Freshen Up Friday

March 20, 2015March 19, 2015 RefreshHer2 Comments

Whenever we have a special event at church like a shower or ladies’ gathering, some incredible food is always involved! One of those components is a serving dish full of a yummy, Warm Spinach Artichoke Dip. It’s great on Pretzel Chips or tortilla chips (or even straight out of the bowl!).

At our recent Ladies’ Night during revival meetings this week, we served this and I had so many requests for the recipe, I decided to share it here to freshen up your Friday and your entire life!!! This is so good, it could easily become your signature dish that you bring to events!!!

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip
Ingredients:
2 (16 oz) packages of frozen chopped spinach
4 regular size cans (13 ¾ oz) artichoke hearts or ½ of a large jar of marinated artichoke hearts (found at Sam’s Club)
2 cups mayonnaise
1 (16 oz carton) sour cream
2 cups grated parmesan cheese
3 cups Mexican blend cheese or pepper jack cheese
4 tablespoons hot sauce (May use more or less depending upon preference)
4 tablespoons chopped garlic

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Grease casserole dish with non-stick spray
Heat spinach in microwave for 5 minutes. Squeeze spinach to remove all excess water and pat dry.
Drain artichoke hearts and coarsely chop them. (May use food processor)
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl reserving ½ cup parmesan cheese.
Stir well and pour into casserole dish.
Garnish with remaining parmesan cheese.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until done.
Serve warm with your favorite chips. Makes 10 to 12 cups of dip.

You could, of course, halve the recipe if you don’t need to feed a crowd, but then again, you might wish you had that huge bowlful once you taste it! It’s SOOOOO good!

Hope you have a great weekend! I have a fun activity planned in mine. I’ll tell you about it next week!

Stay refreshed,

Uncategorized

Don’t Zone Out – Tune In!

March 19, 2015March 18, 2015 RefreshHerLeave a comment

I just got back from a trip to town. Things I saw have gotten me to thinking about how we all tend to “zone out.” We’re so busy, so frantic, that when whenever we can, we find our way to check out on life. Here’s how I’ve seen it recently:

People in their cars, talking on their phone while trying to make a left turn onto a very busy road. They’re oblivious to the fact that they’re blocking both turn lanes. Zoned out.
Shoppers push their cart out into the middle of the aisle without ever considering that someone might have to come to an immediate halt to keep from hitting their buggy. It’s okay; they never see anyone else, never acknowledge that someone else is in the store. A believer misses the opportunity to serve others or to speak or encourage with a word or smile.
Parents are caught up in conversation or their phone, or a ballgame and miss seeing what their child is doing or what they may be up to. The child speaks and the parents hears, but isn’t listening.
Christians sit in church “listening” during a service, all the while thinking of a hundred other things during the announcements or message. Afterwards there’s no memory of what was said or of the Lord speaking to their heart. They’re also out of the loop about what’s coming up on the church calendar.
Spouses don’t take time for one another to have an eyeball to eyeball conversation. They give “air kisses” as they part in the morning or return at the end of the day. They miss details of the other’s life because they’re zone out.

Okay, so we’ve all seen it and DONE IT! Right? I certainly have! What’s the remedy? How about following the principle Jim Elliott is quoted in saying,

Wherever you are, be all there. Live to the hilt any situation you believe to be the will of God!

When you’re driving, put the phone down. Be a present driver!

When you’re at the store, keep your head and eyes up. Be a present shopper/witness!

When you’re with your children, listen to them. Inspect what you asked them to do. Have a consistent, watchful eye on them. Be a present parent!

While sitting in the church service, keep your notebook out. Write down the announcements the pertain to you! Write down any questions you may have if you didn’t understand the details. Take notes about what God is saying to you during the message. Be a present church member!

Be intentional about spending time with your spouse when you see one another. Greet him at the door. Mark out ten minutes just to talk with him about his day and things he needs to hear. Be a present wife!

Zoning out involves thinking about one person – ME. Tuning in involves everyone around me. Life is a greater blessing when we stay tuned in to others around us! Let’s tune in to others and zone out to self!

Are there other scenarios in which you find yourself zoning out?

With love,

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A Peek From My Porch

March 18, 2015March 16, 2015 RefreshHer4 Comments

Why Do Sheep Need A Shepherd

Shepherds are called to a life of caring for sheep.

Shepherds love their sheep.

Shepherds take responsibility for the sheep.

Sheep need a shepherd, I am told because they need protection, lest they become a predator’s dinner. They need a shepherd because they easily get lost and they need guidance to keep them on the right way. Sheep also need governing; otherwise they indulge in activities that could be self-destructive.

I am married to a shepherd. His title as pastor takes his responsibilities from simply attending church to shepherding the church This is a position not of his own choosing, but one chosen by a God who equipped Him and enables him each day to carry out the responsibilities of that call. He loves his call; he loves his sheep (the church). He could never do anything else but shepherd – not evangelism or church planting. You see this is where his heart is!

As the shepherds wife, I also love those sheep. Each one is precious to me, but I also love the shepherd-husband of mine, and I occasionally see the burden of his cares bearing down on his heart, and it causes me to cry out all the more for my him. Just this week I heard him say in prayer, “Lord, sometimes my responsibilities seem too great, but I know you will give strength.” What were those burdens? Too many services? No. Too many sermons to prepare and preach? No. It’s the burden of seeing many of his sheep wandering, nibbling on a little grass of the world over here. Some choose not to stay within the protection of the fold – the church. They are busy – family time, ball games, and company step in and replace the necessary time with the God’s flock. It’s the burden of their “bleating” – “I might not be here for services tonight – company’s coming.” “Little Suzie has a recital next Sunday and we hate to disappoint her.” “The competition at school is getting my daughter in so late, she won’t be in youth group Sunday morning.” “The family reunion falls on the Sunday this year so we won’t be here next week!”

Why would a pastor care? Because he has a shepherd’s heart. Remember the three reasons sheep need a shepherd? The shepherd sees the sheep becoming the dinner of the enemy. He knows the services, the preaching, the revival meeting, the planned activities will help protect them from the one who seeks to destroy. It will feed them the green grass they need to grow. It will guide them and keep them from harmful influences elsewhere. When the sheep are wandering, going here and there, I see the eyes of the pastor/shepherd looking across the congregation for them. I hear him calling their names as he weeps in prayer.

If you have a pastor who preaches the Word and it stings, remember that he is just echoing the Words of the Chief Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Who loves you even more! If your pastor reaches out to you with the staff to pull you back into the fold, don’t be a stubborn sheep; yield to his leading and follow his counsel.

Thank God for your pastor today and pray for the heavy burden he bears.

Thanks for letting me give you a peek into our windows!

With love,

aging

Fat and Flourishing

March 17, 2015May 20, 2025 RefreshHer5 Comments

Today’s post is a re-post from many years ago.
Every time I come across this verse in Scripture –
They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; it brings these thoughts to my mind and I wanted to share them with you again.

Recently I heard a young person say, “I never want to get old! It’s so depressing!” The reason for their statement was that they had heard an older person complain, fuss, moan and gripe about everything that was happening around them. It’s easy for any of us to get into a state like that – no matter how young or old we are.

If someone followed you around today would they say, “I never want to be in my 30’s! Being a mother is too stressful!” Or, “I hope I don’t stay single all my life; single people are selfish!” How about, “Women in their 40’s sure are moody!” spare me from that! There is truth in the statement, “You are what you have been becoming.” So, what are you becoming?

I love Psalm 92:12-15. It reads: The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; to shew that the Lord is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

This passage tells us what a healthy older person should look like; they should be bearing fruit and be fat and flourishing! Fruit belongs to youth, but those that grow in grace keep on bearing fruit even in their later years. Aged believers have had experience trusting in the Lord and should have a sweet mellow temperament that feeds those around them. Why do they do this? To show to the world that their God is upright, their rock and a holy God!

I love what Spurgeon notes about this passage. He says about the older believer, “however feeble his outward man may be, his inner man is so renewed day by day that we may well envy his perennial peace. Perennial peace! That’s peace that’s long-lasting like the daffodil or tulip that will pop up again this spring. As we grow in the Lord we should have peace and contentment that keeps popping its head up through the soil of our lives. No matter if it’s been cold, or the “ground is hard.” We have a God that is leading us, teaching us and enabling us to grow old in such a way that we’re bearing spiritual fruit and are fat and flourishing!

Let’s all take a look at how we respond today to the difficulties the Lord allows in our life and ask ourselves as I am asking you right now:

“Would people envy my perennial peace,

or would they shun me because of my continual complaints?”

It makes being fat and flourishing look really attractive, doesn’t it?! Let’s live with grace evidenced in our lives today!

With love,

Cooking

What’s Cookin’ in the Country?

March 16, 2015March 13, 2015 RefreshHer1 Comment

When I used to hear Ina Garten from Barefoot Contessa say that she prefers to use homemade chicken stock in her recipes, I wondered if she wasn’t being a little over the top. Really? Why make your own stock when it’s canned up nicely and readily available in the grocery store?

THEN, one Sunday last year our church had purchased about six rotisserie chickens from Sam’s Club for a gathering after the service. When the meal was finished and I looked at all those carcasses left with some meat still lingering on the bones, I decided to take them home and try my hand at making stock.

The result? It was so flavorful, so nicely seasoned and made so much that I have not gone back to the store brands since! It takes a little while to cook, but there is nothing hard about it!

The benefit? You can season it to your taste. No more salt overload. One of my roasted chicken recipes cooks with lemon inside the cavity. I throw that in the stock too, and love the little lemon zing it gives the stock! It’s also cost-effective! It costs pennies to make of something that would’ve ended up in your trash can!

The process:

Ingredients:

Chicken Carcass – leave any meat leftover on the bones
Large onion, peeled, cut in half
2 large carrots, peeled, cut in large pieces
2 Celery Stalks, cut in large pieces
Rosemary sprigs
Thyme
Salt, pepper
Water

Place the carcass of the chicken in a large stock pot. Add onion, celery, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Add enough water to cover by an excess of two inches. Bring it to a boil. Cover and turn to simmer, for 2 hours. Check occasionally to see it has enough water.

Remove pot from stove and place a strainer over a large bowl. Pour liquid into the strainer. I pick through the bones and remove any meat to use for pot pie or some dish like that and toss all the rest of the bones and veggies.

Allow stock to cool a little. Rather than canning my stock, I freeze it. Here’s how I do that:

I place a ziplock back into a one cup measuring cup and then using a funnel, I ladle in the stock. After zipping the bag shut, I lay it flat and place the small bags into a gallon size bag just in case anything leaks. I take out about three cups at a time to thaw and place in a mason jar to keep in the refrigerator so it will be ready to use.

There are so many uses for Chicken stock, like gravy!

The sauce for Chicken pot pie requires chicken stock. Homemade soups are so good with this homemade stock! Using chicken stock instead of water for rice or couscous makes it really flavorful! (Have I used the word “stock” enough?!)

It only makes sense if you have a chicken carcass to use it to make stock rather than tossing it into the trash can!!! I hope you’ll give this a try! If you can boil water, you can make STOCK!

With love from my country kitchen,