Being prepared on Sunday is easy when you do a little planning ahead.  This dish was even easier to make because I had cooked several chicken breasts earlier and then frozen them for dishes such as this.  So all I had to do was cook the noodles and assemble the casserole.

Chopping things up for salads for the week can also be a time-saver.  If all you have to do is grab the bags of chopped vegetables and add them to your lettuce (I seldom ever buy the packages of salad mixes; they’re too expensive), add croutons and cheese and you’re salad is done!

Here’s another dish I made for a weeknight using some of the chicken I cooked and froze.  These were Chicken Taco Salads.  I make my own Tortilla shells by baking them in the microwave.  They are so good with this salad, and you really don’t miss the “fried” taste! I tipped the tortilla bowl over on its side for ease of eating and looks…

Put a large flour tortilla into a microwave safe bowl  (cereal size).  Microwave for 1 minute.  Remove and let cool.  That’s it!

For the salad part I add lettuce, cool, cooked corn, tomatoes, diced mango, red onion and the chicken strips I cook in the oven with salt and pepper.

The dressing is 1 part Ranch dressing to 1/2 part salsa.  It’s a favorite meal of ours.

Here’s a new dessert recipe – Upside down Pear Cake.  Yum!  This came from my Taste of Home Magazine.  With fresh pears, molasses and walnuts, this is super good.  I served it with frozen yogurt and it was a hit!

Friday is here!  You made it through the week!  Let me ask you, where has this week led you?  To the grocery store?  On an airplane?  Waiting in a line at the post office?  Seated in a lobby near strangers? What did those places mean to you?  How aware were you that those places were your opportunities to share the Gospel with others?

As believers, we have all probably been reminded many times that we need to be a witness for Christ.  This is the area  of my Chrisitian life that I feel weakest.  Why is it so hard to tell others of our wonderful Savior?  Many times I get so caught up in what I’m doing that I miss the who of the task.  If I’m shopping for groceries, I’m concentrating on my list, my coupons and the task at hand.  If I’m at the library, I’m thinking about what I’m looking for.  If I’m at home and a delivery is made or a worker comes to the house, I’m concerned about what they’re doing instead of what I can do for them.  I’m truly asking God to change my focus from me to others.  He’s used the Scriptures recently to reveal how to do that.

As I read recently about Paul in the book of Acts, I was struck by this thought – wherever he was, he saw the opportunity, not the task or problem.  His arrests didn’t anger him – he shared his testimony of his conversion!  His imprisonments didn’t stifle his ministry – they became his ministry!  The chains gave him the chance to be very close to a couple of men where he had their undivided attention.  He used those times to give the Gospel.  People’s lives were changed as a result!

So now, I’m asking the Lord to help me to be aware each day of those  who I am “chained to” that day.  If I have to wait in line somewhere, the people near me are “chained to me”!  I need to be ready to share the Gospel!  The girl who cleaned our hotel room this week was “chained to me”.  The person seated beside me on the airplane is “chained to me.”  I must be ready to share Jesus with them.  These folks can’t go anywhere, and a sovereign God put them in my path, and it is His will that I be obedient and tell them the Truth that will change their eternal destiny.  The reuslt?  Absolute joy!  I never go away sorry I told them!  Joy follows obedience!  If they trust Christ they won’t be sorry either!

So, who are you chained to today?  Don’t miss your opportunities to give the Gospel!

See you in church Sunday!

With love,

The world would say, “Oh really?!” to the previous verse, but if you have ever watched a family be destroyed because of misplaced priorities, you would see that the Lord is so gracious to give us this warning.  Things don’t:

• last
• love
• linger
• listen

but people do!

Many young people don’t understand that they cannot have what their parents have right now.  It took their parents years to have a roomy house, or a second car, or a savings account.  It’s not worth the sacrifice necessary to try to accumulate wealth.  It’s truly crazy unwise to exchange righteousness for things.  They’ll never satisfy.  If the Lord blesses you in years to come with any type of monetary wealth, there’s certainly nothing wrong with that – just use it for Him.

Here’s the perfect illustration of a man whose life wasn’t about things – but people –

“The body of David Livingstone was buried in England where he was born, but his heart was buried in the Africa he loved. At the foot of a tall tree in a small African village the natives dug a hole and placed in it the heart of this man who they loved and respected. If your heart were to be buried in the place you loved most during life, where would it be? In your pocketbook? In an appropriate space down at the office? Where is your heart?”

With love,

In case you still need some ideas for Valentine’s Day, here are Twenty-six more good ideas.

Amorous words are not outdated. Write your husband a poem, sing him a song, buy him a romantic card.

Bake his favorite dessert and serve it by candlelight after the children are in bed.

Compliment him – on his looks, his dedication to the Lord, his way with your children.

Drive the next time the two of you go somewhere, and let him relax and enjoy the scenery.

Enumerate his fine qualities, using this modified line of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s” “Why do I love thee? Let me count the whys.” Tape the list to the mirror.

Fish, golf, hunt with him – or at least read up on his hobby.

Give him the gift of time: do a job usually his.

Hide encouraging Scripture verses or personal notes in his coat pocket, his wallet, his sock drawer, or on the steering wheel.

Indulge him with the luxury of breakfast in bed-served on a decorated tray.

Join him for a day at his work – in his office, classroom, or just for lunch.

Kiss him goodbye when he leaves for work. It’s easy to get out of the habit in the rush of life.

Learn more about him. Do you know his favorite childhood memory? The best Christmas present he ever received? His favorite record? The time he was the most afraid?

Meet him for lunch. Use fast-food coupons. or pack a sack lunch to share.

New photos of the two of you can make the ordinary a day to remember. So get out the camera and frame the results.

Old, cherished wedding pictures can help you remember when your love was new.

Prepare his favorite meal.

Quips and cartoons can lighten his day. Cut them out and give them to him on a day he needs a lift.

Read a book together. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “It is a tie between men to have read the same book.”

Smile when you see him.

Thank him for the routine things you tend to expect him to do.

Uphold him in prayer.

Valentines aren’t just for February. Give him a little gift – a pen, a magazine he likes, a favorite candy bar – along with a love note.

Wash and wax the car for him.

Xercise to keep yourself looking good.

Yes, let’s do it!” Make that your answer when he suggests things to do – a walk, watching the sunset, taking a day to go somewhere, whatever.

Zzzzzzzzzzzz. Let him take a long undisturbed nap while you entertain the children elsewhere.

One great way to celebrate your love is going to church to worship together. I pray you’re making plans to be there this Sunday! See you there!

With love,