Tag Archives: Christian bloggers

Christmas Memories

22 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I wrote this back in 2013, but it fits today as well, so I am reblogging it here.

Christmas memories……..so many……all good.  I remember, as a child, waking up to Christmas morning and rushing into the living room to see what Santa had brought.  And then to opening all the presents from Mom, Dad, Granny and Aunt Jessie.  I suppose my brother had gotten me something as well, but I just don=t remember that. 

Bill and me – 1953

Bill and me around the Christmas tree – 1951

I remember Daddy sitting us down and reading the Christmas story from the Bible.  He and Mom always made sure that we knew the true meaning of Christmas – why we celebrated the season and all the gifts that came with it.  And why we gave gifts to each other and to those who didn=t have all we had.

Daddy – 1954

Bill and me – 1954

I remember one Christmas that we were traveling to San Antonio from Albuquerque to spend the holiday with Granny and Aunt Jessie – this was before they moved to Albuquerque.  We had a car wreck along the way and Aunt Jessie came to pick us up and take us to her home.  We still had Christmas!  We didn=t have a workable car any more, and Bill had a broken arm……….but we still had Christmas!

Bill and me – San Antonio – 1950

I remember the last Christmas my Daddy was on this earth.  He’d had a very unfortunate accident in the hospital and was really banged up.  Fred and I flew in from California, and Bill and DiVoran, with their two children, flew in from Florida, to celebrate that time together.  I remember the children tearing into their presents under the tree that morning, and DiVoran stepping out of the way to urge Bill to get in the best position to get some good pictures of that.

Renie and Billy – Albuquerque, New Mexico – 1966

And there was Daddy, with that black eye, just enjoying his grandchildren and children around him.  It was a time to treasure.


All the gang – Daddy’s last Christmas – Albuquerque, New Mexico – 1966

I remember traveling from the Florida Panhandle to Titusville to have Christmas with my brother and his family, and then across the peninsula to Clearwater to have another celebration with Fred’s parents.  Being with family at this time of celebration is so very precious, and we cherish each memory.

And now I remember a recent time with the family in Titusville and the significant others that have joined the extended family.  I wouldn=t trade it for anything – no amount of non-Christian beliefs and just the time for partying is nearly as satisfying and delicious as being with family, in the Spirit of God’s blessings.

Nope………Christmas Memories are just too precious.

Credit ChurchArt.com

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Let’s Eat!-Desserts-Cakes

15 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

DO-OVER

Photo Credit Google Search and allrecipes.com

Let me apologize for this posting.  Back on October 20, 2024, I wrote about my favorite pound cake.  At the time, I said I didn’t remember where I got the recipe.  Turns out (after I found the recipe in my recipe file) that I was given it by my now “famous” Mabel in Wiesbaden, West Germany.  I therefore would like to pass it along to my readers.  This really is the very best, most moist, sweet, delicious pound cake I’ve ever eaten.  For those who don’t like icing – this is the perfect cake.  It can be eaten plain – yummmmmm – or with a glaze, or fruit topping.  All is good.  So, here’s the recipe, and I hope it will give some enjoyment.

MABEL’S POUND CAKE

Cream:   

    ½ pound butter with

     2½ cups granulated sugar

    (After mixing well, turn mixer to “whip” and whip until “white”)

Add:             

 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition

  1 cup buttermilk – mix well with ½ tsp soda**

  3 cups sifted cake flour***

¼ tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla 

1 Tbsp warm water

DIRECTIONS:

Cream the butter and sugar well; add eggs, continuing to beat well.  Add the buttermilk and soda mixture alternately with the salt and flour.  Last, add the vanilla and warm water.

Pour into tube pan (Angel food pan – Bundt pan) and bake one (1) hour and 15 minutes at 325̊.

Serve either with or without icing.

ICING:

½   8-oz. can of crushed pineapple

¼ stick butter (2 Tbsp)

¼ cup granulated sugar

Juice of 1 lemon (fresh-squeezed if you want – I use thawed Minute Maid frozen

 lemon juice)

1   3-oz package cream cheese (or half of an 8-oz. package)

1 box confectioner’s sugar

Cook pineapple, butter and granulated sugar until “dry”; COOL!!

Combine lemon juice and cream cheese

Blend in confectioner’s sugar.

Add pineapple mixture

Mix well

Spread on cake

ENJOY!!

This cake doesn’t really “work” unless you beat/whip the butter and sugar mixture until it looks “white.”  The difference in color and texture is noticeable.

**I don’t usually have buttermilk on hand, so I make my own:

1 cup milk, mix in one (1) Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar, stir and let sit.

***If you don’t have cake flour: 

 sift regular flour – measure out three (3) level cups, then take out 3½level Tbsp).  That is equal to cake flour.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Let’s Eat-Desserts

8 Dec

Cookies-Part 2

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills 

There are a couple of cookies that I have made in the past – the very distant past – but my family thought were quite good, so I would like to share them here.

One is called Eskimo Cookies, that my beloved sister-in-law, DiVoran got from a good friend of hers, Jenny.   I have taken these to cookie-exchanges before, and they seem to be a hit.  The good thing about them, is that they are a no-cook cookie.  How can that be, you ask?  Well, here it is:

ESKIMO COOKIES

Ingredients:

¾ cup butter, softened

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 Tbsp water

3 Tbsp cocoa powder

2 cups uncooked oatmeal

Directions:

Let the butter stand in a bowl until soft.  

Cream with a wooden spoon and add the sugar.  Cream well

Stir in the vanilla, water and cocoa powder.

Add oatmeal, and mix well.

Shape into small balls and roll in powdered sugar..

Keep in the refrigerator.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In 1971, when we were moving from Loring AFB, Maine to San Antonio, Texas, we stopped in a neat place called Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts.  It is a ways from Boston, but not far from the Connecticut state line.  It is very like Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, but we hadn’t seen Colonial Williamsburg by that time, so this was a unique experience for us.

While there, we purchased some of their home-made cookies.  We enjoyed them so much, that I purchased a small booklet of cookie recipes.

I must admit that I only tried one of the cookie recipes, but we enjoyed them, all the same.  They are called “Quakers.”  Here’s the recipe:

QUAKERS

As you can see, I made a notation for myself – the 2 cups of brown sugar equals one (1) 16-oz. box.  I usually pack the sugar down into the measuring cup.  And I admit that I have never tried to make any other cookie from this cookbook – even the Hobnails on the next page…although they sound intriguing. 

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Hope in Thanksgiving

28 Nov

Guest Post

Rebekah Lyn

Reblogged from Rebekah Lyn’s Kitchen

This week, Americans celebrate Thanksgiving. A group of settlers known as the Pilgrims celebrated the first feast of Thanksgiving in the “New World”. These “separatists,” as the Church called them, refused to acknowledge the Queen as the Head of the Church, placing herself above the Lord Jesus Christ. The church bishops’ support for this usurpation was evidence to the Pilgrims of the total corruption of the Church. For this rebellion, the Pilgrims faced bulling, taxation, imprisonment on false charges, and societal marginalization. First, they fled to Holland, but life wasn’t any easier there, so they decided to sail for the “New World”.

Challenges plagued their journey from the start. When they landed at Cape Cod, they found a wild wilderness with no protection from fierce winter storms. Scouts found a more sheltered area farther south and upriver, deep enough for the Mayflower to sail in. They spent that first winter onboard their ship while they built shelters ashore. Working in the cold to the point of exhaustion, simple colds grew into pneumonia, killing many. The more adversity they faced, the more fervently they prayed for God’s provision.

All the while, they knew Indians roamed outside their palisade, but only once did they experience a skirmish in which none were injured. March brought more roaring wind along with the introduction to Samoset, a chief of the Algonquin tribe. Samoset spoke flawless English, which he learned from fishing captains who came ashore in Maine near his home. He’d come to the area with one of those captains to explore for the Council of New England.

Several days later, Samoset returned with another Indian who also spoke English, Squanto, and who was originally from this land the Pilgrims had settled. Samoset, Squanto, and Massasoit, chief of the local Wampanoag tribe, met with the Pilgrims and a peace treaty of mutual aid and assistance was reached. Squanto remained when Massasoit and his warriors returned to their homes. He showed the Pilgrims how to fish, to plant corn, to hunt, which native plants were good to eat and which were good for medicine, and much more.

With the harvest of 1621 complete, the colony’s governor, William Bradford, organized a celebration, inviting Squanto and Massasoit, who had been so helpful. When Massasoit arrived, he brought ninety others with him, but they didn’t come empty-handed. They brought deer and turkeys, taught the Pilgrims how to make hoecakes and pudding from cornmeal and maple syrup. The feast lasted three days, and the celebration included sporting competitions between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags.

More than 150 years later, in 1789, George Washington issued the first national Thanksgiving proclamation to celebrate the conclusion of the American Revolution. The United States did not officially adopt Thanksgiving as an annual holiday until 1863, during the height of the Civil War. By 1939, it was already turning into a commercial holiday, when Franklin Roosevelt moved it up a week hoping to spur retail sales during the Great Depression. Following extreme backlash, Roosevelt signed a bill in 1941, assigning the fourth Thursday in November as Thanksgiving.

Our history is increasingly distorted and many view the founding of America as a bloodthirsty invasion that disregarded the people already living in this unknown land. It is important to remember, the further away we get from an event, the more likely it is to be rewritten to fit a particular narrative or agenda. I’m reading The Light and the Glory by Peter Marshall and David Manuel, first published in 1977. This book traces the history of America, delving into the questions “Did God call Columbus to discover new lands?” and “Was God leading the early settlers to America?”. It’s a fascinating read that challenges much of what our current historians are espousing.

Today, Americans rarely think about how the tradition started or why those first celebrants were in the “New World” to begin with. The holiday has become a day for football, a competitive kick-off to Christmas shopping, a dreaded day of family gathering.

As Christians, we are called to live every day with thanksgiving. Psalm 100 is a song of David that says:

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.

I hope this Thanksgiving you will take time to reflect on what God has done in your lives. Rejoice in the adversity, give thanks in the blessings, and be kind to others.

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Let’s Eat!-Desserts-Between Cake and Pie-Part 4

24 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Another one of these desserts that I used to make quite often I called Chocolate Chip Bars.  I got the recipe from a friend living in the same stairwell we lived in, while in Wiesbaden, West Germany in the 1960’s. If I remember correctly, the same Mabel that gave me the recipe for the “Mabel’s Chocolate Sheet Cake” is the same Mabel that gave me this recipe.  Our girls loved to eat it (as did Fred and I), and consequently,  I made it so often I could do it without the recipe in front of me.  I’m sure the girls enjoyed it because I gave each of them one of the mixer beaters to lick after I was finished with them.  It takes a little bit of work to make, but the results are wonderful!!  Crust, chocolate chips, chopped pecans, and egg whites beaten with brown sugar…yummmm!

Please notice that I said the recipe was from Judy Younger.  Judy is the daughter of the now-famous “Mabel”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And now, on to another type of “between cake and pie” are….cookies!   And I have some favorites that I make and love to eat!

Back on January 10, 2016, I wrote a post about “Go Run” concerning eating all the Christmas goodies I make.  It was a story of the German Springerle cookies that I make.  I have made them every year since we lived in Wiesbaden, West Germany, 1967-1970.  Fred’s Mother gave me the start to make them, as she did so every Christmas.  Then she gave me a cookbook from the Military Officer’s Wives that had the best recipe in it.  It also has several different recipes for Springerle in it, but this one works the best.  They are a bit of work to make, but the outcome is amazing and wonderful.  Please refer back to that posting to see the entire story.

Because they are so time-consuming to make, I had decided that last Christmas (2023) would be the last time I made them.  I sent some to our granddaughter, who shared them with her in-laws – who happen to be of German descent!  They LOVED the Springerle cookies!!  So either I will continue to make them, or show our granddaughter how to make them.   What a neat serendipity!

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Calling Things That Are Not

18 Nov

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Excerpt from Capps Ministries

Sickness and disease have No Power over me.

By his stripes, I am healed and made whole

God sent His Word and healed me.

I overcome the world and the flesh with the word of my testimony.

You have given me abundant life through your word, and it flows to every organ of my body, bringing healing and health.

Photo Credit:Pixabay

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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Let’s Eat!-Desserts-Between Cake and Pie-Part 3

17 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills 

One of my favorite desserts to make is what I call Lemon Squares.  Others may have a different name for the same dessert, but that’s what I’ve always called them.  I got the recipe from another Air Force wife while we were living on Tyndall AFB, Florida, back in the 1970’s, and have used it quite often since then.  It’s an easy thing to make, and it is a great dessert to take to dinners or other functions.  Since I’ve had my Cuisinart food processor, it is quite easy to make it in one “pan” so-to-speak.  I make the crust in the food processor, and while it is baking, I make the filling in the same processor bowl.  I do not take the time to squeeze the fresh lemons – I use the thawed frozen lemon juice by Minute Maid.  Works just as well.  I knew one lady who, when making this for a large church group, would just throw the entire lemon in the food processor – peel, seeds and all.  I found that method to taste quite bitter.  What I wanted was sweet-tart.  Of course, I like mine the best.

LEMON SQUARES

CRUST:

1 cup butter (2 sticks, firm)

½ cup packed down powdered sugar

⅛ tsp salt

2 cups all purpose flour

Blend together with a pastry blender until like very coarse meal. (See NOTE: below)

Spray a 9” X 13” glass pan with PAM.  Press above mixture firmly into the glass pan, trying to make it as even as possible.

Bake in a 325º oven for 15-20 minutes, until lightly brown.

FILLING:

Mix together while crust is baking:

            4 eggs

            2 cups granulated sugar

            Heaping ⅓ cup all purpose flour

            ½ cup lemon juice  (juice of one lemon)

Pour filling over the baked crust.  Bake crust and filling together at 325º for 15-20 minutes.  “Jiggle” the pan – if the filling seems more-or-less firm, not juicy, then it is done.  DO NOT OVERCOOK!  The filling will crack.

Remove from oven and sift powdered sugar over the top.  Cool before cutting.

NOTE:  This is really easy if you have a food processor.  

            For the crust:  place the flour, powdered sugar, and salt in the bowl and blend briefly.  Cut the butter into “pat” size and dump in the bowl on top of the flour mixture.  Blend with the metal blade until it begins to stick together – dough like.  Press the mixture into the greased pan and bake.

            While it is baking, in the same processor bowl (no, you don’t have to clean it before you do this step), blend the eggs briefly.  Add the sugar and flour and blend until well mixed.  While the processor is running, pour the lemon juice into the bowl until it is mixed.  Run the processor a time or two during the time the crust is baking.  Then continue as above for baking the filling and crust together.

Photo by Judy Wills

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Let’s Eat! Desserts-Between Cake and Pie-Part 2

10 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I’m not a big “brownie” maker or eater, but one of our friends in our church here in Orlando gave me her grandmother’s recipe for brownies.  It includes small marshmallows, and frosting on top of the brownie.  While I’ve never made them, I have sampled them when my friend brought some to a church function.  They are really delicious!!

GRANDMOTHER’S BROWNIES

From Amy

BROWNIE:

            1 stick butter, room temperature

            3 TBS cocoa

            2 beaten eggs

            1 tsp. Vanilla

            1 cup of sugar

            ¾ cup of all-purpose flour

            ¾ to 1 cup chopped pecans

In a large bowl, cream butter and slowly add cocoa, followed by each additional ingredient in the order listed.  Pour mixture into a lightly greased brownie pan.  Mixture will be thick, but spread out evenly.  Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 10 minutes (may need less or more time depending on your oven, where you live, what you’re wearing.  (This is the tricky part, because you want the brownies almost done, and it seems a different amount of time each time I bake these brownies) Quickly place about ½ to ¾ bag of miniature marshmallows on top of the brownies and place back in the oven.  Let the marshmallows puff up but NOT brown.  Remove from oven, then carefully spread the marshmallows over the brownies.    Set aside to cool.

ICING:

            1 stick butter, room temperature

            3 TBS cocoa

            1 box confectioners sugar

            1 tsp. vanilla

            4-6 TBS buttermilk (maybe a little more or less)

In a bowl, cream butter and then slowly add cocoa followed by the sugar and vanilla.  Add enough buttermilk (approximately 5 TBS) to make icing creamy, but not runny.  Cover COOLED brownies with frosting and place in fridge awhile to set.  Then cut brownies into squares to serve

TROUBLE SHOOTING:  If your brownie is too sticky or soft you may not have baked it long enough.  If you have trouble spreading the marshmallows….GET OVER IT!  It’s messy no matter what!  However, I’ve found that the back of a wet spoon helps (wash off the marshmallow a few times as you are spreading it).  Lastly, if your icing never “sets” or is just too soft, try using a little less buttermilk.  I also store mine in the fridge which helps keep them firm.

A PERSONAL NOTE FROM AMY:  This recipe was found by my grandmother years ago and was not handed down in “written” form, which explains the variations.  I got it from my aunt who learned how to make them from Grandmother, and then wrote the recipe down for me.  I’m the only person my aunt has shared this “secret” recipe with.  She has chosen to keep it a family secret.  I, however, feel that it is a way to honor my grandmother…to share with my friends something that was a wonderful memory and “tradition” for me. 

A note from Judy:  I have found that I need to “sift” the confectioners sugar, through a mesh strainer.  Otherwise, there will be “lumps” of sugar that are difficult to get out.  Makes the icing much smoother.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Hope in the Promise

5 Nov

Guest Post

Rebekah Lyn


Reblogged from Rebekah Lyn’s Kitchen

Tomorrow is Election Day in the United States. I’m weary from the assault of political ads on television, in the mailbox, and via text message. I’m ready for this election season to be over, but I know the outcome will leave many people unhappy. With the media visibly taking sides, inflaming the public, and coming just short of blatantly calling for violence, it’s no wonder we are divided as a nation.

While many fear what lies ahead, I rest in the confidence that God remains in control. God is on the throne today and He’ll be there tomorrow, no matter what the votes say. God is just, and a day is coming when all those who have mocked and rejected Him will have to account for their sins. I feel deep sadness for those people. I wish I could make them see the error of their ways, but many have hardened hearts that are unreachable.

How we as Christians react following the election results will be a part of our witness to the world. We should not gloat in victory nor react with anger in defeat. We must keep our eyes on Christ, on the throne of heaven, which is where our future lies.

The day we are waiting for isn’t an Election Day. There are no amount of votes that can stop Christ from returning to establish His kingdom on earth. “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:3-4)

That is the promise awaiting us. There are no campaign promises that can overshadow this one! If you haven’t voted yet, be sure to exercise this precious right. Go prayerful to the ballot box and make your selection. Be prepared for any outcome but resting in the truth that God is always in control and the promise of a kingdom without pain awaiting us in the future.

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Our God of Deliverance

4 Nov

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Excerpt from Streams in the Desert

Mrs. Charles E. Cowman

Turn you to the stronghold, ye prisoners of hope (Zech. 9:12)

God is waiting to prove Himself to us as a God of deliverance.

Never think for one moment that He means to keep you in prison. That is not His purpose.

Those who so far misunderstood Him pray only for strength, courage, and patience to endure. God does answer those prayers, yet He would rather see His children go a step beyond and pray for deliverance, freedom, and joy, for the great work by which He has caused us to triumph over our sorrows.

As an advocate, He never loses a case. He will never lose our case, for He pleads effectively. 

Photo Credit:Piixabay

Be thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart.

Naught be all else to me, save that thou art;

Thou my best thought by day or by night.

Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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