Proverbs 31 Study ~ Week 6 ~ Blessing the Needy

"She extends a helping hand to the poor and

opens her arms to the needy."

Proverbs 31:20 (NLT)

This week our Good Morning Girls study group is learning that a virtuous woman does mundane chores in her home with joy and blesses the stranger in need as well.

The poor and needy are always with us, in many forms. Not only are those who are physically hungry and thirsty but I believe there are many more who are spiritually poor and emotionally needy. We are surrounded by them daily.

You can see an emptiness in their eyes, a hollow echo in their voices, a void that only the living Spirit of God can fill. The Spirit of God brings love, joy, peace and string of other blessings! (Gal. 5:22-23) Without God's Spirit we are dead in our sin... walking corpses in this dark world.

Are you ready and willing to be a blessing? To be God's extended hands and arms to the needy?

God's arms are big enough and strong enough to carry you

and sustain you to bless others!

Here are a few ways we can bless those in need today:

• Share encouragement through an email, a letter or a phone call.
• Offer a listening ear and give of our time.
• Give a meal or a cool drink .
• Clothe those in need.
• Give finances as the Lord leads.
• Wash a car, offer to babysit for a single mother, mow an elderly person's lawn.
• PRAY for those you know who are facing a difficulty in life.
• Share a skill with someone in need - how to change oil in a car, how to bake lasagna, or how to sew with a machine.

Teaching our neighborhood girls how to make homemade pie!

People can be poor and needy in many ways. May our hearts be sensitive to the need on hand and ready to bless. Our hands and hearts are connected. As we open our hands to bless the needy, our hearts cannot stay hard. But a hard heart will produce closed hands.

"If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs."

Deuteronomy 5:7-8

Even when life is too busy to open your heart and home and give of yourself, you are called to! There have been numerous times when a knock on my front door appears to be an inconvenience, a burden. But if I obey God's Spirit and open the door and bless the little children standing there who are in need of love and Spiritual life I am always blessed in return.

God's laws stand and never change. His principles remain, just as He Himself is unchanging.

The overspill of a generous life is a thing of beauty!

Here is the law of "Water and Be Watered":

"The generous soul will be made rich,

And he who waters will also be watered himself."

Proverbs 11:25

A generous soul creates a vacuum of God's goodness and blessing. He will prosper you and your home and produce spiritual growth in your hearts. I long for this!

Be encouraged today! You may not always have $5 in your pocket to give to someone in need, but you can give of what you have. We are blessed to be a blessing!


In His great grace,

If you have a little time, please stop by any of these blogs.

They will no doubt encourage your heart!

I'm linked up with:

 Good Morning Girls, Women Living Well,

Time-Warp Wife, and Growing Home

Proverbs 31 Study ~ Week 5 ~ For Richer, For Poorer

~April 12, 2008~ 

Do you remember these words?

 "I ______, take you ______, to be my wedded husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness or in health, to love and to cherish 'till death do us part. And hereto I pledge you my faithfulness." (via)

What a promise! One that I could never live up to, but by the power and help of God's Holy Spirit!

I heard some sad news yesterday that another marriage has come to an end, after almost 15 years. It breaks my heart. Not only will the adults involved be affected, but the children in their family are going through a difficult time as well.

This week in our Good Morning Girls study of Proverbs 31 we read this verse:

"She girds herself with strength, And strengthens her arms."

  Proverbs 31:17 

And where does our strength come from, whether life is easy or difficult, whether we are abounding in riches, or living in poverty? FROM GOD ALONE!

"I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little.

For I can do everything through Christ,

who gives me strength."

Philippians 4: 12-13 (NLT)

This verse is playing over and over in my mind thanks to a Worship CD entitled Seeds Family Worship: Power of Encouragement, Vol. 5. It is such an encouragement throughout the day!

 Newlywed joy!

We didn't know what the future held as we skipped down the isle as man and wife (we still don't!) But on this blissful day in April of 2008, my husband and I pledged our love and loyalty and made a covenant with each other and with our Father God to stand by one another through tick and thin, through life's ups and downs. We can and will accomplish this by leaning on the Lord for strength!

Be encouraged today! No matter how bleak life looks, no matter the obstacles or struggles that you endure, God is for you! Another verse that reminds me of God's keeping and strengthening power is:

 "I lift up my eyes to the hills.

From where does my help come?

My help comes from the Lord,

who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved;

he who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, he who keeps Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper;

the Lord is your shade on your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all evil;

he will keep your life.

The Lord will keep

your going out and your coming in

from this time forth and forevermore."

• 
  

Psalm 121:1-8

Happy in the arms of my man...

The Lord is trustworthy! For richer or poorer He will keep us. He will keep our families safe, our marriages healthy and our homes peaceful. Trust in Him!

Have a blessed week,

I'm linked up with:

Proverbs 31 Study ~ Week 4 ~ Being Diligent

This week we are learning about the diligence of a Proverbs 31 woman.

"She also rises while it is yet night, And provides food for her household, And a portion for her maidservants." 

Proverbs 31:15

For me, this translates into caring for my family and home by preparing ahead. When I plan meals, cleaning and outings ahead, life goes a bit more smoothly. Also, waking up earlier than the kids is important. This gives me a head start on planning the day - getting a bathroom cleaned, laundry going or dinner started in the crock pot, and most importantly having a bit of quiet time in the Word and with my Lord!

Here is a tool that helps me stay organized and focused.

My Household Notebook - more details soon!

Today's verses from our Good Morning Girls' study really encouraged my heart.

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do,

and he will establish your plans."
Proverbs 16:3 

 "The plans of the diligent lead to profit

as surely as haste leads to poverty."

Proverbs 21:5

It's up to us to be diligent, and plan ahead yet be willing to be flexible.

We get to listen to the Holy Spirit's promptings throughout the day and follow His lead. Whether it be to invite a friend over for a cup of coffee and a visit or to stay home and care for our children, when we would rather be out and about.

"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going."

Ecclesiastes 9:10

When we are diligent to plan ahead and work hard to accomplish what needs to be done, we get to enjoy times of relaxing and fun! Life becomes fuller - with purpose and accomplishments.

Ready for a date with my hubby.

House chores done and kids cared for

leaves me ready to enjoy the evening with my man!

I pray that we become diligent in the daily routine of life - planning, preparing, cooking, cleaning, teaching, and loving. God WILL bless the work of our hands and our family WILL prosper!

I hope you are encouraged today!


Blessings,

I'm linked up with:

      

     

A Baby Shower for a Little Peanut! {Thoughtful Momma Monday}

Thoughtful Momma Monday

Three generations of beautiful women of God!

Deanna, her daughter and her mother.

As soon-to-be mommas, we get to enjoy a special day of gifts and girl friends to help get ready for our baby. When my dear friend Deanna was ready to celebrate the soon-coming arrival of her first son, I knew that I wanted to help out! Her mother, another close mutual friend and I co-hosted a fun, colorful shower in February. (Yes, this post is a little late, but there will be a nice bonus at the end of it :o)

Here is a little peek into the special event!

Elephants galore!

A BIG thanks goes to Julie of Build, Sew, Reap for the use of her adorable elephant drawing for the shower invites and decorations!

After scouring the Internet for a decent elephant, I came across a sweet grey fellow that I fell in love with. I quickly asked the artist's permission and she said "yes"! I added a little orange heart, as if the elephant were blowing a bubble and then added a circle around it. This little guy decorated the address labels, the invitations, a name banner at the party, cupcake toppers and the blessing cards for baby Asher.

We went with the colors orange, brown and teal... then added lots more colors to the decorations!

 Invitations... ready to go!

 

When guests entered the building, they were welcomed and asked to wear a name tag, as the group was pretty large and there were people from various parts of Deanna's life - family, church members, and friends.

Then the ladies were invited to make a guess as to how many diapers it took to create a lovely diaper cake that was part of the decor. My mother-in-law can "bake" some pretty great diaper cakes :o)  Another dear friend hand made a lovely wreath as the prize for the winning guess! Such a great gift to give away!

After the ladies visited and mingled for a bit, we opened the party with prayer and introduced some of Deanna's family members who were there. Then we opened the food and punch line. Boy was is tasty!

A lovely spread provided by Deannas' mother, Sherry!

Some of my very favorite snacks were the bowls of chocolate, vanilla popcorn and the banana sour cream cupcakes! Yes, I have a major sweet tooth :o)

After most of the ladies were through eating, it was time for a couple fun games! I hosted a game of nursery rhyme jeopardy. A few of those ladies knew their nursery rhymes!

Ready to play!

 We also enjoyed a game of writing down a candy bar that best matched a given phrase. Dawn lead that game and the winners of each game received a gift card to Chick Fil A! Yumo!

After the games we had a little more time to visit while Deanna opened gifts. We oohed and aahed together over the darling clothes and personalized items she received for her boy.

Blessed beyond measure!

Her boy is going to be dressed in style!

Before the ladies left the party, we invited them to take a moment to write down a blessing for baby Asher on a card and pin it to a twine clothes line that displayed his name. Deanna is able to use them as she wants - either to help decorate the baby's room or to place in a scrapbook. I enjoyed carrying the elephant theme and color scheme over to the cards as well!

The blessing card table

The meaning of Asher's name and a request

We ended by gathering around Deanna to pray a special blessing over her. It was a fantastic, faith-filled end to a fun day!

"...The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous [woman] avails much."

James 5:16b

What an enjoyable time together of celebrating new life! God blessed the work of our hands and Deanna went home with car loads of items that were so helpful in preparing for the arrival of her son.


A big THANK YOU goes to Zuly Martin of Aim N Shoot Photography for the lovely photos!


I have been thrown, and have given, a few baby showers and they are always so much fun! Here are a few tips that will help you host a great shower.

• Choose a theme and color scheme to go with and have fun!
• Offer tasty, healthy finger food and a refreshing drink.
• If you prefer to play games, be creative with them (a great source for shower games is this website!)
• KISS - keep it simple, silly.
• Focus on the Momma-to-be. What are her favorite foods, colors, games? How can you bless her and make her feel loved and special?
• PRAY! Pray that the party would be enjoyable to all and also pray for the momma at the end of the party. Having one of the hosts pray aloud while the others gather around is such a blessing and a great way to end your time together.

Thanks again to all the ladies who helped bless my dear friend, and as I promised, here is a bonus for my late blog post.... the beautiful baby boy!

Asher Liam Stewart ~ Mother's Day 2012

 

God bless your week,

Here's a sweet little poem to leave you with ...

A New Mother's Motto

Author: Linda E. Knight

Teach me well, my little one...
To cherish the moments I have with you,
for all too soon
they will swiftly pass away.

Remind me to pause and touch
your soft, small cheek,to marvel at the innocence in your eyes
and the perfect beauty of your face.

Show me how to treasure more the miracle
that life has given me in you,
to complain less about and praise more
the boundless things you're sure to do.

In the stillness of the night,
when you wake me from my slumber,
help me to realize how truly blessed I am
to be able to hold you next to my breast
to comfort and cradle you close to my heart.

And as the seasons pass away,
may I never look back in regretat what may have been.
May I instead leave a legacy
for you to follow
as you in turn will one day welcome
a little one of your very own.

Asher... a blessing indeed.

One Delicious Chocolate Cake

I've had this chocolate cake recipe up my sleeve for a while. I'd LOVE to share it with you!

Actually, it belongs to Kate Sullivan, but I found it on Lick The Spoon. It's been in my recipe binder for two years now... so I guess I can call it mine  :o)

It calls for a lot of eggs and some coffee... adding to the moist, rich taste. And it makes a LOT of batter. Great for cupcakes for a large party.

This recipe made two round cakes, so here's what I made with them for my hubby's birthday:

The tastiest Pac Man ever!

The second cake got whipped cream and strawberries

for our family birthday party.

One Delicious Chocolate Cake (Kate Sullivan)
2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon baking soda
3 cups granulated sugar
5 eggs, room temp
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 ½ cups buttermilk, room temp
1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, melted
1 ½ cups strong coffee

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour sides and bottoms of pans. Set pans aside.

In large bowl of mixer, stir together the flour, cocoa, salt, baking powder and soda. Stir in the sugar.

In small bowl, combine the eggs and vanilla extract. Mix into the dry ingredients. Stir in the buttermilk, melted butter and coffee. Divide batter evenly among pans.

Bake at 350 for around 50 minutes. Transfer to wire cooling rack.

 As always, I have the cutest help around!

Easy Foolproof Ganache
18 ozs semisweet chocolate chips
1 ½ cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon liquor or flavoring (optional)

Heat cream until nearly boiling. Pour over chocolate chips, cover and let sit 10 minutes. Whisk chocolate and cream (and flavor if using) until well combined; dark, smooth and glossy.

Let sit at room temp until cooled. To thicken, beat with hand mixer for a few minutes. Also thickens over time as it sits.

Refrigerate in airtight container for up to a week. To restore to spreading or glazing consistency, heat and stir over double boiler for a few minutes until softened.

The chocolate ganache recipe was a hit

at Mo's 2nd birthday party!

Sweet face

Served these cupcakes with strawberry-cream cheese frosting.

Princesses MUST have pink everything!

My princess turning 3!

As you can tell, we love chocolate cake! Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have.

Have a blessed weekend,



PS - just a few more pics of my girl... cause she's a great baker and such a cutie pie!

I'm linked up with: