Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

Praise to the Lord,

The Almighty, the King of creation!

O my soul, praise Him,

For He is thy health and salvation!

All ye who hear,

Now to His temple draw near;

Praise Him in glad adoration.

Praise to the Lord,

Who over all things so wondrously reigneth,

Shelters thee under His wings,

Yea, so gently sustaineth!

Hast thou not seen

How all your longings have been

Granted in what He ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord,
Who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;
Surely His goodness
And mercy here daily attend thee.
Ponder anew
What the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord,

O let all that is in me adore Him!

All that hath life and breath,

Come now with praises before Him.

Let the AmenSound from His people again,

Gladly for aye we adore Him.

~Faith~

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
~Hebrews 11:1

"Faith expects from God what is beyond all expectation."

~ Andrew Murray

New England Style Clam Chowder

One of my personal favorite soups is clam chowder, I recently found this recipe which was a little different then ones that I have tried before. It turned out really well, so I thought I would share the recipe. Hope you all enjoy! :)

New England Style Clam Chowder

2 6.5 oz. cans chopped clams
6 slices bacon, minced
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons flour
5 med potatoes, peeled and diced
4 1/2 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
1 1/2 tsp. dill
1 1/2 tsp. parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Boil potatoes until tender. Cook bacon and onion until done, drain most of the grease. Add the butter, clams, oregano, dill and parsley, flour and milk to the drained potatoes, then add the bacon and onion mixture as well. Heat through. Serve hot with oyster crackers.

God Hears and Answers Prayer

"Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee" (Job 22:27).

"But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him" (Psalm 4:3).

"This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles" (Psalm 34:6, 15, 17).

"Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me" (Psalm 50:15).

"O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come" (Psalm 65:2).

"He shall call upon me, and I will answer him" (Psalm 91:15).

"He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them" (Psalm 145:19).

"The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous" (Proverbs 15:29).

"He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee" (Isaiah 30:19).

"Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am" (Isaiah 58:9).

"And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear" (Isaiah 65:24).

"Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you" (Jeremiah 29:12).

"They shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God" (Zechariah 13:9).

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matthew 7:7, 8, 11).

"And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matthew 21:22).

"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you" (John 15:7).

"And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full" (John 16:23, 24).

"And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it" (John 14:13, 14).

"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (James 5:15, 16).

"And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight" (1John 3:22).

"And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death" (1John 5:14-16).

I've been tagged!

Awhile back I was tagged by Stepheny to write six random things about myself:

1. My middle name is Joy. :)

2. I love Chinese food!

3. I collect tea cups, teapots, and books.

4. I have naturally curly hair.

5. Thrift stores are my favorite places to shop. (Hobby Lobby and Michael's are other favorites.)

6. The strangest thing I've ever eaten is rattlesnake and alligator. We found the rattlesnake in our driveway a few weeks ago. The alligator came pre-packaged. lol!

Here are the Rules:

Link the Person that tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write six random things about yourself.
Tag six more people. Let them know you tagged them.

I now tag:

Pearls Gleanings
Ever Only All for Thee
Simply Sanctified
Every Joyful

The Cooks Encyclopedia of Baking

The Cooks Encyclopedia of Baking by Carole Clements is one of my absolute favorite cookbook!! I have checked it out of the library numerous times and was so excited when I received it as a gift from a dear friend. (thank you so much Ruth Ann!!. :)

It has simple instructions and step by step photos as well as pictures of the finished food. Almost all the recipes use very basic ingredients that most people have on hand, which is a big plus with me. :) One thing that I don't like is looking though a recipe book only to find that the recipe I want to make requires one or more items that we normally don't have in the cabinet and would mean a trip to the store.

There is plenty of great recipes to choose from cookies & bars to muffins & yeast breads, cakes, pies and more. It includes such favorites as Shoo fly Pie, and Shortbread. Some of the recipes that I have posted in the past have come from this cookbook including: Chocolate Chip Walnut Loaf, and Chocolate Frosted Butter Cake :) There are still plenty of recipes that I'm looking forward to making! This season of the year just puts me in a mood for baking! :)

The Great I Am

God reveals Himself as the great "I Am", and the Lord Jesus, again and again, during the time of His ministry on earth, spake of Himself as "I Am". Now, people almost always tell us what they are and how they feel. Some say, "I am so ignorant!"; some. "I am so sinful"; some," I am so stupid"; or "I am so timid." But when the Holy Spirit takes possession of us, He shuts up all the "I am" of our nature, and turns us to the one great "I Am", and in which we take our place by the side of Paul, and say, "I am nothing"; or go down even lower to Him Who was "meek and lowly in heart", and say, "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John 5:30).

Yield yourself unreservedly to Him. You say, " I am weak"; and you are; but the true "I Am" joins on to that name of His, "the Almighty God". Where is He Almighty? Where He dwells. Just let the Holy Spirit come into you and dwell within you, then His Almightiness walks about with you wherever you go. If Satan tempts you to the old sin, there is Almightiness dwelling in Him Who dwells in you, and surely you need not doubt whether the temptation shall be overcome or not. God is equal to it, though you are not. Shall the "I am" or our self-life be that of Paul, "I am crucified with Christ"? There is an end of me, and end of all my complaining of myself, an end of that old song of what I am-"I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live.".

~E. Baxter

God Moves in Mysterious Ways

God moves in mysterious ways:
His wonders to perform:
he plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs,
And works His Sovereign will.

Ye fearful Saint, fresh courage take,
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

His purpose will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste
But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And see His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter
And He will make it plain.

-Willliam Crowper

Bible Quiz

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Tim. 2:15

Some time ago at our Wednesday night Bible study, we did this Bible quiz, which was fun and interesting. You are not supposed to use your Bible while taking the quiz, just do it from memory. Of course some the questions are very simple while others are a little more difficult. I thought I would share it on here since we had a good time with it. :) If you print it out it would make a nice Sunday afternoon or evening activity. :) I will try to post the answers in a couple of weeks. :)

1. What is the longest book in the Bible?
2. Who wrote the Acts of the Apostles?
3. Which book says, “The wages of sin is death”
4. How many people were on Noah’s Ark?
5. What is the Golden Rule?
6. Put in chronological order: Daniel, Noah, Paul, Moses and David.
7. How many books are there in the Bible?
9. Who were the first two people?
10. Name the Ten Commandments.
11. Who was the brother of Jacob?
12. Who wrote Psalm 23?
13. Name three of Jesus’ Parables.
14. How many epistles were written by John?
15. Was Luke: a fisherman , an apostle, a doctor or a shepherd?
16. Which tribe did Moses belong to?
17. Is Daniel in the Old or the New Testament?
18. In what language was the New Testament written?
19. Who said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive”?
20. True or false: James and John were brothers.
21. Who were the three patriarchs?
22. Put in chronological order: Temple, Church, Tower of Babel, Tabernacle.
23. What did Jesus say were the two greatest commandments?
24. Name the first three kings of Israel.
25. Give the name of at least one angel.
26. Who wrote the Book of Deuteronomy?
27. Did Jesus feed 4,000 or 5,000 people with loaves and fishes?
28. How many Minor Prophets are there?
29. Which book says, “I am the resurrection and the life”?
30. Was Matthew: a carpenter, a centurion, a tax collector, or a priest?
31. Which Gospel records Jesus turning the water into wine?
32. Is the Book Hezekiah in the Old or the New Testament?
33. Was David: a prophet, a shepherd, a soldier, a musician, or a king?
34. What are the three divisions of the Old Testament?
35. Put in chronological order: Jeremiah, Elijah, Samuel, Peter, Isaiah.
36. Which is the greatest: hope, love or faith?
37. Which Gospel has the Parable of the Good Samaritan?
38. Put in chronological order: Sarah, Lydia, Ruth, Mary, Eve, and Esther.
39. Which book says, “I am the Good Shepherd”?
40. Who could enter the Holy of Holies: Moses, a priest, an apostle, the High Priest.
41. We are saved by faith, good works, or faith and good works?
42. What is the Pentateuch?
43. Which Gospel records the Parable of the Prodigal Son?
44. Which book says, “Wives, submit to your husbands. Husband, love your wives”?
45. Who was Jesus’ mother?
46. Which book says: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved”?
47. Who was the strongest man to ever live: Hercules, Samson, or Goliath?
48. Who baptized Jesus?
49. Give a verse that teaches the doctrine of the Trinity.
50. Name the twelve tribes of Israel.
51. Who was the oldest person in the Bible?
52. What is the longest chapter in the Bible?
53. Name the five Books of Moses.
54. Who wrote the Book of Revelation?
55. Give three names or titles for Satan.
56. What kind of meat was eaten at the Passover?
57. Which book tells us the life of Samson?
58. What was the first language the Bible was translated into?
59. What is the shortest verse in the Bible?
60. Name the twelve apostles.
61. Put in chronological order: the Dispersion, the Crucifixion, the Flood the Babylonian
Captivity, and the Exodus.
62. Name someone who went to Heaven without dying.
63. Who will be raised from the dead: all men, Christians only or angels?
64. True or false: We are saved by being baptized in water.
65. Name the Books of the New Testament.
66. Name three of Christ’s miracles.
67. Which book says, “Spare the rod and spoil the child”?
68. In what language was the Old Testament written?
69. Is the Book of Hebrews in the Old or the New Testament?
70. Put in chronological order the nations that held Israel captive: Greece, Egypt, Babylon,
Rome, Assyria, and Persia.
71. Christ means: Master, High Priest, Anointed, Savior, Lord, or Redeemer?
72. Where are the 10 Commandments located in the Bible?
73. Who wrote the Book of Ecclesiastes?
74. Which book says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth”?
75. Which tribe of Israel did Jesus belong to?
76. Name 3 of Israel’s feasts or festivals.
77. Who was the greatest man before Jesus: David, Abraham, Solomon, John the Baptist,
Moses or Adam?
78. Which book mentions the handwriting on the wall?
79. Who was Caesar when Jesus was born: Herod, Caesar Augustus, Pilate, Nero, or Julius
Caesar?
80. True or false: Moses led Israel into the Promised Land.
81. Give a Bible verse that explicitly says that Jesus is God.
82. Which Gospel mentions the Star of Bethlehem?
83. Name the four Gospels.

Colors of the Season

Inspired by my good friend Lydia and her advice on: "Beautifying Our Homes With Flowers," I decided to give her suggestion a try and bring some color indoors! :) Since we have plenty of wild flowers growing behind the house right now I had no problem with getting enough for all my arrangements with some left over to dry. I have never done very much with flower arranging, so these efforts were more of an experiment, but it was fun trying out different ways of putting the flowers together. :) Thanks for the inspiration Lydia! :)

All the flowers :)

Various Containers for arrangements.

The pitcher arrangement.

Purple and Green

Nothing fancy, but at least it's nice and bright it's now on

my desk helping to make my room more colorful. :)

"Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah." Psalm 68:19