White

Isa 1:18     Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

I tried to find this verse and that to summarize the things I was thinking today.  It seemed to me that I was "prooftexting" , BUT

Being a missing the forest for the trees kind of scripture reader the last few years, I am seeing the big picture.


God is love, God is light, God forgives, God wounds and God heals, God is All.

Kettle Corn!

I've wanted to try this since Trisha posted it a few weeks ago. Yesterday my sweet tooth told me it was time.



I just glanced at the directions, thinking "I got this" and so here is batch number one:

There was smoke coming out of the pan before I finally gave up

By this time, the kids had smelled burnt sugar and wanted to know what I was making. After a quick trip back to the computer to check the directions again (I didn't preheat the oil..DUH). I'm not a popcorn newbie, I don't know what was wrong with me.  I tried again.

Cheers of "Please don't burn!" rang through the kitchen as this batch popped- It didn't but...

I still am not completely happy with the results. Yummy- yes! But you see my poor, poor kernels. This is our homegrown popcorn and it is a real pain in the thumbs getting it off the cob.

This is a bit of work

To have so many unpopped is disappointing, I don't have this much of a failure rate when popping it normally.

Lazy kernels!

I need to keep working on it, but I can see this is the beginning of a beautiful snack relationship.

Outside my Laundry Room Door

And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, [I say], whether [they be] things in earth, or things in heaven. Col 1:20

I've been looking at Colossians a bit, a small and mostly looked over book by me.  Lots of good stuff in there.




It's great timing that one of the pastors at our church just started preaching through this book yesterday. I missed the first installment being home with a sick little one, but thankfully they have put it in the archives, so I'll catch up.


I am willing to listen, to wait for answers and wisdom.    





Our family bible study hasn't been what it was, partly due to just plain life getting in the way and partly because we found on one go 'round in 1 Corinthians that we couldn't put everything in the neat little packages we thought were there.



So a season of stepping back commenced.




I look forward to this series having put away my theological labels this past summer. The Mr. never labeled himself, but I did. I was proud to be this ist or follow that ism, but not now.  Off in the wilderness I have been, but it's been a peaceful time for the most part. My faith in God has remained strong...stronger even.  Some sickening moments when realizing some things weren't what they are presented as being and some beautiful moments seeing that God is really God.



I look forward, cautiously but excitedly, with full confidence in my Savior to what lies ahead.

This Picture

Didn't turn out the way I wanted it to, but I like it anyway.

I'm still getting used to the settings and such on the new camera.




We're back to school, have had some little ones under the weather, and trying to clean up and organize after the holiday madness.




So it's 2012! Wow, that was fast. A few years ago I would've been counting down the days until the supposed end of the world, but for some reason my end of the world counting was interrupted last year by some wonderful things that I have been seeing from the scriptures and from (not saying this presumably, I just don't know what else to say) the spirit of God.  And for some reason my rapture end-of-the-world watching is just not important to me at this time.





It is like a great light bursting through the cold and bleakness, somehow making everything beautiful in its time.

Grumpy Religiosity and Fearful Disciples

It seems that many of us are one or the other...

I've been and sometimes still am both.

I'm now trying to LISTEN to Jesus -however that is accomplished , I guess by reading and meditating on the scripture rather than what other people tell me He is saying.  It does seem  that just plain reading the text alone isn't the means.

`Ye search the Writings, because ye think in them to have life age-during, and these are they that are testifying concerning me; John 5:39

It's tough.

Yesterday during the Sunday school class that the Mr. and I teach our lesson was about Jesus miracles. I was on my own, the Mr. being under the weather and with a small class of four kids (one being my son) we looked through five of Jesus's miracles:



The healing of the paralytic
 The raising of Jairus's daughter
 The calming of the storm
The healing of a blind man
Turning the water into wine 



What I noticed in these were grumpy religious people, fearful disciples, and  just plain regular people who came to Jesus with the great faith to be healed and saved.

and ye do not will to come unto me, that ye may have life; John 5:40