Chocolate Wisdom

"You're invited to relax today"

Isn’t that great advice from that chocolate wrapper up there?

Hey!  What if that wrapper could be a “rapper” instead?

Hmmm….

“Chocolate is my name

Rappin’ is my game

Relaxin’ is my thing…”  Maybe not…

But, one thing this wrapper did do right, is remind me of this verse.  I added explanations in brackets:

“Do not be anxious about anything [Relax!], but in everything [EV-ER-RY-THING!], by prayer and petition [Petition = over and over again.  Isn’t that nice of God to want the hear the same old requests over and over again?  I would get bored.  It shows how much He loves us], with thanksgiving [don’t forget to be thankful], present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

Here it is in my own words: “Be anxious for nothing. Pray about everything. Give thanks to God.”

What’s in it for you and me if we do this?  Peace!  See? It promises it in the next verse:

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:7

Yay!!

So, let’s take that chocolate’s advice and the Bible’s.  Let’s pray:

Click the puppy to see where I got his picture on Flickr

 

 

Father, thank you for inviting us to pray to You.  Here’s all the things I’m anxious about: ____________________________

_____________________________.  (List as many as come to mind).

You are BIG!  Bigger than my problems.  So, I put them in your hands.  Please work out all the details.  In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

There.  Feeling a little more relaxed?  Good.  Remember, you can pray again if you start to feel anxious again.

The invitation is for forever, and ever, over and over again.  =]

P.S. Do you know the One who made chocolate?  If not, click on the pic below to be introduced:

“

"Catch snowflakes on your tongue."

Have you eaten your words today?

open mouth, insert foot...

You could say I have an eating disorder, speech-wise, I eat my words so often.

When we talk of “eating our words”, it’s an “oops!” statement. We regret something we’ve said, put our foot in our mouth, etc.

Well, instead of eating our words, why not gorge ourselves on God’s instead?

Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. ~ Jeremiah 15:16

How sweet are thy words unto my taste! [yea, sweeter] than honey to my mouth! ~~ Psalm 119:103

O taste and see that the LORD [is] good: blessed [is] the man [that] trusteth in him.  ~~ Psalm 34:8

God’s words are perfect; no foot-in-the-mouth, wish-he-hadn’t-said-that statements.

Perfectly good words that he’ll never take back till they’ve accomplished all the good for which he sent them (Is 55:11)

And speaking of “all”, I’m about to serve you a plateful of “all” verses from the Bible.

They’re verses that remind us of all God’s done for us,

all He can do for and through us,

and all the reasons we should just love Him

even more than our daily bread...

or chocolate

or even an ice cream mocha!

No need to grab a fork or spoon, just dig in.  These verses are all calorie-free comfort food from the “God of all comfort”! (2 Corinthians 1:3)…

“ALL” verses:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  ~~ Romans 15:13

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.  ~~ 2 Corinthians 9:8

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

Unto him [be] glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. ~~ Ephesians 3:20-21

Whew!  That was a mouthful. I encourage you to write them all down and look at them all the times you feel hopeless, joyless, or powerless.

Do you have other verses that encourage you?  Share them with all of us!

To Bake or not to Bake. That is the question…

To bake brownies, or not to bake brownies?! That was the question in my kitchen this evening.

Get it? Sounds Hamlet-y, “To be or not to be, that is the question.” Here’s a comic of Calvin’s dinner [from Calvin and Hobbes] quoting more of Hamlet’s Soliloquy, if you’re interested.  Click HERE and scroll down a bit to see it.  Come on, it’s funny. 🙂

Ok, back to the brownies…

Must resist!  Must resist! But they’re SO gooey, and chocolaty, and yum-yum-yummy when they’re hot and melt the ice cream in the bowl.

Sigh…Ok, I gave in and baked. 😦  Why do I do this to myself?!!!!!!!

A TommyImages Photo

Coincidentally, I just read this in Proverbs 16:

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” Proverbs 16:25

And this is in Psalms 16 **:

“Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup…The boundary lines [ooh, there’s that ugly word, boundaries] have fallen for me in pleasant places…” Psalm 16:5-6

OH, “the air bites shrewdly…” (that’s Hamlet, too)

I hate BOUNDARIES! When it comes to food, anyways.  BUT, I know not everything I want to put in my middle-aged mouth is good for me (or my thighs), so, I guess it’s good to have them (boundaries, that is).

And it’s good to know what will satisfy me, too.  Longer than brownies.  Later on, in Psalm 16 I found the recipe for something more filling:

“You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” Psalm 16:11

The Fill-me-up Prayer:

Oh, Father, the Apostle Paul said, ” ‘Everything is permissible for me’-but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible for me’-but I will not be mastered by anything.”( 1 Corinthians 6:12) I don’t want food, not even chocolate to master me.  David wrote in Psalm 16 that running after other gods will only increase my sorrows. (vs. 4)

I no longer want to try to fill my soul’s holes with ___________(fill in the blank, whether it be food, drink, or any other “god” you may be running after.  Anything you believe will only increase your sorrows.)

Lord, help me to agree with David in Psalm 16, “I have set [You] always before me.  Because [You are] at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:8)

More of You, Jesus.  Fill my soul with more of You.

In Jesus’ name, amen.”

“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure.” (Psalm 16:9)

Do you know the Lord?  Knowing Him —really knowing Him–is better than chocolate.  Honest! Click the pic below to be introduced:

** I like to read the Psalm and Proverb for each day.  Today’s the 16th, so I read Psalm 16 and Proverbs 16.  Something I learned along the way.  Works out really well for Proverbs each month, since there’s 31 of them, but with Psalms I’ll keep going after the 31st and just read a new one each day.  This month, though, I started over again with Psalm 1 on the 1st of March, etc.

Scrumpdily-itious Faith

"Thy words were found and I ate them and they became for me a joy and the delight of my heart..." Jeremiah 15:16

See those yummy, scrumptious cookie bars on the plate there?  Highly addictive.  I just can’t stop shoving them in my mouth!  They’re “Big Sur Power Bars” and contain all kinds of good stuff, like coconut,  slivered almonds, oats, brown rice crispies (like rice crispies, but healthier), and the paste of resistance? –that’s French, ya know. 🙂  — Ghirardelli 60% bittersweet chocolate!  Applause all around!!

And look at Papa Bear’s smug little grin. ( *frown*)  Not exactly fair.  He didn’t get that paunch eating porridge, ya know.

Ah, if only I could be so eager for the Word of God.  It’s a tasty morsel for the soul, and much, MUCH better for me than power bars. (See below for recipe.)

Well, here’s a yummy recipe for PEACE and JOY:

~1 part Bible reading, daily is best.

~mixed with 1 part prayer, make sure to pour your heart out here.

~combine with 2 parts obedience.

I got that recipe from a Master Chef.  🙂  See?

BIBLE READING: “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

PRAYER: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:6-7

OBEDIENCE: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.”  Matthew 7:24-25

The Power Bar Prayer: “ Oh, Father, you are a Master Chef and have cooked up all kinds of good things for me in the Bible.  Help me to love Your Word so much I want to eat it up like chocolate.  AND help me to DO IT, not just hear and ignore it.  And Lord, I want to pour my heart out to you now about this thing that’s really bothering/hurting/worrying me…(fill in the blank, take your time). 

Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.  Thank you, Father, for Your peace, which surpasses understanding.  In Jesus’ name, amen.”

Do you know the Master Chef?  Click on the pots and pans to cook up a relationship with him:

Big Sur Power Bars (I added the chocolate!) 

pots and pan clipart from: www.clipartguide.com

Lessons from Literature: Harry Potter

A Dementor of Askaban

My son’s reading Harry Potter.   I’m not much interested in it myself, but this caught my attention this morning.  Andy was telling me about “the Dementors”.  “What are Dementors?” my fellow non-Harry-Potter-reading friends might ask.  They’re the creepy, dark-cloaked guards at Askaban, a prison in the wizarding world.  They glide about, tormenting the prisoners by causing them to relive their worst memories, and making them feel like they’d “never be cheerful again.” 

Sound familiar?  This is just what Satan tries to do to us, dear Christian.  He locks us up behind bars of guilt and shame, continually reminding us of every bad thing we’ve ever done — things he cheered us along to do in the first place, most likely.  He robs us of any cheerful thought, and feeds off our gloom.

And, of course, the antidote in the book is CHOCOLATE!  The answer for everything…happy sigh.  It counters the effects of the dementors, by warming up the victim, and restoring their emotions.

Our antidote for the harmful efects of our enemy, is TRUTH.  So, here’s some pieces of truth to warm up your insides:

“Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them– the Lord, who remains faithful forever.  He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous.”   Psalms 146:5-8

Who has come to set the prisoners free?  Jesus!  He’s the light that shines in the darkness… 

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  John 8:12

In His presence, shadows flee~~ “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” James 1:17

  A PRISONER’S PRAYER:

“Oh, Father, You are the Father of Lights.  You wrap Yourself in light as with a cloak.  (Psalm 104:2)  You came to set the prisoner’s free. Free me from dark thoughts and despairing sighs.  Fill me with light and truth.  Remind me of what’s good and right and true; of what’s noble and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8).  Help me to love Your Word, to understand it when I read it.  In Jesus’ name, amen!”

Do you know the better-than-chocolate Savior of our Souls?  Click on the Hershey’s Cocoa can for a quick introduction. 🙂

Stop! Drop! and Pray!

See that tree in the road?  Sometimes life hits us with detours like that.  What do you do?  Panic?  Bite your nails?  Whine? Down heavy doses of chocolate?No! I’ll tellya whatcha do — You STOP! DROP! and PRAY!!!  Right where you are, before you mark off another To Do on your list — Pray!  Try it for a week.  Whenever you’re feeling anxious — STOP! DROP! and PRAY!!!!

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”  Philippians 4:6-7

THE DETOUR PRAYER:  Father, You are and you are a rewarder of them that earnestly seek you.  (Hebrews 11:6)  I’m earnestly seeking you now!  Help!!  I don’t know what to do.  But I do know to turn to You.  Thank you for loving me and you promised to give me wisdom when I asked for it. (James 1:5)  Here’s what’s bothering me:__________________________. 

” Thank you that I can pour my heart out to You, all my complaints and woes. (1 Peter 5:7)  I DO believe You can guide me and show me what to do, but there’s a part of me that doesn’t.  Please help me, Father,  with my unbelief.  (Mark 9:24) Thankyou for loving me.  In Jesus’ name, amen.”

Do you know Jesus?  click here to be introduced: Do You Ever Feel Like Something’s Missing in Your Life?