Plump Cardinal

Sowing and Trusting

Mark 4:26-27

"And He said, 'The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how....'"

My minister-husband pointed these verses out to me the other day.  The sower himself does not know how the seed should sprout and grow.  I liked how this was highlighted in these verses in Mark.  

We sow constantly.  We sow good seed or we sow bad seed, but we are always sowing.  When we obey God's Word we sow good seed.  I have been much more aware of trying to intentionally sow good seed lately.  The seed I have in mind, specifically, are kind words, works of sacrifice and service, listening and considering another's point of view.  Basically, loving my neighbor as myself.  BUT, then comes the temptation to wonder if it's doing any good.  Results are not always evident.   

I appreciated this reminder that, the sower doesn't know how it grows.  But it does.  God brings the increase.  And He will bring it in whatever way He sees fit.  I must just keep sowing and trusting and sowing and trusting and sowing and trusting.  In due time, there is sure to be a good harvest and I am sure to see it.

My 13 Year Old Practicing For His Piano Recital

Where Did You Come From, Baby Dear?

"Where did you come from, baby dear?
Out of the everywhere into here.

Where did you get your eyes so blue?
Out of the sky as I came through...

...How did they all just come to be you?
God thought about me, and so I grew.

But how did you come to us, you dear?
God thought about you , and so I am here."

George MacDonald

Special Delivery

 Do you know what you are looking at?  Genuine, Grammie-made jumpers/tunics!  These special treasures came in the mail last week and adorned my girls when we went to our annual  homeschool assessment testing this week.

 Mom sent leggings and turtlenecks with the jumpers, making complete outfits.  What a SPECIAL gift it is to wear something made just for you, by someone who loves you.  

We love them, Mom.  They're cute, practical, comfy to wear, sturdy and matching!  Add in that they are one-of-a-kind, made and picked out by you and it doesn't get much better.  Thank you!

P.S.  She sent another set of jumpers too that I'll post pictures of later.

Pileated Woodpecker

Look at that red cap!  About the size of a crow, he came to visit and peck a hole in one of the trees by the driveway.  My amazing zoom lens on my new camera allowed me to get a good look at him!

Homemade Yogurt

This is Julie.  I'm a long, lost stranger on this blog, I know.  I have a couple of posts in mind, so I thought I'd visit.

Today, I want to share my latest "homemade" experiment.  This was a pinterest find that inspired me to finally try making my own homemade yogurt.  Incredibly simple, healthy and fuss-free in my crockpot were my incentives to give it a go.  The recipe I followed can be found here.

I thought this experiment was a great success.  The essentials of the process are simply pouring 1/2 gallon of milk into your crockpot, cooking it on low for 2 hours 45 minutes, turning it off and letting it sit for 3 hours, stirring in 1/2 cup of plain yogurt and then wrapping the whole container in a towel and letting it sit overnight.  That's it.  Magically, the milk thickens into a lovely-textured yogurt that is ready to be sweetened if desired, and eaten or refrigerated.  

I've made this several times now.  The cost is exactly 1/2 of what it costs me to buy the same quantity of the cheapest yogurt I can find.  Since my family eats such a lot at a time, it works out well for us and saves $.  Hurray.  A good change for my household!

Again, the recipe is found here:  Homemade Yogurt in the Crockpot