Two years? Really?

Just a quick note to my readers and to remind myself that even though time seems to drag when things are hard, they move faster when we don't let the heavy stuff bog us down. Thank you for sharing this blog with me. It has been a journey of spiritual, emotional and physical healing and I am so thankful that technology makes is possible.

Continue to pray for me and each other. There is still much healing needed.

Isiah 66:13 as one whom his mother comforts, so will I comfort you.

Thank you Lord for comforting this Mom and Nana.

Love,
Nana

A thought for your pennies and Baked Noodle Ring

This blog is for Nancie and for somebody special that I don't have to mention because God knows who she is.












Baked Noodle Ring

4 cups boiling water
1 t salt
1 4 oz package dry noodles (any kind will work but I like the egg noodles)
3 eggs
1 cup ham pieces or a can of tuna (optional)
1/3 cup broken crackers or stale potato chips
2 and 1/2 T butter melted
1 and 1/4 cup grated cheese


Cook noodles in boiling water with salt until tender (about 10 minutes). Drain and rinse with cold water. Beat eggs in bowl. Add everything else. Pour into baking ring. Set the ring in a pan with water to cover about 2/3 of the ring depth. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until light brown. Turn noodle onto serving tray or plate. Serve hot.


A Thought for Your Pennies

We have all heard the saying “a penny for your thoughts”. Sometimes we say this when we see someone in deep concentration and we wonder what they are thinking. I would like to share with you a thought for your pennies. When I was a little girl, I often walked with my dad and he seemed to be lucky to me because he usually found coins other people had lost. He would say “see a penny pick it up and all day long you’ll have good luck”. I asked him if that was really true and he said “sure it is. If you are lucky enough to find enough pennies they will make a dime and dimes make dollars” then he would laugh as we walked on. A penny by itself is not worth very much but enough of them combined can have a value that is acknowledged by the world.

All my life I watched for that opportunity to scoop up pennies or lost change because I knew about the value of being rescued. Jesus rescued me from being lost forever because I was a treasure to Him. For years I said my dad’s little saying then one day I heard a better one. Wayne Dyer was speaking to a group and he said he does the same thing when he is walking and people look at him strangely that a man who obviously does not need the loose change, would stoop to rescue a penny. He said that every time he rescues a penny he prays “thank you, Lord, for this symbol of your abundance”. That was a profound statement to me and I have been using it now for about ten years with great joy.

A few months ago my heart was very heavy as I prayed for somebody that I love very much and, like always, I was wondering when God was going to answer my prayer. I was walking across the parking lot into work and I spotted a penny. I picked it up and it was covered with scars. Some were old and some were fresh leaving the penny very shiny from the fresh markings. I looked at the date and it was the date of the person I was praying for. I returned to my car and took a moment to pray for them again and to thank God for the reminder that the world sees our outward appearance. It sees our scars and determines our value based on what they can see. I don’t know what put the scars on this little penny and I don’t know what caused all the scars we can’t see inside of people we love. I knew and know only the surface pain of the person I was and am praying for. I carried that penny in my pocket saying a prayer for the person born the same year it was made. One day I decided to send the penny to them but prayed about it first and felt like God said, “No, this is between you and Me”. That's when I knew that my prayers needed to continue and I did not need to share this with the person who this little penny reminded me of. I pray knowing that the most important person knows the scars of the person I love. God knows the full truth of the scars I can see as well as those I don’t know about. He knows every scar on my heart and the hearts of others. Theirs bring Him tears just as mine do but, like the little penny; they do not change our value; not on earth and not in heaven. We are treasures to Him just as we are; scars and all.


Luke 15:9-10 and when she found the coin she called her friends and neighbors together saying rejoice with me for I have found the coin that was lost. Likewise, I tell you there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents.

Love,
Nana

Finding our way and old fashioned cornbread

This blog is dedicated to Renee and Katrina. As they experience life living separately, may they always know the storms will pass.


Old Fashioned Cornbread

3 Tablespoonfuls vegetable shortening or bacon drippings
2 cups self-rising cornmeal mix
1-2 Tablespoonfuls sugar (optional)
1 and 1/2 cups milk
1 egg

10 inch oven proof skillet or 8" or 9" square pan; Will also make 12 muffin

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Melt shortening or drippings in the pan in the oven; tilt to cover the bottom evenly. Mix all other ingredients in a bowl then pour into hot skillet or pan. Bake 20-25 minutes. Toothpick will be clean when inserted into the center when done.

Finding our way

The picture with this blog is a weather report that Hurricane Katia is gaining strength and heading toward land. The heavy winds and rain have potential to do a lot of damage to the coastal cities along Texas where she will first touch land. We are warned when some dangers are coming our way and we are given a chance to prepare. Some things we think we are prepared for but when the heavy rains come or the wind tosses about things that were solid, we seek to find the calm again. Most people who have never experienced such storms don't know that there is a short period when you are in the "eye of the storm" and things seem to be calm, but the storm is not done. It still has to run it's course.

Katrina is beginning her first year at college. Susan began her first last year and while no two families experience things the same, there are some things that, like all hurricanes, are predictable. You prepare for the time when you will wake up and the familiar face across the table is not there. You prepare yet when it happens, it feels much different than you expected. I remember the first time Susan got sick away from home. I was so tempted to drive the three hours to her but I knew we had made a "medicine chest" for her and she could take the cold medicine and manage her day without her mom. The problem was, could mom manage her day without being there to take care of her. The wind and rain from that storm was not so bad but when there was a storm of "who is my friend and how do I overcome being lonely" there was nothing in that chest to make that hurt better. How I longed to give her the right words and advice but I couldn't. She had to find her own path. When she came home for Christmas, it was as if she never left but then a short time later, she returned to her dorm and the struggles of being a college student. We passed through the eye of the storm only for it to continue until it ran it's course. It was funny that on the day she was to come home, it was raining but the rain stopped as soon as we were by her side, moving her back home.

Today we have so much to help us find our way. Many cars have GPS devices as do cell phones and most people have one in their car. It's supposed to make your travel less complicated but I have followed the direction of mine many times only to end up far away from my destination. It is a flawed instrument but most of the time, it does point you in the right direction. If you choose not to follow it, you usually end up resetting it and starting all over but there is a guidance system that is flawless. When we follow the directions of God, we will find that the path may be narrow with only a few people on the journey with us but it always brings us back to Him. We can feel lonely or lost but if we keep our eyes on the prize, life works out for us. We can play around with the initials GPS and come up with a cool slogan like God's Prize Suffices... okay so maybe that is not the coolest but like ASAP means "as soon as possible" when we change it to "always say a prayer" there is hope in the message instead of panic.

That's what it means to follow Christ. We have hope where others panic and we know that our path will lead us to success and our success will affect others. Whether we sink to the bottom or swim to the light depends largely on our choices. I am so thankful for God who sees the storms in our life and cares enough to reach down and draw us to Him.


Matthew 14:27 "Jesus spoke to them, saying "be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid".

Love,
Nana