Monday, November 11, 2013

Blueprints for the Temple

 
Yesterday in Jr. Church we continued learning about the Kings of Israel. 
We learned how David wanted to build a temple for God but that God would not allow him because he was man of war.  Although David would not see the temple built in his lifetime, God did allow David to collect all the materials needed to build the temple.  We talked about David and the people giving to God and how they gave with a willing heart and how we too should have a willing and giving heart to God and to others.
 
All week I could not think of a craft to go along with our story so at the last minute I pulled out big pieces of paper and had the kids draw blue prints of what they think the temple should have been like.
 

I was amazed at how concentrated the kids were as they
were designing  their blueprints.  They were so thoughtful as per what needed to go into their temples.  Every temple needed a special prayer room and a counseling room for someone to get saved of course.  They were so careful where they placed the bathroom and the nursery and made sure there was plenty of room in the courtyard.
 
 
It turned out to be a great craft and the kids really loved it.  I plan to hang their blueprints on the wall as we start learning about the life of Solomon next week.  Of course we will be talking more about the temple and how God designed it.   Of course I am sure they will be a little crushed to hear there was no phone booth, candy room or lunch room in the temple!
 
 

Freezing Bananas and Avacados

 
Earlier last week we received a bunch of bananas, avocados and lemons. 
We gave away as may as we could but I still had quite a few left. 
It had been such a busy week that I had not bee able to do anything with them and they were starting to get very ripe.  Saturday is always such a busy day and with no time on Sunday I decided I needed to do something quick and easy, so I decided to freeze them.


First I took the lemons and rolled them and then cut off the end
and squeezed the juice out of them.  I got about six to seven
tablespoons of juice out of each lemon.
 
 
 I then peeled the bananas and put them in a big mixing bowl. 
 
 
I used my hand mixer and mixed to the consistency I wanted. 
 I did not use the food processor as I did not want the mixture to be totally smooth but to have a few some small chunks left in it. I added a tablespoon of lemon juice for every two cups of banana puree.  It is suggested you add a tablespoon of lemon juice for every cup of puree but I think that makes it taste more like lemons than bananas!
 
 
Now I have several big bags of banana puree to make banana jam out of and also several small bags to make banana bread with for Christmas.
 
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I then tackled the avocados.  I started out using my Magic Bullet
and was doing two avocados at a time but this was taking me way too long so I brought out the food processor and was able to do it in two batches.  I pureed it very finely leaving no chunks and then added one tablespoon lemon juice for every two avocados.

 
I now have several bags of pureed avocados for guacamole and for my favorite avocado smoothies! 

 
 


Friday, November 8, 2013

Get Out Of Town!

This was firmly told to us last month by the sweetest and oldest member of our congregation.  For Pastor Appreciation month she gave us a beautiful card and a note to use the contents for a hotel room and relaxing time away.  What a totally sweet and thoughtful gift!

My husband had been wanting to go a few hours north of here and check out some building supplies for the new building before it snowed so yesterday we packed up and headed out.  We had a wonderful, peaceful drive and laughed and talked and really enjoyed some alone time.  
 

 
After we checked into our hotel we headed to the Western Baptist Missions Warehouse where we met Doug and Robin Baker.  They are truly a wonderful couple who love the Lord and love helping anyone and everyone they can!  They showed us through their warehouse which was full of doors and windows and chairs and building materials that they get from people and churches back east and use to help small churches here in the west.  We went to dinner with Doug and Robin and their family and had a wonderful time fellowshipping, talking, and laughing, late into the night. 
 
 
This morning before we left town, I was able to meet in person, a lady I had known online for years.  Glenda and I are on a Baptist ladies message board together and through that we have shared a lot of laughs, some tears and countless prayer requests for each other.  She was as sweet in person as I had thought she was and I so enjoyed getting to know her better!
 
We headed home before noon as we had to be back to help
Mason with Teen Night.   Mason is doing such an awesome job with the teens and his message tonight was so sharp and clear and totally touched my heart and convicted me about several things.
 

Dinner tonight was outrageous and Mason had all the teens rolling on the floor with laughter before the night was over.  Although the teens were very reluctant for the night to end, I was so ready for them to head out so I could clean up and be able to get home myself.  Tomorrow is going to be another busy day filled with a funeral and preparations for Sunday so I am so thankful that God gave a us a night away to relax and refresh! 

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

A Note of Encouragement

One of the hardest things in the ministry is making decisions that will not only affect you and the church but the lives of other people.  Recently my husband was faced with this type of decision and he prayed and prayed and prayed for God's leading and guiding in this decision.  He talked to some very godly men, talked to the people of our church and then spent an evening on the phone talking to a very wise man who had trained my husband and mentored him in the ministry.  After weeks of prayer my husband made a very difficult decision that would deeply affect a few people but would be the best decision for our church. 
 
The weeks before and after the decision was made, were very stressful times and although we were leaning on God for strength during this time, there were still things that had to be done and organized and of course people in our church and even outside our church were affected.  That's why it was such encouragement to us when we received this in the mail this week.
 

A beautiful card from a very dear friend and fellow servant in the ministry.  Through the years we have served together, laughed and cried together and tried to encourage each other as we have both went through trying times in the ministry and with our families.  This friend knew exactly what was going with our church and situation and although he gave us no advice and did not tell us what he thought we should do, he simply kept calling us and texting us as he let us know he was praying for us.  As I said it was a beautiful card but the most touching part was what was on the inside. 
 

Although we knew this was the right decision for our church, it still was a very difficult one to make and one that we agonized over. Even after it was made we still wondered, what if we had not made this decision, what if we could have done it a different way, what if?  I can not quite explain how encouraged it made us feel when we saw the words "I Believe in you" circled and emphasized!  A Pastor may be the leader of the church but they have the same decisions to make, the same emotions and the same feelings of inadequacies that everyone else has.  Sometimes your Pastor needs words of reassurance that someone believes in them and what they are doing no matter what decision they have to make.  This simple card was such an encouraged to us during a time we really needed it! 
 
If your in the ministry, do you try to encourage your fellow servants in the Lord?  If your not in the ministry, do you let your Pastor know you support him and give him encouragement as he makes decisions and ministers to the sheep in his flock?   A word of encouragement from you can help brighten someone's day and help them through a trying and difficult time.
Write a note of encouragement today!


Monday, November 4, 2013

A Pastor's Wife

 
After Sunday services last night I was talking with one of our bus teens.  She is the sweetest teenager and comes to every service and activity she can.  She was telling me how much she loves church and would love to be a Pastor's wife as it would be so cool to be involved in church things all the time!  I had to smile as I had thought the same thing when I was a teenager.  
 
Growing up I loved watching my Pastor's wife and how she loved
and encouraged her husband, how she was always helping people, serving, ministering and teaching and she always did it with a smile on her face. 
I was so excited when my husband surrendered to preach
because that meant I was going to be a Pastor's wife!
 
Being a Pastors wife has been everything I thought it would be. 
I love being at my husband's side and doing whatever he needs done as I
 try to support him and love him as he does one of the hardest jobs I know of! I love the opportunity to witness to and tell so many people about Jesus, the one who has changed my life and gives me a life of love, joy and peace!  I absolutely love speaking and giving devotions to our ladies group as we strive to be better wives, mothers and women.  I love being busy and helping and encouraging people in whatever they need and I love teaching the kids and the teens and teaching them about the unconditional love of God.
I truly love every aspect of the ministry and all
the busyness that goes along with it!
 
Along with everything I love about being a Pastor's wife I never imagined the struggles, the trials, and the heartaches the ministry would bring us over the years.  I never imagined that there would be times I would not see my husband or be able to talk to him for days and sometimes weeks.  (He doesn't need to be away from home for me not to be able to "see" him or "talk" to him)  I never imagined being a Pastor's wife could be so lonely even though I am always surrounded by people.  I never imagined how mean people can be even though the situation they are upset about has nothing to do with you.  I never imagined that you would never have time off, that people would always be calling and texting and coming over at all hours of the day and night as they seek advice, counseling and help.  I never imagined that there would be some days where I would get up at dawn and not stop running until well after midnight.  So many things I never imagined!

So as I was talking with this beautiful young lady last night, I encouraged her that a Pastor's wife was truly a wonderful thing to want to be and that it was amazing to be able to serve God full time.  I also told her that if she did become a Pastor's wife that there would be many joyful and fun times but there would also be some times filled with struggles, trials and even heartache but that through it all, our God who is Mighty in power and strength, would see her through and that she would never regret being,
A Pastor's Wife.
 


Sunday, November 3, 2013

A Different Direction

I have been asked several times lately why I have not updated my blog. 
There are several reasons actually, one being that supporting my husband and serving beside him in the ministry keeps me so busy!  The other reason is, that although my blogs name is "Another Day in the Ministry", there is so much in my day that I can't share and because of this I feel I have diverted from the direction I wanted this blog to go when I started it. 
After several months of praying, God has put a new direction on my heart for this blog and I pray that it will be an encouragement to you! 
Watch for new posts later this week!