~ There's JOY in the Kitchen
~
~When we realize that ~
There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand
high in the world. It is to
stoop down and lift mankind a little higher.
~ Henry Van Dyke ~
THIS WEEK:
* The Price: During this week, we all need to be
reminded of the price that
was paid for us. This story will bring a tear to
your eye as it's truth hits
home.
* RECIPES - BIBLE STUDY - QUESTIONS - NUGGETS -
THOUGHTS = All from you!
ENJOY!
The Price
(SUBMITTED BY HISsong777, and written by
LambOfGod)
In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I
found myself in a room. There
were no distinguishing features in this room save
the one wall covered with
small index card files. They were like the ones
in libraries that list titles
by author or subject in alphabetical order. But
thesefiles, which stretched
from floor to ceiling and seemingly endlessly in
either direction, had very
different headings. As I drew near the wall of
files, the first to catch my
attention was one that read "Girls I Have
Liked". I opened it and began
flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it,
shocked to realize that I
recognized the names written on each one.
And then without being told, I knew exactly where
I was. This lifeless room
with its small files was a crude catalog system
for my life. Here were written
the actions of my every moment, big and small, in
a detail my memory couldn't
match.
A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with
horror, stirred within me as I
began randomly opening files and exploring their
content. Some brought joy and
sweet memories; others a sense of shame and
regret so intense that I would
look over my shoulder to see if anyone was
watching.
A file named "Friends" was next to one
marked "Friends I Have Betrayed".
The titles ranged from the mundane to the
outright weird. "Books I Have Read",
"Lies I Have Told", "Comfort I
Have Given", "Jokes I Have Laughed
At". Some
were almost hilarious in their exactness:
"Things I've Yelled at My Brothers."
Others I couldn't laugh at: "Things I Have
Done in My Anger", "Things I Have
Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents". I
never ceased to be surprised by the
contents. Often there were many more cards than I
expected. Sometimes fewer
than I hoped.
I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life
I had lived. Could it be
possible that I had the time in my 20 years to
write each of these thousands
or even millions of cards? But each card
confirmed this truth. Each was
written in my own handwriting. Each signed with
my signature.
When I pulled out the file marked "Songs I
Have Listened To", I realized the
files grew to contain their contents. The cards
were packed tightly, and yet
after two or three yards, I hadn't found the end
of the file. I shut it,
shamed, not so much by the quality of music, but
more by the vast amount of
time I knew that file represented.
When I came to a file marked "Lustful
Thoughts", I felt a chill run through my
body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not
willing to test its size, and
drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed
content. I felt sick to think
that such a moment had been recorded.
An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought
dominated my mind: "No one must
ever see these cards! No one must ever see this
room! I have to destroy them!"
In an insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its
size didn't matter now. I had
to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it
at one end and began
pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a
single card. I became
desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it
as strong as steel when I
tried to tear it.
Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the
file to its slot. Leaning my
forehead against the wall, I let out a long,
self-pitying sigh. And then I saw
it. The title --- "People I Have Shared the
Gospel With". The handle was
brighter than those around it, newer, almost
unused. I pulled on its handle
and a small box not more than three inches long
fell into my hands. I could
count the cards it contained on one hand.
And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so
deep that the hurt started
in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my
knees and cried. I cried out
of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all.
The rows of file shelves
swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever,
ever know of this room. I
must lock it up and hide the key.
But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him.
No, please not Him. Not here.
Oh, anyone but Jesus. I watched helplessly as He
began to open the files and
read the cards. I couldn't bear to watch His
response. And in the moments I
could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a
sorrow deeper than my own. He
seemed to intuitively go to the worst boxes. Why
did He have to read every
one?
Finally He turned and looked at me from across
the room. He looked at me with
pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn't
anger me. I dropped my head,
covered my face with my hands and began to cry
again. He walked over and put
His arm around me. He could have said so many
things. But He didn't say a
word. He just cried with me.
Then He got up and walked back to the wall of
files. Starting at one end of
the room, He took out a file and, one by one,
began to sign His name over mine
on each card.
"No!" I shouted rushing to Him. All I
could find to say was "No, no," as I
pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn't be
on these cards. But there it
was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive.
The name of Jesus covered
mine.
It was written with His blood.
He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad
smile and began to sign the
cards. I don't think I'll ever understand how He
did it so quickly, but the
next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last
file and walk back to my
side. He placed His hand on my shoulder and said,
"It is finished."
I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There
was no lock on its door.
There were still cards to be written.
***
***
***
***************
***************
***
***
***
***
***
***
The Price has been Paid by Him.
All He asks for is Love
As I grow older,
I pay less attention to what men say.
I just watch what they do.
(Show me your faith without deeds, and I will
show you my faith by what I do.
James 2:18b NIV)
Joy In The Kitchen Chat
Every Tuesday!
Eastern Standard time = 11:00
Central Standard time = 10:00
Mountain Standard time = 9:00
Pacific Standard time = 8:00
To find us, just go to "People's
Connection", click on Private Room and type
in JoyInTheKitchen
If you can't join us on Tuesdays, take heart!
There is an evening chat in the
oven, and we will let you know when it is ready!
OR, if you wish, a log of
each weeks chat will be available to you to read
at your convienience. (Just
write me and ask for a log of Tuesdays chat. )
~ E-mail Correspondence & Buddy
List ~
Please use the heart Mail logo below to request a
Pen Pal or Buddy List.
PRAYER ~ Send any prayer
requests to Mama Brrr. And e-mail her if you
would
like to be a part of this ministry of
intercessors.
~ QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS ~
The question was asked last week about,
"How do you respond to someone who has
left your church in a bad way, when you are
continually "bumping" into them at
other meetings or public places?" Paul said
to not even eat with them (1
Corin. 5:11) "Does that mean that we ignore
them? Pretend that they don't
exist? What about others who fellowship with
them, do we ignore them also?"
We discussed this at the Joy In The Kitchen chat
on Tuesday. Many of us agree
that we need to keep a constant check on our
hearts. Remaining in forgiveness
and graciousness. Being careful not to slam the
door shut on possible
repentance or reconciliation. There is a
difference between putting up with
sin, and drawing boundaries with mercy. The
battle lies in our own hearts.
There is a difference between judging and setting
boundaries. The most
important thing is what is in OUR hearts? Hmmmmm,
sounds like soul searching
stuff to me!
Do you have a question which you would like see
discussed? Just drop me a line
with it - even if you may know the answer -
someone else might be asking it!
NEXT QUESTION: "Do any of you, as pastors,
find that you have been put in a
position of responsibility, but are not allowed
the authority to carry out
what is on your heart? That there is conflict
with boards, or the
congregation? What do you do about that?"
POT LUCK !
Recipes
THIS ONE IS A HEALTHY ONE!
APPLE CRISPIES
A quickie dessert - YUM!
1 1/2 cups flour, barley
1/4 cup rice bran - or oat bran
1 1/4 cups oatmeal , regular, uncooked
1 tbs. arrowroot powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt, sea (sea salt)
---------------
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tbs. molasses, medium - optional
3/4 cup honey
---------------
5 1/2 cups apples, fresh, sliced
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice, fresh
2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, ground
1/2 tsp. nutmeg, ground
DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix together flour, bran, oats, arrowroot,
soda and salt. Mix oil,
molasses and 1/4 cup honey. Stir into flour
mixture.
2. In another bowl, combine apples, lemon juice,
1/2 cup of honey and spices.
Place apple mixture in oiled 9" x 13"
pan.
3. Cover with dough. Bake at 350 degrees for 45
to 50 minutes or until done.
Serves 12
If you have a favorite recipe to share - we would
all love to partake! (hint-hint)
JUST FOR FUN!
A newly appointed young pastor was contacted by a
local funeral director to
hold a graveside committal service at a small
country cemetary in Iowa. There
was to be no funeral, just the committal, because
the deceased had no family
or friends left in Iowa.
The young pastor started early to the cemetary,
but soon lost his way. After
making several wrong turns, he finally arrived a
half-hour late. The hearse
was nowhere in sight, and the workmen were
relaxing under a nearby tree,
eating their lunch.
The pastor went to the open grave and found that
the vault lid was already in
place. He took out his Bible and read some
scripture and prayed. As he
returned to his car, he overheard one of the
workmen say: "Maybe we'd better
tell him he just prayed over the septic
tank." ~ ~ sent in by: (Lisa)
Circle 16 books of the Bible as they appear in
the paragraph below.
Watch out, this could be tricky.
I once made a remark about the hidden books of
the Bible. It was a lulu.
Kept people looking so hard for facts, and for
others it was a revelation.
Some were in a jam. Especially since the names of
the books were not
capitalized. But the truth finally struck home to
numbers of readers. To
others it was a real job. We want it to be a most
fascinating few moments for
you. Yes, there will be some really easy ones to
spot. Others may require
judges to help them. I will quickly admit it
usually takes a minister to find
one of them and there will be loud lamentations
when it is found. A little
lady says she brews a cup of tea, so she can
concentrate better. See how well
you can compete. Relax now, for there really are
sixteen names of the books
of the Bible in this story. ~ ~ sent by Mama Brrr
For your Exploring Pleasure,
click on these hyper links and find
something new to investigate!
NEW! Dove7Mom sent in this site for you and your
family to have fun exploring!
She said be sure to check out the games. She
says, "We LOVE Grapevine, Bible
Baseball & Red Sea."
Just click on this to get there:
GOSHEN:
Global Online Service Helping Evangelize Nations
Be sure to keep these sites at hand as well,
because Glorystorm is always busy adding MORE new
sites all the time!:
glorystorm's
www home
gloryweeks'
Web home
GLORYSTORM URL is
http://members.aol.com/glorystorm/
GLORYWEEKS URL is http://members.aol.com/gloryweeks/
(If you have discovered a web site that you
think others would be interested
in, please let me know, and I will put it in our
newsletter. Just click & drag
the sight from your Favorite Places and drop it
into your letter.)
Laughter You Can Relate Too
Campaigning through his state, the late Sen.
Clyde Hoey of NC stopped at a
church in small town and was greeted by the
minister. "How many members do
you have in your church?" the Senator asked.
"Fifty," the pastor replied. "And
how many active members?" "Fifty."
"Wow, fifty members and fifty active? You
must be a good preacher!" the
senator said. Yes, sir -- fifty members,"
the minister said. "25 active for
me and 25 active against me." William C.S.
Pellowe Laughter in the Steeple
|
