Gluten Free & God Seeking

Friday, July 13, 2012

The Three Parts of Man - Reading the Mystery of Human Life with International Students

      A few weeks ago we started reading through the book of Romans on Friday nights with some college students. Every week so far has been different. We never know what kind of questions are going to come out or where the questions will take us.  That's what's so fun about it.   Last Friday we were on Romans Chapter 3, and after reading it around the table,  and seemingly out of no where one of the students asked if animals had a spirit.  We told her man was made unique in God's creation; we have a spirit.  I was sitting next to her so I opened my Bible to Job 32:8 which says, "But there is a spirit in man...."  This student commented I thought we just had two parts, which is what a lot of people think.

     That made my husband tell everyone to turn to 1 Thessalonians 5:23 which is an awesome verse because it shows clearly that man has three distinct parts--"And the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly, and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."  What made this particular Bible study so incredible is there were two Japanese international students present who were hearing these truths for the first time.  In fact when I asked one of them if he had ever heard of Jesus, he shook his head and said no.  Having grown up in America that seemed incredible to me.   Even though I was not regenerated until I was in fifth grade, I could have told anyone the story of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem.

  Anyway while we were reading 1 Thessalonians 5:23, my husband started to draw a diagram which we call the 3 circles.
 If you want to see more of the verses about the this diagram,  you can check out this website--it's called  God's salvation and the three parts of man.  Then he told the students  God made everyone the same way--with a body, a soul, and a spirit, but in some their spirit is alive, and in others it's dead. You could feel the Lord turn the meeting because there was just a heart in all of us to share the gospel with these Japanese students.

     So we passed out the mini Mystery of Human Life and we read it around the table, and then we all prayed the prayer together.  Afterwards some of us were like what just happened?  Now we're just praying that the word that they heard would lead them to salvation and that there will be opportunities to share with them.


Other College Student Dinner Fellowships on This Blog:

Hearing God - Dinner Fellowship with College Students

Why Should a Believer Get Baptized?

Why Should We Read the Bible?

Coming to the Lord in His Word

Did You Know God Made You With Three Parts?

God's Spirit & Man's Spirit

What's the Secret the Third Generation of Mankind Found?

Why Are Just 2 Trees Mentioned in Genesis 2?

Discussion with College Students--What is the Church?

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Make Your Own Thai Fresh Rolls!

    Fresh rolls make eating salad so much fun!  The combination of the vegetables and noodles coupled with the crunch of  peanuts, and the hint of lime makes these fresh rolls amazingly delicious. I've tried a few versions of fresh rolls, but this recipe comes from my Come & Dine church cookbook. 

    So a few weeks ago when I decided to make fresh rolls for the 4 international students who board with us,  I  used this recipe. And yes it's better than the other one I had used before!  The Japanese students  were particularly excited when they  came home from college and saw this platter.  They told me that the Japanese make something very similar to this.  I served these rolls with Thai sweet chili sauce.  



THAI FRESH SPRING ROLLS - for 8

1.  Prepare rice noodles:  Bring a few quarts of water to a boil, add 2 oz of rice vermicelli noodles and let stand for about 10 minutes or until tender.  Drain the noodles and transfer to a medium size bowl.

2.  Prepare veggies - Put into bowls:
(1)  Shred 1 carrot.
(2)   Coarsely chop 1/3 cup of peanuts 
(3) Finely slice 3 green onions and put in a small bowl. (From another recipe, but I like it!)
(5)  Peel and seed 1/2 of a cucumber and cut into 2" long matchstick pieces. (From another recipe, but I feel it gives a refreshing touch to these rolls)
(6)  Slice 4 large red leaf lettuce leaves or Boston lettuce and put on a plate.
(7)  Coarsely chop 1/2 cup of cilantro and 1/4 cup of chopped fresh peppermint.
(8) Rinse 1 cup of fresh bean sprouts.

3.  Prepare lime juice mixture:  Whisk together 2 1/2 T of lime juice,  1/2 T fish sugar, and 1 t sugar until the sugar dissolves.   Then mix this with the following ingredients as follows:
(1)  Toss 2 T of this lime juice mixture with the noodles.
(2)  Toss 1 T of this lime juice mixture with the carrots, chiles, and peanuts.
(3)  Toss the remaining 1 T with the cucumber sticks.

4.  Prepare rice wrappers:  Bring water to a boil in an electric teapot or small pan.  Pour a small amount in a 9 " pie pan and put one wrapper at a time into the water.  Immerse it until it is soft about 1-2 minutes.  Lay the softened wrapper on a plate.   You will need to continually add some of the hot water to the pan as it cools down.

5.  Assemble fresh rolls--on the rice wrapper:
(1)  Scatter a few  mint and cilantro leaves.
(2)  Put a few cucumber sticks toward the bottom of the wrapper.
(3)  Top with 1 T of the carrot mixture.
(4)  Add 2 T of the cut lettuce.
(5)  Top with 2 1/2 T of vermicelli noodles.  (Optional:  You can add 2 shrimp halves if you like)
(6)  Fold up the bottom 2" border of the wrapper.  Then fold the left and right edges over the filling.  Then roll the filling to the tope due to form a tight cylinder.  (This is a lot like making a burrito)
(7)  Cut each roll in quarters and serve with Hoisin sauce mixture below.

6.  Prepare hoisin sauce mixture - in a small bowl put:  (Recommending to make ahead)
(1)  1/2 cup of gluten free hoisin sauce and 1/2 cup Asian bean sauce and 1/4 cup water. 
(2)  Then stir in 1 -2 T of Asian chile-garlic sauce.

Check out some of the other curries on this blog!

Tasty Thai Red Curry   (Modified  recipe from back of curry paste & Thai recipe)
Fantastic Thai Green Curry (Modified a recipe from back of curry paste & Thai recipe)
Rose's Authentic Chinese Yellow Curry  (From a Taiwanese friend who brought this to dinner)
Thai Salmon & Vegetables in Green Curry  ( Modified recipe from Internet search)
Massaman Chicken Curry with Yams & Pineapple (Modified  recipe from back of curry paste & Thai recipe)
Spectacular Chicken Panang Curry (Modified  recipe from back of curry paste &  recipe)
Amazing Vegetable Panang Curry (Modified recipe from back of curry paste & Thai recipe)
Gluten Free Thai Chicken & Pumpkin Curry  (From Internet search)

Other Thai Recipes on This Blog 

Making Gluten Free Pad Thai With a Thai Student (A combination of recipes & student's know how!)
Gluten Free Thai Basil Beef    (From Internet search)
How to Make Your Own Thai Fresh Rolls   (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)

Sunday, July 8, 2012

From the Life Study of Ephesians: How Electricity Illustrates God's Desire to Reach Man



    Every day God is transmitting His divine power to us.  A chapter in the Life Study of Ephesians I read last week said that this power is a lot like electricity.  The illustration of electricity was also one of Witness Lee's favorites that he often used to show how the Triune God desires to reach us. When I read this message, it made me think about how in another Life-Study I read last month Witness Lee used a watermelon to show how God was processed so that we can receive His divine life (John 6:57, John 20:22), that I posted in a blog called The Watermelon Gospel.  

TURBINES AT THE DAM GENERATE POWER 
FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE

God’s divine  power is a lot like the turbines at a hydroelectric plant that generate immense amounts of energy. The power  from a turbine isn’t what my toaster is plugged into.  This power is a lot like God who the Bible says dwells in unapproachable light.


THROUGH ELECTRIC CABLES THAT POWER
 REACHES OUR HOMES

The goal of a power plant isn’t just to generate power for itself.  This shows how God isn’t happy to just be all-powerful in Himself.  The Bible shows us in Ephesians 2 that God wants to transmit this exceedingly great power to His believers: And what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.... Ephesians 1:19  

The power from a hydroelectric plant reaches our towns and our homes through electric cables.   And this makes me think that this is a a lot like how the Lord’s incarnation brought the almighty God and the Creator of the universe into a form that people could finally approach and even talk to.  As God in the flesh, the Lord in the Gospels is full of love, compassion, tenderness, and mercy.  He’s not a million volts of electricity zapping everyone. 

THE SWITCH TO OUR APPLIANCES IS HOW THE POWER IS MADE REAL TO US

All our homes are wired to bring this electric power to all our appliances.  In the same way, we have been especially "wired" by God with both a spirit (Job 32:8) and a mouth (Romans 10:10) so that we can enjoy this divine transmission. The message I read said we might not even understand all the processes of turning water into electricity (I know I don’t), but we know how to flip a switch to use it! 

The Bible tells us this power is TO us--just like the electric wires are to a house, but as we all know, we need to flip the switch to turn on the lights or push a button to use that power.  This is a great picture of how God's Spirit within our spirit (Romans 8:16) makes everything that's included in this divine power real and tangible to us.  It's not hard to apply the Spirit--every time we pray, read the Bible, sing, and fellowship with other believers, etc. we are flipping the switch!!

You can listen to excerpts of  these Ephesians Life Study messages on Life Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Faith Is to Speak What God Speaks

    I've been struggling this week. And this struggle made me honest with God about where I was at.  In the Morning Revival which is like a weekly devotion published by Living Stream Ministry the verses were on Ephesians Chapter 1. When it got to Ephesians 1:19-23, I realized I had to either believe what I was reading or say it was true for every other believer but me, and somehow that didn't sound right.  These verses are actually part of the Apostle Paul's first prayer in this book.  Verse 19 really spoke to me:  And what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the operation of the might of His strength, which He caused to operate in Christ in raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavenlies. 

     These verses made me want to check out what Witness Lee shared on these verses when he gave the Life Study of Ephesians in 1978.  I was in college at the time and actually got to attend this sharing. These Life Studies are  packed with biblical background, Greek meanings, illustrations, and insight that's based on light that's been passed down since Martin Luther.  So, of course, I didn't remember much and wanted to re-read a few of the messages.  This excerpt from Message 16 inspired me because it showed me that everything was going to hinge on what I spoke.  The power in verse 19 (which in Greek is the word dynamo) is toward us who believe.  So the question  most of the time is what are we going to believe--all the facts of a situation or the facts in the word of God?  Here's the excerpt:
"What we say is what we believe.  If you say you are weak, it means that you believe that you are weak.  ... Do not underestimate the significance of your speaking.  Whatever God speaks comes to pass.  In principle it is the same with us.  To have faith is to speak what God speaks.  ... Ephesians 1:22 implies that all things have been subjected under our feet, and we must believe this.  If we do not, we rebel against the word of our Father.  Our Father cannot lie; whatever He says is true.  Hence, we must take His word and believe it.  Forget your feelings, your condition, and your situation.  Do not say that a difficult situation cannot be under your feet.  The truth is we are far above all and that the divine power has subjected all things, including every difficult situation, under our feet.  ...Forget everything and simple take the word, believe the word, and declare the word" (Ephesians Life Study, page 144-145).  
This really goes along with the song Lord Now I See that I found last week on Youtube--it's in one of our songbooks.  It's a song that makes you realize that sometimes it's not easy to believe, but the Lord is always reminding us no matter what's going on to still believe in Him.  So faith is really just speaking the truth in the word of God in the face of everything that might even contradict it in your environment.  I'm practicing to do that right now. 
                                                               
                                                                    Lord Now I See

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Make Your Own Ice Cream - Strawberry Coconut Ice Cream, Blackberry Ice Cream, Banana Nut Ice Cream, Vanilla Frozen Yogurt & Triple Berry Sorbet

Strawberry cocnut ice cream with mangos & strawberries
     Dairy free is possible.  Especially with Strawberry Coconut ice cream.  To me coconut anything tastes good.That recipe comes from  the author's website of The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook.   Last summer I also made some blackberry  and banana nut ice cream with milk.  The frozen yogurt recipe is nice and tangy and the triple berry sorbet a flavor explosion.  I made it during berry picking time. 




STRAWBERRY COCONUT ICE CREAM

Put in a blender or Vita-Mix the following ingredients
(1)   2  cans full fat coconut milk
(2)  2 to 2 1/2 cups frozen strawberries (about 1 pound)
(3)  1/2 cup honey or agave nectar,  and  1 tablespoon vanilla extract.  
(4)   Blend them until all the ingredients are smooth and creamy.

Set up your ice cream maker:  Immediately pour the liquid into the ice cream maker.  It takes about 25 minutes for it to get to the right consistency.  Transfer immediately to a freezer container.  It needs to chill about 2 hours before you eat it.
 








BLACKBERRY ICE CREAM

In a large bowl:  Put in 1 cup of whole milk, 1/2 cup of sugar and whisk together for 2 minutes until the sugar is dissolved.  Stir in 2 cups of whipping cream and 1-2 teaspoons of vanilla.  Add 2 cups of crushed blackberries.  (I usually put them in a shallow pan and use a masher to crush them.)

Set up your ice cream maker:   Immediately pour the liquid into the ice cream maker. It takes about 25 minutes for it to get to the right consistency. Transfer immediately to a freezer container. It needs to chill about 2 hours before you eat it. 



 BANANA NUT CHOCOLATE CHIP ICE CREAM

In a blender or Vita-Mix combine:   Break 4 bananas into hunks, 1 T lemon juice, 1 t vanilla, 1 cup sugar, 1 1/3 cup whipping cream, and 2/3 cup of whole milk.   Puree until smooth.

Set up your ice cream maker: 
(1)   Immediately pour the liquid into the ice cream maker. It takes about 25 minutes for it to get to the right consistency.  
(2)   Add to it 1/2+ cup of chopped walnuts and 1/2+ cup chocolate chips and let it run 5 more minutes.  (3)  Transfer immediately to a freezer container. It needs to chill about 2 hours before you eat it. 



VANILLA FROZEN YOGURT

Mix in a bowl:  3 cups of whole milk yogurt, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Set up your ice cream maker: Immediately pour the liquid into the ice cream maker. It takes about 25 minutes for it to get to the right consistency. Transfer immediately to a freezer container. It needs to chill about 2 hours before you eat it.



TRIPLE BERRY SORBET

Put in a blender or Vita-Mix:  4 cups of berries--blackberries, blueberries, strawberries (or just use 1 type of berry), 1 cup of water, and 2/3 cup of sugar.  Blend  a few minutes.  Stir in 2 t of fresh lemon juice.

 Set up your ice cream maker: Immediately pour the liquid into the ice cream maker. It takes about 25 minutes for it to get to the right consistency. Transfer immediately to a freezer container. It needs to chill about 2 hours before you eat it.



Other Gluten Free Desserts & Breads on This Blog:

Breads & Muffins


Gluten free and Low-fat Banana bread
Beth's Amazing Gluten Free Cornbread 
Banana Nutty muffins
Gluten Free Tremendous Pumpkin Muffins

Bursting with Blueberries Gluten Free Muffins
Toni's Outrageous Gluten Free Corn Muffins
Fall Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread
Delicious Gluten Free Zucchini Bread

Cakes:


Gluten Free German Apple Cake

You Won't Believe It's Gluten Free Carrot Cake

Gluten Free Polish Fruitcake
Judi's Super Moist Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

Crisps & Pies:


Lena's Rhubarb Crunch (A crisp with a gluten free top and bottom crust!)

Delicious Gluten Free Apple Crisp
Ginger's Outrageous Apple Pie

The Best Pumpkin Pie

Cookies:

Gluten Free Cowboy Oatmeal Cookies
Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookies
Incredible Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies
Gluten Free Peppermint Sugar Cookies
Old Fashioned Soft Gluten Free Pumpkin Cookies

The Best Gluten Free Recipe for Snickerdoodles 
Gluten Free Rocky Road Brownies


Puddings

Baked Coconut Pudding
Tangy Lemon Pudding

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Explaining the Parable of the Sower to a Chinese Student

     My husband and I have been reading the Bible with international students for over a year.  Besides explaining difficult terms to them, sometimes their questions give opportunities to  share an illustration. Last week we were reading Luke 8 and our student admitted he didn't understand what that chapter was talking about.  


   He knows I like gardening, and so it was easy to point out that when the Lord spoke to people their hearts were like different kinds of ground.  I summarized for him what I had learned about the  different types of ground by reading some of the footnotes from my  Recovery Version of the New Testament.  (You can order a free study Bible by clicking on this link!)

BESIDE THE WAY -  Let's say I had a bunch of seed and  then started to scatter it, the Bible says some of it fell on the wayside--that's ground that's near the side of the road and because people walk on it so much, it gets packed down.  So if seeds fell on it, it would be hard for them to penetrate the ground.   That's like letting worldly traffic make our hearts hard so the Lord's word can't get in and sprout. 

IN THE ROCKS - Then some of the seed landed in the rocks, and in that kind of ground  it's hard for the seed to grow very well. This is a picture of a daisy that is growing between two rocks in my rockery.  The soil is very shallow and because of that the  plant's roots can't grow very deep.

IN THE MIDST OF THORNS  - I pointed out to him that out by my compost bins in the alley were a lot of dandelions.  I told him that if a seed landed in there, it wouldn't get enough light or food, and the weeds would crowd it out so it would  die. Mark 4:19 says the thorns  are the anxieties of life or all the cares that take up our time so we don't get  spiritually nourished.  

THE GOOD EARTH That evening we were sitting at the dining table that looks out on the backyard, and because we live in the Northwest, my yard is full of flowering bushes, flowers, and my small garden.  So I told him if a seed landed out there, it would grow because that's good ground.  
   
  
I like the footnote in Mark 4:28:  "...the good earth (v. 8) signifying the good heart that was created by God (Gen. 1:31) so that His divine life can grow in man.  Such a good heart works together with the seed of the divine life sown into it, allowing the seed to grow and bear fruit spontaneously for the expression of God...."       

                               
Blog update 8/5/13:  This morning I was listening to a song on Youtube called Blossom of Gold--it's about the Lord as the seed of life growing within us.  It goes to the tune Edelweiss. 

Friday, June 15, 2012

Sweet Potato Hash With Poached Eggs

    This is another recipe from my daughter Michelle, who is a first class foodie.   She gave me this one over the phone, and I was a bit skeptical as she read off the list of ingredients.  But I thought hey, I want to eat more vegetables at  breakfast so I'll give it a try. 

   All these fresh vegetables and spices work together to create a unique breakfast dish.  And yes, it is delicious! This recipe is from All Recipes, which is a site I really like. The only thing my daughter added were some red bell peppers.  You can tell by the picture below that I increased the recipe so that it would serve 4.  Anyway have fun with it.


Sweet Potato Hash with Poached Eggs  - For 3-4

1.  Prepare veggies:
(1)  Chop up 1/2 a cup of onion.
(2)  Mince 1 clove of garlic.
(3)  Dice up 1 sweet potato.
(4)  Wash and chop up 2 cups of spinach, kale, or swiss chard.
(5)  Wash and chop 2 T of parsley for the garnish.

2.  Saute veggies:
(1)  Heat 2 T of oil in a skillet and saute onions and garlic for 2 minutes.
(2)  Then add the sweet potatoes
(3)  Stir in spices:  1 tsp. of dried thyme, 1 tsp. cumin, 1/2 tsp. chili powder, 1/2 tsp. coriander, 1 tsp. of salt, and 1/2 tsp. of pepper.
(4)  Cook until almost tender.

3.  Add bacon and/or spinach/swiss chard:  If you want you can add some Canadian/turkey bacon and the spinach/kale/swiss chard.  Cook until it starts to wilt about 3minutes. 

4.  Make wells to cook the eggs:  With a wooden spoon make 2  wells  and crack 1-2 eggs into each well.  Pour 1/4 cup of water evenly over the eggs; cover and let them poach for 3 minutes or until the eggs are how you like them.

5.  Serving them up Using a spatula divide the contents of the pan  and serve onto a plate.  Garnish with parsley.  

Sweet Potato Hash Casserole:  I followed the same recipe but put it all in a 9 x 13 and baked it at 350 for 25 minutes.

Other breakfast recipes on this blog:

Pancakes
Fantastic Gluten Free Blueberry Pancakes  (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Gluten Free Banana Split Pancakes  (Another recipe from my daughter-in-law's family!)
Outstanding Gluten Free Oatmeal Pancakes  (From my Heritage School Cookbook, where I worked 3 1/2 years)
Yummy Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes (From About Gluten Free Cooking)
Crunchy & Delicious Potato Latkes  (From a flier in my sweet potato bag)
Tasty Gluten Free Swedish Pancakes    (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Protein Packed Gluten Free Ricotta Cheese Pancakes  (From my daughter-in-law's family)
Family Favorite Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancakes (From my daughter's home ec teacher)

Waffles, Crepes,  Fritters & Dutch Babies 
Gluten Free Gingerbread Waffles   (This is one I adapted from Rachel Ray)
Easy to Make Gluten Free Waffles  (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Incredible Gluten Free Crepes  (Mix of 2 recipes)
Old Fashioned Gluten Free Banana Fritters   (My grandmother's recipe!)
Amazing Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Dutch Baby  (From an Internet search)

Egg Dishes
Sweet Potato Hash With Poached Eggs  (From my daughter's Internet search)
Hash Brown Egg Casserole  (From my friend Lisa)
Mexican Migas Breakfast Casserole  (An adaptation from a recipe from an airport cookbook)
Baked Zucchini Frittata  (I picked this up from a Whidbey Island farmer's market)
Jan's Sausage & Vegetable Frittata  (From a friend who was a home ec teacher)
Huevos Rancheros - A Fantastic South of the Border Breakfast  (I learned this years ago!)
Beautiful Eggs Florentine (Adapted from an Internet search)
Gluten Free Crustless Zucchini & Spinach Quiche  (From my Syre School Cookbook) 

Cereals
 Honey Almond Granola   
(From the Heritage School Cookbook)
 Gluten Free Baked Oatmeal   (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)

Breakfast Muffins
Banana Nutty Muffins   (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)

Bursting with Blueberries Gluten Free Muffins  (From the Heritage School Cookbook)
Gluten Free Tremendous Pumpkin Muffins  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Scrumptious Gluten Free Blueberry Scones  (From Heritage School Cookbook)
Thanksgiving Gluten Free Pumpkin Scones  (From an Internet search)
Sassy Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Muffins  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Claudia's Blueberry Coffee Cake (Made Gluten Free!) (From a neighbor)