Terribly Interesting

 I have often meditated on the verse in Psalm 23 where God sets a table for us. I have thought about it for many reasons. Lately, I have been thinking about it because I am trying to envision a table in my house that I will set for others. What will it look like? How can I make something elegant enough to make people feel special and yet casual enough that anyone would feel comfortable sitting there. How can you display love at your table?  I went to a hospitality seminar once. It was awful. I mean, it was so dull that I wanted to stop entertaining. The whole thing was about how hard of a sacrifice it is to let people into your home, but it's what God wants you to do. Let me just say that I don't ever want to go to eat at their house .  I'm over here thinking about what colors of plate make you feel most peaceful and folding antique napkins with hints of eyelet on them for each place setting. Let's bring back Southern hospitality. Can we refresh our hearts wi...

Be cheerful in your giving even with the recipients complain about the gift. Press on and give cheerfully despite attack. When you are discouraged, turn back to Me. I enjoy seeing my children give when they get nothing in return or worse. Give anyway. Love even when people are rude and uncaring. Love when it hurts. Love when it is truly a sacrifice. "Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." 2 Corinthians 9:7 For more on this segment, see this post .

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain. "It's not that I'm so smart," says Einstein, who was a consumate introvert. "It's that I stay with the problems longer." -Albert Einstein "At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking, reading to partying; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over brainstorming in teams. Although they are often labeled "quiet," it is to introverts that we owe many of the great contributions to society--from van Gogh’s sunflowers to the invention of the personal computer. Passionately argued, impressively researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people,  Quiet shows how dramatically we undervalue introverts, and how much we lose in doing so." Susan Cain's book is brilliant. It displays many scientists theories on the behavior o...

It has been an eventful week here, friends of Gomer. In case you missed our blog yesterday, our beloved adopted children got married. You can see that here . Our hideous kitchen began birthing new life because of an amazing cabinet maker named Aaron. Because of these things and a small person growing in my uterus, I am sleepy. I thought about writing a blog about about all the places I would like to take a nap. Instead, I must tell you that we are very thankful right now. I think of all of the hard things that have gone on around us and the hard relational things we have had to do in the past few years. It has genuinely been gut wrenching, humbling, and healing. The reward is always worth the work no matter how hard it seems when you are in the midst of it. We press on to forgiveness. We press on to love and we press on to resurrection. Restoration always involves a stripping away, a death of flesh.  When we first moved in this house, I had immediately wanted to rip out the ...

A little over a year ago, a young man I know came to me and told me he found the woman He believed God wanted him to marry. He asked me to pray for them. he came to live with us. We spiritually adopted her. Then this Saturday, they got hitched. It has been the wildest of adventures and the most beautiful of restoration stories. God yearns to be gracious to us for sure. Here are some pictures for you on SnapFish

I have given you a beautiful ability to sit in My presence and wait for my answer. You often look for the people of this world to answer life's questions for you. The truth is that they cannot. Even when they give you a seemingly good answer, it is not My truth. Seek Me. Seek My Kingdom, Seek My righteousness. This is where your healing and righteousness will occur. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls,"  Matthew 13:45 For more on this segment, see this post .

This is one of my pregnancy cravings. The recipe you will normally find has sherry and shallots in it. I adapted it to the likes of our family. I added a clove of garlic and some delicious mushrooms. It is really quick and easy. Brown your meat in the butter and garlic. You can also add a hint of pepper here. While this is going on, have the buns toasting in the oven at 350 with the cheese melting on the top portion of the open bun.   You can see it starting to change colors. Prepare your consume (or beef broth) with mushrooms and pepper.  Dip roast in sauce and place on bun. Scoop some mushrooms from the sauce and place on meat. You can add a little extra cheese if you would like. Close the sandwich and fill your dipping bowls to dip them into. This whole process is an average of 15 to 20 minutes and it is yummy. Buon Appetito.