I have succeeded in working off the extra Thanksgiving calories I consumed.

Once all of that is done, I then move to decorating my home. Yesterday the tree went up and today I will hang garlands and put out all the other miscellaneous decor I have collected over 29 plus years of marriage.

But before I get back to the busyness, I pause. I just need to sit and spend a few moments with Jesus, reflecting on the amazing story of how and why he came to earth. Each December I am drawn to reread the gospels as they tell the story of the life of Jesus and the humbling story of His birth.

If you’ve read the gospels you know that Matthew’s account starts with the genealogy of Christ. I used to just skim over this part quickly without really absorbing the importance of it all. Now I realize that it is there as evidence for us to know that God uses imperfect people to produce even the most amazing of miracles. A few stood out to me this morning as I read.

First there was Abraham, who we know as a man of faith. But he also lied. He sent his wife into Pharoah’s arms, putting the promise of his future into jeopardy.

And then we have David, whom scripture tells us, was a man after God’s own heart. But he definitely got sidetracked when he committed adultery with Bathsheba. Not only that, he committed murder so he could take her as his own.

Rahab was a harlot.

Ruth was a foreigner who was grafted into the family tree, even though foreign marriages were forbidden by Jewish law.

Bathsheba, the adultress who married David, was Solomon’s mother.

Sometimes it’s hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that God used so many imperfect people to bring forth His perfect plan ~ the birth of His own Son. But, this shows us that God’s purposes are not stopped by our humanity, no matter how weak and imperfect we are; no matter how far we have strayed. He is continually at work in us and through us, and a good deal of the time he works in spite of us. It is evidence of His Grace.

Thank you, God, for the grace you have poured down through the generations, reaching me. Your grace is so amazing that it leads me to turn from my own sinful, selfish ways and look to you and our will for my life. Help me go through this Christmas season with my heart focused on the true meaning of it all, Jesus.

My prayer is that each one of you would find the grace of God evident in your life as we spend this month celebrating the birth of His Son, Jesus.

Matthew 1:16 ~ Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Mary gave birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah. (NLT)

Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to take a minute before my day gets all crazy and wish you all a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING from all of us at Mom2Mom Cafe. We are thankful for each one of you that God has brought into our lives. We pray that your day is blessed and you find yourselves with much to be thankful for.

My husband just posted a really great post titled 'What Are You Thankful For?' over on his personal blog. If you'd like to check it out just click here.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4

The Miracle of You

I am so proud that I just can’t keep it to myself...

Karen Wells, who is a dear friend as well as one of the contributors to this blog, recently had her book, The Miracle of You, published and has already sold out the first printing!! Congratulations, Karen.

If you are expecting a baby, this is the book to have. It also makes a lovely gift for newly expecting parents. It is a beautifully illustrated book that takes you on a journey from conception through the weeks of pregnancy. For each week of pregnancy, The Miracle of You gives the reader an inspirational promise. It is laced with scriptures that have been prayerfully selected to minister specifically to those expecting.

Words really can’t do justice to how beautiful this book is, so I suggest you get your hands on a copy to see for yourself. It is truly one of the most beautiful pregnancy books I have seen.

For more information, click here to go to The Miracle of You website.

More Thanksgiving Recipes ~ Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Gravy

On Thanksgiving, my kitchen reminds me a little bit of one of those Italian kitchens where every person that walks by adds something to the sauce. In our case it's the garlic mashed potatoes. One daughter decides they need more pepper, while the next one comes by and thinks they need more butter.....you get the idea. One thing that doesn't get messed with though, is the consistency. How they turn out is every bit as important as how the turkey itself turns out. We like them 'mashed', with a potato masher, not mixed with a mixer as this makes them too creamy for our personal preference. We like there to be little chunks for texture. My daughters are what you might call 'mashed potato snobs'. They take their mashed potatoes very seriously and because of this they won't allow anyone else to volunteer to make them. I know, it really is kind of pathetic. But there you have it. It just is what it is. :)

Since we are a garlic loving family, we like our mashed potatoes loaded with garlic flavor. If you've never branched out and put garlic in yours, trust me - it brings them to a whole new level of yumminess!! Here's how I make mine, but remember how I said everyone adds as they go? Well keep that in mind. These are the amounts I start with...I don't think anyone really knows how much butter, garlic, salt & pepper or milk/half & half we really end up using:

GARLIC MASHED POTATOES

(serves 10)

5 lbs russet potatoes

1 head of peeled garlic cloves (I usually use more)

1 ½ to 1 ¾ cups milk (I like to substitute half of the milk with ½ & ½)

1 ½ sticks butter, cut into pieces (sometimes I add more)

Salt (I like to use the course kind)

Pepper to taste (we like lots of pepper on ours)

Peel potatoes and cut into 1 inch chunks. Put potatoes and garlic cloves into a 5 quart pan and completely cover with water. A 1 tablespoon salt.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until potatoes pierce easily with a fork, approximately 25 to 30 minutes.

Drain; return potatoes and garlic to pan. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat milk; pour over potatoes. Add butter and salt and pepper to taste. Mash until desired consistency is reached.

Here’s a nifty little tip I learned from Martha Stewart: You can make mashed potatoes up to two hours ahead of time. Just make as directed and then top with a thin layer of milk. Cover; set aside in a warm place. When ready to serve, just stir the milk into the mashed potatoes.

Of course, we only serve these with homemade gravy (remember - 'mashed potato snobs' - what can I say?). Making gravy is one of those things that can seem intimidating, but it really isn't hard to make. I don't have a recipe for mine, because I usually just make it to taste and consistency as I go, but you can click here for a recipe on the allrecipes website that looks like what I do to make mine.

Okay, so am I the only one with such an opinionated family? Do any of your families have quirks like ours?