Cruising in the Woods

     Our daughter and her boys are here for a few days.  We love it when they are able to come for a visit.  Not only do we enjoy spending time with them, but it seems we get to see our other kids and grandkids more often when they're here.  It's always great to have a reason to bring the whole family together!
     I have gotten lots of exercise following the boys as they cruise on the driveway, and in the yard, and through the woods, and over the bridge while riding the "over-the-road trike" and driving the "F150."  What a great excuse to get outside and enjoy the beauty of nature!

Fortunately, they each have a cruising mode preference, so there haven't been too many arguments about who rides what.

      Aren't grandchildren a blessing?  They help us slow down and see the world through children's eyes at an age when we can appreciate it!  I always seemed to be too busy to 'let things go' when I was younger, but I love having a reason to do that now!

Additional horses

       A couple of weeks ago Country Guy and our oldest son went to Nebraska to pick up two additional horses from a feedlot out there.  I have been trying to get a good picture of them, but they have been somewhat camera shy.  Also, it has been raining so much that I just haven't found a good time.

      Here's the best I could do.  Their names are Mango and Dan.

  
     The horses in the picture to the right are our original horses.  Their names from left to right are, Jeremiah, Smoke, JoBee, who is now 33 years old, and Nick.

    We've learned a little about horses' pecking order from watching them relate to one another.  Country Guy tried to put the new ones in with the other four, but Smoke--the gray mare--was determined she would no longer be at the bottom of the pecking order.  We were told that at the feed lot, Dan, the buckskin, was the dominant horse, but here he just ignores them all and lets Jeremiah and Nick, the two who have been dominate here, continue.   Smoke picked on, and aggravated the new ones till they had to be separated.  We have decided that seniority plays an important part in the pecking order.  The longer they have been here, the more seniority they have until they get too old--like JoBee--and then they move to the bottom.  Sounds a little like humans, doesn't it?

Do I Spend More Time Reading the Bad News Than the Good News?

       This is such a good reminder, so I am posting it to help me remember.  I spend entirely too much time hearing the news of the world, discussing the news of the world and being concerned about what is happening--and not nearly enough time reading the "Good News" in God's Word.  My goal is to hear, and to meditate on the Good News, not the bad.

Read The Good News Today?  from Joseph Prince's Devotional Today Matthew 6:33 33… seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.         God doesn’t want you grabbing the newspaper first thing in the morning and reading all the bad news in the world. He knows that if you do that, your heart will be full of cares, anxieties and even fears.       This happened to a mother who read in the newspaper that children from China studying in our local schools were becoming top students. She wrote to the press, voicing her concerns about the stiff competition her child would face from these students, even for the top jobs in Singapore in the future.        When you are reading the newspapers, magazines, medical journals, economic reports, watching movies or surfing the Internet all the time, then you are getting your “nourishment” from these sources instead of God’s Word. Now, I am not against these things. But if you constantly feed only on earthly things which cannot satisfy, you will fill your heart and mind with cares and worries.        Jesus doesn’t want you to end up worrying about your life — what you will eat, drink or wear — as these are the things that the Gentiles (people of the world) seek. He says that your heavenly Father knows very well that you need these things. (Matthew 6:31–32)        That is why He promises you that if you would seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, all these things that the world seeks after will be added to you. It will not just be given but added, which means greater in quantity and quality!        If you are broke, don’t pursue money. Pursue God your prosperity. If you are faced with lack, don’t pursue material goods. Pursue God your provider. If you are sick, don’t pursue the “cure”. Pursue God your healer.       My friend, don’t grab the newspaper or call your friend first thing in the morning to talk about the latest bad news. Instead, grab your Bible and read all the good news God has for you for the day. And as you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all the things that the world is running after will be added to you!

What is happening with the weather?

    The sun is shining this morning after 3 days of rain.  Please, Lord, let it continue to shine until the farmers have their crops planted.
    The weather this year has been extreme in every part of the world, hasn't it?  Tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, droughts and fires!  The swings in temperature in our area have been amazing!  This morning it is 42 degrees, with 36 degrees forecast for tonight.  Wednesday or Thursday of last week it was nearly 90!
     It seems that nature is conspiring to bring us all to the realization that only God can help us.  We cannot help ourselves when faced with such overwhelming power.  Sometimes it seems as if God is mocking the global warming enthusiasts, who try to convince themselves they can make a difference in the weather patterns of the world by drinking organic tea.
     The temperature today seems more like we are in global cooling, but whatever the weather pattern, it seems to me there is a much greater Power at work who set laws and principles in motion long before we were on the earth, and the sooner we acknowledge Him the better off we will be.

Amazing! Kids playing guitar

Have you seen this video?  These kids are amazing!

Another Favorite Plant

  The blogging website has been down so I have been unable to post until now.  They seemed to be doing some sort of maintenance.

I thought you might enjoy seeing how beautiful the rhododendrons are right now.    I always think the pink one is my favorite until I see the red one, and then I can't decide.  The red one really brightens up the front of the house

       They seem to love growing near the foundation.  I tried planting them a couple of other places, but those pesky deer ate most of the leaves every winter.  So far they haven't bothered the ones planted near the house.
      Speaking of pesky animals, yesterday I noticed a wren coming out of our bluebird house which I knew had a nest of baby chickadees in it.  I shooed it away, opened the door to the birdhouse and found 5 dead babies.  I looked on the internet and discovered that wrens regularly kill nestlings, or destroy the eggs, and take over the nesting boxes of bluebirds and chickadees.  I already knew they tried to establish their nests in bluebird houses because I have had an ongoing war the past couple of years with wrens, who insist on nesting in the bluebird house even though I have provided them with their own houses.  But I didn't know they would kill the babies of birds who were already using the nests.
     Two or three years ago we had a pair of bluebirds nesting in the house, and so loved watching them!   But now every time they come near, the wrens chase them away.  I do not like wrens!
  

Awake America

     Awake, America.  That is the message Pastor Moses (not his real name) came to tell us last night at a meeting at our church.  We don't usually have a church meeting on Tuesday night so a special meeting was arranged because he was passing through the area and our pastor thought we needed to hear first hand how Christians were treated in Pakistan.
     Pastor Moses said he had come to America, fleeing Pakistan, because he found out the Taliban were trying to kill him and had put a bounty on his life.  He was not using his real name because his life would be in even more danger if someone put his name on the internet, such as on Facebook.  He showed photos of his friend Bhatti's funeral.  Bhatti was the only Christian member of Pakistan's federal cabinet.  He was assassinated March 2.  See article here.
    Because Pastor Moses loves Jesus and feels called to help the Christians in Pakistan, he will be returning soon.  He asked for our prayers for protection.  He has a wife and three little children, but said he is ready to die for Jesus if it must be.
     He said that America and the West are asleep to what is happening all over the world.  Islamic extremists put to death 200,000 Christians every year, and yet we are allowing them to make inroads into our country and our lives.  He said he has studied the Koran, and then he proceeded to quote several verses that say Muslims are to persecute and kill Christians and Jews, the infidels.   Yet we continue to believe the publicity that Islam is peace loving and to invite them into our communities to build mosques and attempt to change our laws to implement sharia.
    He said he was grateful that Usama Bin Ladin had been killed, but that there are thousands of Bin Ladins in Islamic countries.
    His message was that we must wake up before it is too late.  We must pray for our brothers and sisters who are being persecuted and killed.  We must teach the Bible to our children so that they have a foundation to stand on when persecution comes to us.  He pointed out that Muslims pray 5 time a day.  Their children study the Koran from the time they can read.  This indoctrinates them into being ready and willing to live and die for their religion.  We, too, must be prepared.
     It was a very sobering meeting.  He mentioned the freedom he felt in the U.S.  I found myself feeling embarrassed for the way we Americans take freedom for granted and how we abuse it.  I left the meeting thinking how trivial so much of our lives have become because of the freedoms we enjoy.  I found myself praying that we will wake up before it is too late.

Elevator Update

      I worked outside all day today, and Country Guy didn't come home for lunch, so I didn't find out what was happening at the elevator till now.
     The guys got one leg running so they were able to finish loading the train.  It looks like we can continue moving grain even though the process is now slowed down substantially.  We are grateful.
     A millwright is coming tomorrow to estimate how much it will cost and when they could begin to replace the damaged leg.  The insurance adjustor came this afternoon and will be communicating his estimate of the damages to his company.
     I thought you might be eager to hear how things are going--I was.  And so I will continue to post any updates that seem to be news worthy when I receive them.

It Is A Miracle!

       Fire trucks are what I saw as I drove into the grain elevator today.  Country Guy called me to say he was on the way there because one of our sons had just called him to say there had been an explosion in the elevator leg.

      The guys had been loading a train this morning.  My nephew and another employee were in the pit room (in above photo) when they both heard a noise, and turned just as the lid to the pit blew off and hit the ceiling.  Then fire came in the back doorway.  Nothing touched them.  The rest of the crew had been walking back and forth past this spot all morning as they were loading the train and all of them were safe, too!

   

Firemen poured water into the pit to extinguish any grain that was on fire.  

  

They determined the fire started with a spark probably from a motor at the top of the elevator leg, which then exploded through the leg to the basement.  Notice the right side of the leg in the above and below photos.  The one on the right used to look like the one on the left.  Can you imagine what power went through that--and the damage and injury that could have been done if it had exploded into pieces!!

            There are many at the elevator as I write this, trying to evaluate the damage.  They must determine how to replace the leg, and also to figure out how to finish loading the train.  It is quite a mess!  But what a miracle!!  No one was hurt!  Thank you, Jesus, for protecting them!

Baked Beans

    Since we're having a cook-out tomorrow I thought I would make the baked beans according the recipe I posted several weeks ago.  It was one of those I had to measure how I do things to be able to write it into a recipe, so I wanted to be sure it tasted right.  Well, good thing I did, because I discovered I left out the 1 1/2 T. brown sugar per can ingredient.  I have now corrected it and reposted the recipe, but thought I might mention the omission on the chance that someone may have made the beans, or printed off the recipe and not been happy with the results.
    I also discovered this week I had left out 2 c. flour from the Coconut Crunch cookie recipe.  I reposted it under the name Almond Joy Cookies because I think that name is a better description of how they taste.
    Sorry.  :o(
    I would love to hear your comments, or suggestions (or mistakes you've found) when you try the recipes, as I'm sure would other readers.

Chickens

       Country guy has lost several chickens this spring to a chicken hawk, and possibly, also to a fox, although we have not seen it happen--the only evidence are the feathers that have remained.  I guess that is the hazard of freedom.  The chickens roam wherever they choose during the day, but sometimes they get a little too far from the safety of the chicken coop.  

      It seemed to be time to replenish our supply, so last night we drove to Rural King and picked out 20 baby chicks from the various kinds they were selling.  (Country guy could tell you what kind they are, but I forget every time he tells me.)        

     I believe he also had another motive than just to replace some of the chickens we've lost.  I think he also wanted them in anticipation of grandchildren's visits.   We grandparents are always looking for ways to please our grandchildren with little surprises, aren't we?  I think that's the way God is, too.  He loves giving us gifts and surprises because He loves us so much.  He loves to see our delight in the things He plans for us!

        Here are a few of our other chickens, doing what chickens do--looking for bugs and worms.  Feeding them every day and shutting them up every night seems like a lot of bother to me, but I'm glad Country Guy is willing, because I do love the nice brown eggs he brings in every day.  Our Nebraska grandchildren, who will be coming for a visit soon are anticipating feeding the chickens and "picking" (their word for "gathering") eggs with Granddad.  I'm sure they will be surprised and excited to see the new additions.

John Kilpatrick's Dream

     I first read this dream a couple of years ago and have read it a few times since.  After the tornadoes in Alabama and the rest of the south, and in light of the flooding of the Mississippi river, I re-read it yesterday. It seems to have been a prophetic dream since "wind" and "water" are very prevalent in the news today.  I believe we need to be praying about the "earthquake" part of the dream--that it will not happen, if possible, or at least that lives and property will be protected and damage minimized.  I would also recommend making sure you have earthquake insurance.  You might even want to review my post on 2-21-11, Preparing for Disaster, Natural or Otherwise.  Obviously, having extra supplies would not have helped those directly affected by the tornadoes or floods, but it would have enabled their neighbors to be able to help them now.

         Pastor Kilpatrick wants to share with his partners and friends the following vision and dream he had in April and May 2008. He has never posted a vision or dream on the internet, but after talking with some close friends, intercessors, as well as those in prophetic ministry he has agreed to do so. His intentions are not to alarm the Church or the public, but to forewarn us to pray concerning what he has seen. At this time, we do not have the full revelation or meaning of this vision and dream, but know that the Lord is trying to warn us and prepare us for the days ahead. Please help us pray to the Lord concerning this matter.

         Sunday, April 27, 2008 - Vision

    As I was approaching the Daphne Civic Center for Sunday morning service at Church of His Presence, I had a vision which lasted for about two or three seconds. In this vision, I saw the ground buckling before me. It was so real that I actually moved aside to avoid what I was seeing. I knew immediately that it was an earthquake, and the thought crossed my mind that the damages of this earthquake could have the potential to exceed those of Hurricane Katrina of 2005. Please understand that I am not saying that the Lord told me this. It merely crossed my mind.

        Tuesday, May 20, 2008 - Dream

        I awoke trembling and shaking at 5:00 in the morning after having a startling dream. This was one of the three most profound dreams that I have ever had during the ministry the LORD has called me to. I feel that this dream is an addendum to the vision I had on April 27, 2008.

In this dream I saw the words "wind and water." I only saw the words but did not actually see any wind or water damage. I then found myself overlooking a river which instantly became so wide that I could no longer see either of its banks.

The dream then shifted, and I was with one of my parishioners running through what appeared to be an old abandoned school house. This empty building began to shake. The shaking was so violent and severe that it was like the bucking of a wild horse tossing us around. My teeth were clapping so hard from the impact that I tried to clench them to prevent this from happening.

In this dream I knew I was experiencing a massive earthquake. The sounds were so catastrophic that the thought crossed my mind that the devastation could likely exceed Hurricane Katrina of 2005. I did not see the devastation behind me; I only heard it. In all of my life I have never heard such catastrophic sounds. These were the scariest sounds I have ever heard.

The dream then shifted once more and concluded with two names on what appeared to be an old Spanish map. One name read Indianola and the otherEuropa. When I awoke, I was shaking as if I had chills and a fever. I could not stop trembling. All through the day I felt as if I had just had the dream 10 minutes ago.

This dream so shook me that my wife and I immediately went to the internet to do some research. I also contacted some close friends in the ministry and reliable intercessors concerning this dream. What we found was startling. There are towns called Indianola, IL; Europa, MO; and Indianola, MS. These towns run in a line from North to South with Europa, MO being near the middle of them. The Mississippi River runs between them with Europa, MO being by the epicenter of the New Madrid fault.

After seeing this, I believe the dream could be concerning a devastating earthquake on the New Madrid fault. Many reputable friends in ministry have felt that this dream was not to be interpreted as a spiritual dream because they felt that it has literal implications. Even now the intensity of this dream is the same.

I do not want to come across as an alarmist concerning what I saw. I also don't want to put fear in the public or the Body of Christ. However, I cannot help but feel that God gave me this as warning to prepare us for the days ahead and to pray concerning this matter.

Please know that I did not see any timeframe as to when this may happen. Please pray with me concerning this vision and dream.

If you have any comments, you can send them towatch@churchofhispresence.org.

John Kilpatrick
Church of His Presence

       John Kilpatrick pastored Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, FL for 22 years. During his tenure there, he had the privilege of pastoring the Brownsville Revival which began on Father's Day of 1995. Currently, he is the founder and senior pastor of Church of His Presence in Daphne, AL and president of John Kilpatrick Ministries. In addition to pastoring, he continues to preach across the nation and fulfill his apostolic call to mentor and pastor other ministers.

Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

    As I was looking through my recipes to post to the Recipes page, I found the recipe for homemade ice cream that I used to make all the time when the kids were growing up.  It came from my Mom who got it from her brother, Harold.  Although it has raw eggs in it, I did not worry about salmonella--that's something we hadn't even heard about when I was a kid.   Now with so much publicity about it, I think twice about making ice cream with raw eggs for company because I don't want to be responsible for making little kids sick--even though I have not heard of one instance of someone getting sick from eating homemade ice cream, except when they ate too much because it was so good!  :o)  The media has taken a lot of fun out of eating, haven't they?
    Anyway, I have found a couple of other recipes that we like, too, which either don't use eggs, or the mixture is cooked before it is frozen.  So besides adding them here for reference, I posted them all on the Recipes page under Desserts.
    The main reason I'm writing this, though, is to recommend the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker.  Our daughter gave us one for Christmas a couple of years ago and we love it!  Since it only makes 6 servings, she also gave us an additional Freezer Bowl so we can make 12 servings per day.   It works with no ice or salt, but by freezing the bowl for 20 hours--hence the reason for 2 freezer bowls if you want to serve more than 6 people at a time.
       I have modified the basic ice cream recipe from their recipe booklet and use it most of the time because it only takes cream, or half & half, milk, sugar, and vanilla--all ingredients I have on hand most of the time.  (I have also reduced Uncle Harold's recipe to fit the machine, too, when we get nostalgic.)  We like homemade ice cream so much better than that bought in the store and it only takes about 20 minutes to freeze, so I just pull out my machine and make it whenever I want--or need--ice cream.  This little machine is so convenient to have on hand!
      Here is a link to it on Amazon, if you're interested in more info:  Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

Grandma’s Ice Cream

   For 6 quart freezer

8 eggs

3 c. sugar

3/8 t. salt

1 ½ T. vanilla

3 c. whipping cream

2 qts. milk

     Cream eggs, sugar, and add remaining ingredients, mixing thoroughly.

   

    For 4 quart freezer:

5 eggs

2 c. sugar

¼ t. salt

1 T. vanilla

2 c. cream

1 1/3 quarts milk

   For Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

2 eggs

¾ c. sugar

1/8 t. salt

1 c. whipping cream, or Half & Half

2 c. milk

½ T. vanilla

Cuisinart Ice Cream

2 ½ c. chilled milk*

¾ c. granulated sugar

1 c. heavy cream*

½ T. vanilla extract, or to taste
dash of salt

     Mix together and add to ice cream maker to freeze.

* I sometimes use 2 c. half & half and 1+ c. milk

Vanilla Gelato

12 egg yolks

3 c. sugar

8 c. whole milk

1 qt half & half

2-3 T. pure vanilla extract

1/8 t. salt

   Combine egg yolks and sugar in large mixing bowl.  Beat at med-high speed till very thick and pale yellow.

    In large saucepan heat milk to simmer.  Add half of milok to egg yolk mixture, whisk till blended.  Stir in remaining milk.  Cook over low heat stirring constantly till mixture coats back of spoon.

    Remove from heat; stir in cream.  Pass mixture through a fine strainer into a large bowl set over and ice bath to chill.  Stir in vanilla.

    Freeze in an ice cream maker.

Gelato For Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

3 egg yolks

¾ c. sugar

2 c. whole milk

1 c. half and half

½-1 T. pure vanilla extract

dash of salt

    Prepare according to above instructions.

Watchmen/Gatekeepers, cont.

    The idea of Jesus waiting for the gatekeeper to open the gate for Him is still rolling around in my mind today.  I guess you could say, I am meditating on it.  I once heard a definition for meditation as to do to the Word what a cow does to her cud.  For those of you city folk--here is a technical explanation of how a cow chews her cud.  As you read it I'm sure you can see the similarities to meditating on the Word of God.

       "Chewing a cud is a process by which some animals, called ruminants (camels, goats, sheep, deer, and cattle), thoroughly digest their food.  The cow, for example, has a stomach organized into sections to take care of hard-to-digest food.  When the cow first takes in food, it chews it just enough to moisten it.  Once swallowed, the food goes to the stomach’s first section, where it is mixed with chemicals and softened.  This softened food is called the cud, small balls of food.  Next, the stomach’s muscles send the cud back up to the cow’s mouth, where it is re-chewed and swallowed again, this time going to another section of the stomach, where moisture is squeezed out of the cud.  Finally, the food enters the last section of the stomach, the true stomach, where digestive juices mix with the food and start it on its way to the intestine to be completely digested."    (http://www.bigsiteofamazingfacts.com/why-does-a-cow-chew-its-cud)        

      Today I was thinking that another interpretation of John 10:3 is that since we are called watchmen (gatekeepers) and Jesus said He is the gate, not only can we help to open the gate for Him to come in to others' lives, but that on a personal level we must open the gate of our own life, our mind, our will to Him.  He waits for us to do that before He comes in.  He gives us the choice, so it is up to us to make the decision to open the gate whenever we see Him ready to come in.  This obviously applies to our decision to become a Christian, but I think it also has to do with every situation in which we find ourselves.  Will we invite Jesus in to be the Lord of our lives, or just to help us get to Heaven? 

      I guess you can tell I am enjoying 'ruminating' on John 10:3.

Watchmen/Gatekeepers

       Today I was reading John, chapter 10.  In v. 1-4 He says, “¹Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice." (NIV)
     Jesus continues through verse 18 to explain this parable by saying He is the door, and He is the shepherd.  How can He be both the gate and the shepherd?  This is difficult for me to understand unless each is taken individually as a picture of who Jesus is.
     As I was reading this passage this morning, though, I was struck by v. 3.  For some reason I had never read that Jesus waits for the gatekeeper to open the door for Him to go into the sheep, so I read it in several translations.  Some of them say "watchman", or sometimes "doorkeeper," instead of "gatekeeper."  I looked up the meaning of the Greek and Hebrew words for watchman, and discovered they mean: to hedge about, guard, protect, attend to, keep, observe, preserve, save, to await, to keep watch, to guard, to peer into the distance.
     Doesn't the Bible say that we are to be watchmen?  This passage seems to indicate that Jesus, as the shepherd, has given us the privilege of working with Him to watch over and guard the sheep by tending the gate.  
     But I was also thinking that since Jesus is also the gate, then the Holy Spirit is the gatekeeper.  As the Holy Spirit works in hearts to prepare them, He opens the way for Jesus to come in. 
     The Bible is rich in revelation, isn't it?  Oh, that my eyes would be opened to see!  How I want to go deeper and understand more!  I remember Agnes Sanford comparing the Bible to an onion.  She said there are many layers--as one is peeled off, another is revealed.  I love that, don't you? 
     Please help me, Lord, to peel off the layers.