Josh and I are going through Philippians together and last night covered Philippians 2. Philippians is a generally good book, but what stood out to me last night was verse 15:
"that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world."
The reference to lights of the world reminded me not only of the oft-quoted verse in Matthew 5, but also of Daniel 12:3:
"And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever."
Daniel is talking about the end of time, a prophecy of the resurrection of believers into the eternal presence of God. In His presence, those saints will reflect the radiance of His glory. Paul, on the other hand, is talking about the here and now. In the midst of corruption and perversity, those saints who are blameless and innocent shine as lights.
A taste of heaven on earth? I think so. The refreshment of a saint living purely despite the surroundings can only be explained by the eternality dwelling within them. The light of the world is not simply a "testimony" to unbelievers. It is a glimpse of the transcendent, a taste of the divine. It is the immortal, God-fulfilled soul peeking out behind a mortal mask.
We often think of being the light of the world as being a draw to unbelievers, something that pulls them in. We fail to recognize that just as often, to the degenerate human untouched by the Holy Spirit, the reflection of God's glory is repulsive. But like Ezekiel, we must continue shining in the midst of a corrupt and perverse generation, not based on the results or the number of souls we can draw in, but because in so doing we will be offering the sacrifice of our faith to the Eternal God.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Peanut Butter Maple Bars
A couple nights ago I was experimenting with a recipe for no-bake oatmeal cookies. The problem: I didn't have all of the ingredients, and not enough of the ingredients I did have. So I experimented instead!
I brought 2 cups of sugar, a stick of butter, and 1/2 cup of milk to a light boil until it was smooth and creamy. I then removed the pan from the heat and added a dash of vanilla, a glob of peanut butter (probably around 3/4th of a cup), and several packs of instant oatmeal. I then drizzled chocolate syrup over the mess and stirred it all together.
The result was a goop that looked like oatmeal. The cookies that I was semi-imitating were supposed to plop down on foil and then cool into cookies. This wasn't gonna happen with these pups. So I poured them into a baking dish and chilled them over night.
I must say, I was pretty happy with the final product. It's basically peanut butter fudge with the added oatmeal texture. I was so pleased with it that I made another batch to take to a party. I'm inspired to try making real fudge someday.... but with how rich this stuff is, it's gonna take us a while to get through our current batch.
It's been a good week in our little apartment. I revised a spinach quiche recipe I found online for our Labor Day weekend breakfast (the joy of cooking for two -- it lasts much longer!), and was surprised how well it turned out. All I did was lessen the number of ingredients and substituted some ingredients for their more expensive counterparts. Simplification. :)
This morning Josh and I took a walk to drop an envelope in the mailbox and grab a treat. We passed a yard sale on our way and I noticed a desk. We've been looking for a desk. So we decided that on the way back, we would ask how much and if it was less than $40, we would get the car and take it.
$15. That sold us right there. It's sturdy and well-built (as we were about to find out, too well-built), and in fairly good condition. There are decorations on it (i.e., crayon scribbles), but that matches our table perfectly and so goes with the general theme. ;)
We walked back, got the car, drove back, and loaded her up.
Or at least...we tried. Too deep to fit in the trunk and too wide to fit in the back seat. So I drove back, grabbed our toolset, and we disassembled the desk.
Or at least...we tried. The screws attaching the drawer section to the desktop were stripped.
Enter Jeremiah. Faithful carpool buddy came driving to the rescue in his white Subaru. He helped us load it up and then get it into our apartment. We don't have a chair for it yet (that's our next search -- more chairs so we can host more than two people!), but for now we've got Josh's exercise ball.
I finally felt like I was fully moved in as I unpacked. Office supplies are my favorite. Binders, notebooks, sticky notes, freshly sharpened pencils...they're a must. It was great to say hello to my old friends as I released them from the purple bin that was their prison!
I also found a few of my favorite memorized pieces. If, by Rudyard Kipling, The Four Quartets, by T.S. Eliot, and O Captain My Captain now grace my walls. *happy sigh*
It has been amazing how many ways God has provided for us. I know He will always provide our necessities, like food and clothing. But He has answered our prayers far above and beyond our needs.
Now all we need is a buddy with a truck who can help us move a sleeper couch that someone offered to us. :) Then we can have someone spend the night!
I brought 2 cups of sugar, a stick of butter, and 1/2 cup of milk to a light boil until it was smooth and creamy. I then removed the pan from the heat and added a dash of vanilla, a glob of peanut butter (probably around 3/4th of a cup), and several packs of instant oatmeal. I then drizzled chocolate syrup over the mess and stirred it all together.
The result was a goop that looked like oatmeal. The cookies that I was semi-imitating were supposed to plop down on foil and then cool into cookies. This wasn't gonna happen with these pups. So I poured them into a baking dish and chilled them over night.
I must say, I was pretty happy with the final product. It's basically peanut butter fudge with the added oatmeal texture. I was so pleased with it that I made another batch to take to a party. I'm inspired to try making real fudge someday.... but with how rich this stuff is, it's gonna take us a while to get through our current batch.
It's been a good week in our little apartment. I revised a spinach quiche recipe I found online for our Labor Day weekend breakfast (the joy of cooking for two -- it lasts much longer!), and was surprised how well it turned out. All I did was lessen the number of ingredients and substituted some ingredients for their more expensive counterparts. Simplification. :)
This morning Josh and I took a walk to drop an envelope in the mailbox and grab a treat. We passed a yard sale on our way and I noticed a desk. We've been looking for a desk. So we decided that on the way back, we would ask how much and if it was less than $40, we would get the car and take it.
$15. That sold us right there. It's sturdy and well-built (as we were about to find out, too well-built), and in fairly good condition. There are decorations on it (i.e., crayon scribbles), but that matches our table perfectly and so goes with the general theme. ;)
We walked back, got the car, drove back, and loaded her up.
Or at least...we tried. Too deep to fit in the trunk and too wide to fit in the back seat. So I drove back, grabbed our toolset, and we disassembled the desk.
Or at least...we tried. The screws attaching the drawer section to the desktop were stripped.
Enter Jeremiah. Faithful carpool buddy came driving to the rescue in his white Subaru. He helped us load it up and then get it into our apartment. We don't have a chair for it yet (that's our next search -- more chairs so we can host more than two people!), but for now we've got Josh's exercise ball.
I finally felt like I was fully moved in as I unpacked. Office supplies are my favorite. Binders, notebooks, sticky notes, freshly sharpened pencils...they're a must. It was great to say hello to my old friends as I released them from the purple bin that was their prison!
I also found a few of my favorite memorized pieces. If, by Rudyard Kipling, The Four Quartets, by T.S. Eliot, and O Captain My Captain now grace my walls. *happy sigh*
It has been amazing how many ways God has provided for us. I know He will always provide our necessities, like food and clothing. But He has answered our prayers far above and beyond our needs.
Now all we need is a buddy with a truck who can help us move a sleeper couch that someone offered to us. :) Then we can have someone spend the night!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
On the Prophet of this Age, Part II
I Corinthians Chapter 2 makes it clear that wisdom is directly from the Spirit of God, who makes clear to us the thoughts of God. How amazing! Read that again: the wisdom only accessible to believers is from the Spirit of God, revealing to us the innermost thoughts of God. Incredible. I just can't get over that.
God is love, so the wisdom that comes from Him can be characterized by nothing other than love. If it lacks love, then it may be knowledge, intellectualism, intelligence, perception, or any number of things -- but not wisdom.
There is a guy I know who has a brilliant mind. Most of his observations about American Christianity are dead on. But he expresses them in such a cynical, scornful way that most people are seriously offended.
Offense is not always a bad thing; sometimes it is necessary (ever met a person glad to hear about their sins?). But the offense here is not in his message-- it is in his words, his bitterness.
He was once railing on about an issue (which I agreed with him on), when someone told him that cynicism was just as bad. The response? People called Jeremiah a cynic, too.
Hold it right there. If you're going to compare yourself to a prophet of God, then your life had better emulate that prophet. Jeremiah suffered deeply because of his position. He was beaten, threatened, slandered. He was not allowed a wife or children. And he grieved his heart out over the fate of his country. He pled with God for mercy and grace on their behalf. He pled with his people to change their ways for their own sake. He genuinely suffered in the midst of his "cynicism" because of his love for the people.
Jeremiah translated his connection with God into harsh words of truth. The truth hurts sometimes, but it has to be said. However, there's a HUGE difference between speaking the truth out of scorn and speaking the truth because your heart is burning within you.
Let the prophet of this age note: if the truth that you have recognized is not accompanied by love on your part, then you do not have wisdom. Keep your mouth quiet, because you are no prophet of God. The true prophet of God -- and the only one who should be speaking on His behalf -- is the one who has the love of God in his soul and the wisdom of God in his heart.
God is love, so the wisdom that comes from Him can be characterized by nothing other than love. If it lacks love, then it may be knowledge, intellectualism, intelligence, perception, or any number of things -- but not wisdom.
There is a guy I know who has a brilliant mind. Most of his observations about American Christianity are dead on. But he expresses them in such a cynical, scornful way that most people are seriously offended.
Offense is not always a bad thing; sometimes it is necessary (ever met a person glad to hear about their sins?). But the offense here is not in his message-- it is in his words, his bitterness.
He was once railing on about an issue (which I agreed with him on), when someone told him that cynicism was just as bad. The response? People called Jeremiah a cynic, too.
Hold it right there. If you're going to compare yourself to a prophet of God, then your life had better emulate that prophet. Jeremiah suffered deeply because of his position. He was beaten, threatened, slandered. He was not allowed a wife or children. And he grieved his heart out over the fate of his country. He pled with God for mercy and grace on their behalf. He pled with his people to change their ways for their own sake. He genuinely suffered in the midst of his "cynicism" because of his love for the people.
Jeremiah translated his connection with God into harsh words of truth. The truth hurts sometimes, but it has to be said. However, there's a HUGE difference between speaking the truth out of scorn and speaking the truth because your heart is burning within you.
Let the prophet of this age note: if the truth that you have recognized is not accompanied by love on your part, then you do not have wisdom. Keep your mouth quiet, because you are no prophet of God. The true prophet of God -- and the only one who should be speaking on His behalf -- is the one who has the love of God in his soul and the wisdom of God in his heart.
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