Jeremy's Baptism

Okay, I am SO behind on my blogging! Life finally gets interesting enough to write about and then I don't take the time...go figure:)

A week ago my husband was baptized. What an amazing thing to be able to witness. I have seen this man transform from the stubborn teenager who thought he had everything figured out and didn't need anything from anyone into a man who serves his family in many ways and has humbled himself to accept that his life was not complete without Jesus as an integral part of it. Watching him dive into his new faith has really strengthened mine. Being on this journey together is so much better than it ever could be alone. I am proud of the decision he made to be baptized and am thankful for all the support he had from so many around us. Looking forward to continuing on this amazing journey with him for many years to come.

Announcement...

Just a little announcement:

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Jordan's 2nd Birthday

This took me a few days to get around to writing since I have actually found myself busy lately but I wanted to take the time to write about Jordan's birthday before it slips too far away. My baby turned 2 on Sunday, I can't even believe it. Time just continues to go by faster and faster. We had a great day, started by singing to him when he woke up which he was not so thrilled about. I made pancakes for breakfast because that is his favorite and then we went to church. After his nap it was time for his party which went really well. He was great at opening his presents and was so gracious in sharing with all the other kids, especially his brother who was convinced it was his birthday again and that all the gifts were for him. His big gift was a remote control dinosaur that provided many laughs as he traded off between squealing while running away or roaring back at the dinosaur. I was amazed at how great he did with his cupcake. He blew the candles out on the first shot! All in all it was a good day and we had so much fun celebrating 2 years with our little man. Our family just wouldn't be the same with out him, he brings his own unique personality into the mix and keeps things interesting to say the least. We love you Jordan!

Submission, Service and...SEX

Yes, I used the word sex in my title! For those of you looking for something graphic, sorry you came to the wrong place. For those of you who turn red faced just reading the word, don't worry I am just talking briefly about the importance of sex in a marriage.

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending a women's conference at my church called Pursue. One component of this conference was a series of workshops in the afternoon. They offered 8 total and we were allowed to choose 2. I was immediately drawn to the Pursuing Your Husband and Pursuing Your Children workshops as wife and mother are the two main roles in my life. I wanted to share with you all what I got out of the husband workshop as I felt it gave me a lot to think and pray about and could be beneficial to other women trying to become better wives.

The first thing we discussed was submission. Why is it important to submit to our husband's? To answer this we dug into God's word. Here is the list of verses we looked at:
Genesis 3:16, Proverbs 21:9, Titus 2:3-5, 1 Corinthians 11:3, 1 Corinthians 11:8-9, Ephesians 5:22, 24; 1 Peter3:1-2. I think that after reading these verses you will see God's clear calling for wives. It is our duty to submit to our husbands, to give him the role as head of the household because this is what is pleasing to God. Is this easy to do? Not for most women. We are raised to be independent and strong and believe we can do it all on our own. And there is nothing wrong with that. But once we are married, we are to give that control over to our husbands. Does that mean we are always going to trust our husband's to make the right decisions? No, but that is where trust in God comes in. Trust that He will guide your husband to lead your household in a way that is pleasing to Him. I urge all of you wives out there to look at your relationship, look at areas where you try to take all the control. Try to let go of just one thing. You will be amazed at how God will begin to use your husband.

The second thing we talked about was service. What does serving your husband look like and why is it important? Once again, we dove right into God's word for this:
Genesis 2:18, Proverbs 31:20, 27; Matthew 20:26-28, Luke 10:27, Romans 15:2, Ephesians 4:29. The simple answer to the question of why we serve our husbands is because in doing so we are serving God. Our pastor often says that those who are considered greatest in the world's eyes are those who HAVE servants while those considered greatest in God's eyes are those who ARE servants. Jesus came here to serve and that is what we are called to do as well. And that starts at home. One thing we were asked to do was to try to do something you don't normally do for your husband, something that will be out of the norm so he knows that you are serving him. This may be something as simple as taking out the trash so that he has time to relax or do something else.

Finally we get to the juiciest of the s words...sex. So often Christian women are taught to feel dirty about sex. We focus so much on why it is wrong before marriage that we forget to focus on why it is important after marriage. Men are sexual creatures, this is how they experience intimacy. If we as wives are not meeting these sexual needs, they will find other ways to meet them. Here are some verses that touch on what God says about sex:
Genesis 1:28, Genesis 2:24, Proverbs 5:19, Song of Songs 7:10, 1 Corinthians 7:2-5, 9; Ephesians 5:24, Hebrews 13:4. Here God talks about how our bodies are not just ours alone but also our husband's and how we are not to deprive them of it. It is our job to protect our husbands from the temptations that they encounter each day. If they are having their needs met at home, these temptations won't be nearly as powerful. So before your husband heads off for a business trip or a hunting trip or a day at a water park (hello, half-naked women) make sure that he is taken care of. I think often we as women put sex at the bottom of our list of things to do. There is just so much more going on in a day. But I think the more you read God's word and pray about it you will realize not only how important it is to your husband but also to your marriage. And when you also realize that this is a gift that God has given us to enjoy with our spouse, it becomes that much more special.

I know that I took a lot away from this and I am continuing to spend time in God's word and praying so that I can do a better job of being the wife God wants me to be and my husband deserves to have. All of these are areas that I need work in and I am slowly making an effort to put myself aside and make room for what God has in store for me. I am already seeing the fruit of this as I submit myself to God's amazing design for me as a wife.

That is one big zucchini!!

The muffins(above)

The individually packaged portions(below)

Shredded zucchini(above)

Pureed zucchini (below)

The giant zucchini!!!

We are blessed enough to have both family and friends who grow their own gardens and love to share produce with us. But sometimes we get so much it seems overwhelming to try to use it all. Jeremy's grandpa always gives us the biggest zucchini's and for the longest time I had no idea what to do with them. So I thought I would share with you all what I did with this last zucchini.

Here's what you will need: a cutting board and knife, a food processor, spatula, measuring cups, ziploc sandwhich size bags, and a marker. What I do is cut the zucchini in half and put half of it in the food processor to be pureed. This is for my muffin recipe. I use the spatula to fill up the 1 cup measuring cup, then put it in a ziploc that has been marked with what it is and the date. Once that half of the zucchini is done, I put the other half into the food processor to grate or shred. This is for my zucchini bread recipe. This calls for 2 cup portions so that is what I put in each ziploc, again writing what it is and the date on the bag. When finished they all go in the freezer. Now I have individually bagged portions of zucchini that I just pull out and defrost when I am ready to bake with them! From the zucchini pictured I got enough to make 5 dozen muffins and 9 loaves of bread. Here are my recipes (kindly passed on from my mother-in-law) if you are interested:

Zucchini Muffins:

1 c sugar

1 c pureed zucchini

1 egg

1/4 c cooking oil

1 1/2 c flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips

Mix the first four ingredients together in a large bowl. Then combine all remaining ingredients except chocolate chips in a smaller bowl and mix. Add that to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Add in chocolate chips. Divide evenly among greased 12 muffin pan. Set oven to 350 degrees and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove immediately with knife and let cool on a rack.

Zucchini Bread:

3 eggs

1 c vegetable oil

2 c sugar

2 tsp vanilla

3 c flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 to 1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

3/4 tsp nutmeg

2 c grated zucchini

1 (8.5 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained

1 c nuts (optional)

Beat eggs in oil until thick and foaming. Add sugar and vanilla. Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Gently stir into the egg mixture until blended. Stir in zucchini, pineapple and nuts. Divide evenly between 2 grease and floured 9x5" loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

My little apple thieves

Oh how I wish I had a camera with me at the grocery store today. We stopped in to just pick up a handful of items so Nathan was in the back of the cart and Jordan was in the seat. The first thing Jeremy puts back there with Nathan is a bag of apples and him and Jordan immediately start grabbing for them. That has been their favorite thing lately to just eat whole apples. But we told them they had to wait until we paid for them and could have one once we got home and I washed them. So we kept them fairly distracted as we picked up the few other things we had to get and decided to use self-checkout since we had so little in our cart. Jeremy takes charge of that, starting with the bag of apples and continuing with the rest of the items and I am watching to see what he is doing and helping him flag down the cashier to help with a coupon we had. No sooner had he checked out and was in the process of paying then I look over and see Jordan chomping away on an apple. I was surprised and looked passed him to see Nathan eating one too. The bag was still by Jeremy at the checkout so they must of each grabbed one before he scanned it! And you should have seen the looks on their faces, they were so proud of themselves. I just had to laugh. And then we immediately went over and found out how much it was for 2 apples and paid the cashier for them. It was just one of those moments when we obviously had to explain to them what why they shouldn't do that and what they need to do different next time, but couldn't help but laugh to each other after the fact. They were just so sneaky!!

Discernment vs. Condemnation

One of the mommy sites I am on has a number of groups that you can participate in, post questions, thoughts, start debates. Needless to say it can get heated. And whether in a Christian or non-Christian group, the question of judgement often gets brought up. So I thought that I would spend some time trying to find out what the Bible says about judgement. What I have found says that there is a difference between judgement and discernment. I think this was educational to me because while I have always thought it wrong to judge, I have found it to be pretty near impossible. Now realizing there is a difference between judging and discernment, I feel like I have a better idea of what God is asking of us in this area. Please feel free to add any knowledge you have on this topic, as I have just stared looking into it and would like to know as much as I can. This is what I read about it on www.livinghopeofgod.org :


Discernment

The following Greek verbs describe the scope and action of discernment:
dokimazo = to test, to examine; to interpret, to discover; to approve; to prove, to demonstrateanakrino = to ask questions, to examine; to evaluate, to scrutinize, to investigate; to search outdiakrino = to make a distinction (between persons); to weigh thoroughly each partpeirazo = to assay, to examine; to prove, to try

Judgment
This Greek verb is used in Scripture to describe the scope and action of judgment:
krino = to pass judgment on, to sentence; to mentally or judicially condemn; to conclude, to decide, to determine



Six Basic Indications that Expose a Judgmental Spirit
1. If his failure improves the opinion I have of myself, I am judging.

2. If his failure decreases my concern for the faults I know I have, I am judging.

3. If his failure gives me a desire to see that he is punished, I am judging.

4. If I am eager to tell others about his failure, I am judging.

5. If his failure prompts me to review his past failures, I am judging.

6. If his failure causes me to feel that I cannot forgive him, I am judging



Six Basic Factors of Discernment vs. Judgmental Spirit
1. One who discern will thoroughly examine himself before evaluating the actions of others.(Galatians 6:4; 1 Corinthians 11:28, 31; 2 Corinthians 13:5)
2. One who discerns will check the accuracy of all facts and related factors before reaching a conclusion.(1 Corinthians 2:15; 1 Thessalonians 5:21; 1 John 4:1)
3. One who discerns will deal as privately as possible with the problems he sees.(1 Corinthians 6:5-6)
4. One who judges will condemn others for their visible problems but fail to realize that their attitudes stem from root problems which he himself has not yet overcome.(Romans 2:1; 14:10)
5. One who judges will form opinions on first impressions or hearsay, and then he will look for evidence to confirm his opinions, even though, the evidence may be out of context.(John 7:24, 51; James 4:11)
6. One who judges will publicly expose those whom he condemns. This may cause others to condemn him for having the same root problem such as pride, lack of love, or a critical spirit.(Luke 6:37)
A discerning Christian is one detects a fault in another and is able to give clear direction for victory based on the principles of God’s Word and his own application of them. On this basis he is able to restore an offending brother rather than reject him. (See Galatians 6:1)