This past Wednesday night in Prayer meeting it was time to share testimonies. I immediately thought of the praise in my heart for the way the Lord had specifically answered prayer in my life this week. That’s when the battle began.

I got a recipe a few years ago for a Garden Tomato Pie. It’s like a Bacon Tomato sandwich in a pie crust. If you have summer tomatoes left that you don’t know what to do with try this. We love it!

1 9-inch pie shell, baked and cooled
2 large tomatoes, peeled and thickly sliced (or enough to fill pie shell)
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tsp. dried sweet basil or 1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
1 tablespoon fresh chopped chives
10 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
1/2 C mayonnaise (the recipe calls for 1 C, but I think it’s too much)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fill pie shell with tomatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper, basil, chives, and bacon. Mix mayonnaise and cheese. Spread over tomatoes. Bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned.

Garnish pie with a slice of tomato and basil leaves, if desired.

Do you have a recipe you love that uses fresh tomatoes?

Have you ever been in a place in your life when you’re trying to discern the will of God in a matter? We all have. Perhaps you’re there right now. We need God to show us who to date or marry, what house to buy, what to do about a conflict going on in our life, or whether or not to accept an opportunity that has come our way.

1. Make sure you are in fellowship with God with sin confessed and are walking in the Spirit. Psalm 66:18 – If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. Not only will the Lord not hear you when you talk to Him, but you won’t hear Him when He wants to lead you.
2. Be reading the Word of God daily. Psalm 119:105 – Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. As we read the Word of God He sheds light on our feet to show us where to walk. We often want the light to be cast way on ahead of us so we can see what’s coming in the future. God will show us what we need to know when we need to know it. Matthew 6:33 – Take no thought for the morrow...
3. Obey what you read in the Word – Joshua 1:8 – This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
4. Pray for God to guide you. 1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us. God wants us to come to Him for wisdom (James 1:5) so if we come and ask Him for wisdom concerning His will He will reveal it to us.
5. Watch for what happens next. The Lord will bring people and circumstances into your life to continue to reveal His will. Don’t be anxious about it; just trust Him and WAIT. Don’t be in a hurry.

Years ago when I was trying to decide where to go to college and what to do with my life I applied for a nursing school near my home. I had compassion towards sick people all my life and thought nursing would be a good thing for me, so I was pursuing that. All the while, I was praying and telling the Lord I’d do what He desired for me. Then I had the opportunity to visit a Christian college – not necessarily as a prospective place for me to attend, I just visited to participate in a weekend event they had on campus. I visited some classes and services and really enjoyed my time there.

When I got home I attended an open house at the small nursing school where I had applied. It was supposedly a “Christian” school. When I toured the campus with a couple girls who were students, they showed me a room at the end of the dorm hall. “This is the prayer room, but no one uses it!” one girl told me. I visited a lecture class and while teaching the professor cursed. I was dumbfounded. The whole weekend continued to give me the very clear impression that this was not the place the Lord would want me. I could literally hear the door slamming shut on what I thought I was supposed to do.

I got in my car and cried the whole way home. “Now what, Lord?” He kept directing me to the Christian school I had visited the weekend before. However, when I approached my parents about it, they weren’t in favor of my going to school several states away. I really felt sure this is what the Lord wanted, but I honored them and got a job at Coca Cola Bottling Company in the accounts receivable department. I worked there for a year and I continue to pray that if the Lord wanted me to go to this college He would make a way for me to attend.

One day, out of the clear blue, my mom approached me and told me that if I still felt the Lord wanted me at the Christian college she and my dad were behind me! It took being still, waiting, and trusting the Lord for many months to see Him direct my steps – but He did!

That experience taught me so much. I can look back on that time and be reminded that God will show me His will in His time if I’ll do what I know I should be doing and wait on Him. You know what? He’ll do the same for you!

How have you seen the Lord direct your steps and reveal His will?

I mentioned yesterday that my husband and I attended a wedding on Saturday. During the ceremony the preacher encouraged the guests to give some encouragement to the bride and groom as they greeted them after the ceremony.

• Make a regular bedtime for your children and stick to it.
• Don’t start letting your children sleep with you!
• If you’ve already have children in bed with you, start breaking them of it today!
• Keep a regular date night – even if you can only manage it every other week.
• Go away overnight once a year (without the children).
• Attend a couples’ conference.
• Pray together.
• Read biblical books on marriage to keep yourself challenged.

Trust me, the empty nest will come much sooner than you think. Preparation for it begins now. Start feathering the nest so it’s nice and comfy when it’s just the two of you again!

I know you’re probably tired of hearing about me being on vacation, but isn’t that what summer’s about? We returned home Saturday evening after attending a sweet wedding in North Carolina. Thus, we got home around seven or so, unpacked some, then got ready for bed. Sunday dinner preparations were not on the top of my list of priorities after a busy day of travel.

We ended up going to Atlanta Bread Company with church friends for dinner yesterday. We’d never eaten there on a Sunday, but it was so pleasant. There was virtually no wait by the time we got there at 1:00 and the music was so nice. As someone in our group commented, it didn’t contradict the worship service. We had good fellowship with new friends visiting and “old” church friends alike.

We really don’t go out on Sunday very often. We much prefer coming home to eat. It’s quiet and dinner is on the table shortly after we arrive, which is a good thing because we’re all starved it seems! We also just enjoy being home. When our girls were growing up I tried to follow my mom’s example and use Sundays to bring out the good china and crystal. I wanted my girls to learn to be comfortable with a more formal setting at a table so they would know how to handle themselves when they encountered it at a later time. We’d put out a salad, dessert and regular dinner forks. I taught them to wait until the hostess (me!) starts eating her food before they start (the same for eating dessert). We weren’t starchy and formal – just a little more fancy than at our weekday dinner time. It’s a part of training.

Could I encourage you moms of boys to teach your sons the same kind of manners? They shouldn’t be afraid to use a cloth napkin, put it in their lap, and know which fork to use when there are several to choose from. Teach them to seat a lady, to wait for the hostess, to know that their salad is on their left and their glass is on the right. Even real men (heaven knows we need more of them!) can eat with good manners.

Sunday is a good day to do something special. Break out that pretty china instead of saving it. What are you saving it for anyway? If it gets chipped it’s okay. Use it! Make Sunday dinner a bit more fancy, but special. It will create good memories and well mannered children!