Good Old Folks

I can’t believe I just called these two fine people old. In reality, Bro. and Sis. Halstead are very young at heart. Bro. Halstead still shouts, runs the aisles and praises God like a much younger man. His worship is sincere and encouraging.

The Halsteads are a very important part of our Kids’ Church program. In the first photo, Bro. Halstead is playing Grandpa Jones, a character in our current quarter of The Real Pentecostals. Both Bro. and Sis. Halstead are wonderful teachers, and I have been amazed at some of the creative ways they have come up with to keep the children engaged and teach them the precious Word of God. Brother Halstead also heads up our outreach department and does a great job inspiring us to reach out to those in our community that have not experienced Acts 2:38 salvation.

In the second photo, they are clowning around at a meal we had recently to break a fast that we did together as a church. Earlier that week, Sis. Halstead had sent a photo to me and another sister from our church of a man devouring some chicken drumsticks. She said that was going to be what she would look like when we broke the fast. Hence, I took this photo to represent that moment. 🙂

This faithful couple has been such a blessing to our church in many ways. Getting older has definitely not stopped them from being faithful and working for God with all of their hearts.  They are living out the following verses.

 

“Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;”

Psalm 92:13,14

Just to clarify, I’m not saying that Bro. and Sis. Halstead are fat. This is talking about abundance or a “spiritual fat” that is a good type of fat.(I sure could use more of that type of fat!) I am thankful today for the great big FAT blessing that Bro. and Sis. Halstead have been to Cornerstone Pentecostal Church!

How Do You Spell Culinary Bliss With Five Letters?

Este restaurante es la bomba! The food here is incredibly good, and the service is outstanding. This is my husband’s favorite restaurant, and we actually ended up eating here 5 times during our stay.

The thing in the middle covered with sauce is a fish called Paiche. This was so delicious! I ate it on my first and second visit to Nanka.

This is duck with a very rich adobo sauce and two corn tamales. This was absolutely delicious too, but when combined with a lucuma frappucino which I had later in the afternoon and Arroz Thai Con Pollo that I ate it the evening…………………let’s just say that my stomach wasn’t too happy during the night. 🙂

I had this dish on our last visit to Nanka. It is artichoke stuffed ravioli.

 

If you are ever blessed to go to Lima, Peru, you must go to this restaurante. Es la bomba!

An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving

 

Dear autumn time brings splendid holiday
in lovely shades of ginger and saffron.
Bright leaves announce Thanksgiving’s on its way.
Our crimson blessings we reflect upon.
With pies of pumpkin and amber chiffon,
cinnamon sentiments filling the air;
sweet loved ones and friends have gathered so near.

There’s frolic, feasting till the evening tide.
Of food and fellowship we’ve had our fill.
The umber sky, sun’s fire does now hide.
Our hearts are filled with gladness and good will
which does not dissipate with autumn’s chill.
And though Thanksgiving Day has come and gone,
the many colored memories live on.

9/9/17

Food, Glorious Food!

Recently the youth of our church, and whoever else wanted to join them, went on an extended fast.(coupled with prayer, of course) I just love fasting, don’t you? NOT!! Okay, my flesh does not love it, but spirtually speaking, I know it does a lot for me, and it has definitely helped our church. As we were nearing the end of the fast, I was anticipating the “light meal” (chicken tortilla soup, Caesar salad, bread and a few other goodies) that we would partake of at our house. My, my, my, food certainly tastes good after you go without it for a few days! Going to bed last night, I was excited that I would be able to have my oatmeal with dates, walnuts and almond milk for breakfast. That might sound gross to you, but it’s one of my favorite things to eat in the morning. Anyhow, as I was thinking about food this morning, this Scripture came to my mind.

 

  Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.  Job 23:12

It’s natural and easy to get excited about food, but how excited do we get about the Word of God? There is nothing like the Holy Bible, which is food for our souls.

His Word

-can encourage us when we are down

-gives us direction

-shows us the error of our ways

-will give us a better life on this earth, if we live by it

-will take us to Heaven one day, if we obey it!

 

I do need to fast to keep this flesh under subjection, but I’m thankful that I don’t have to go without the Word of God. It is so vital to my Christian walk that my soul would wither up and die without it. I will take all that I can get, through reading it on my own and hearing God called, Holy Ghost filled men preach it and teach it! Nothing else will feed the inner man like the Word of God. So get you some “soul food” today, and every day! 🙂

 

 

New Food Page

I met a minister’s wife in December who shared with me a special “diet” that she has been on for a number of years. Actually, it’s more of a lifestyle change. After listening to her, asking her questions and doing some reading on my own, I decided that during the month of January I would try going on a mostly raw vegan diet. It has been a challenging but fun experiment. I am finding that I have more energy and am enjoying this change more than I thought I would. With that in my mind, I have renamed the former “Favorite Family Recipes” page to Raw and Cooked Vegan Dishes and will be sharing some of the recipes I have made. Feel free to visit the page, and if you decide to try any of the recipes, let me know what you think. Bon appetit!

The Road To Revival……………

is paved with prayer, fasting, witnessing and

peanut brittle!

Got Hunger?

Why not try the original soul food?

Home Is Where The Hearts Are

Don’t have a lot of dough to buy Valentine gifts?  Me neither. Here’s an easy cookie recipe that requires only a few common ingredients.  I hope all of you will have a wonderful Valentine’s Day by letting your family and friends know that you love and appreciate them.

Valentine Cutouts

 

1 cup sugar

¾ cup shortening (part margarine or butter softened)

2 eggs

1 tsp. Vanilla or ½ tsp. Lemon extract

2 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. Baking powder

1 tsp. Salt

 

Mix sugar, shortening, eggs and vanilla.  Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour.  Heat oven to 400.   Roll out dough about 1/8 inch thick and cut into assorted shapes with heart shaped cookie cutters.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet, and bake until light brown, 6 to 8 minutes.  Remove from cookie sheet; cool.  Decorate with creamy frosting.

 

Creamy Frosting

 

1 cup powdered sugar

½ tsp. Vanilla

¼ tsp. Salt

About 1 tbsp. Water or 1 to 2 tbsps. Half and half

Assorted food colors

 

Mix powdered sugar, vanilla and salt.  Beat in water until smooth and of spreading consistency.  Tint frosting with red food coloring as desired.  Decorate even more with colored sugars, sprinkles and cinnamon candies if desired.

Makings Of A Sensational Sunday

I am still rejoicing in God’s blessings this past Sunday. First of all, I’m excited because children’s church has been going well. We have some kids that are coming consistently now, and I’m believing that God is going to do great things in their lives.  In our family worship service we had 4 brand new visitors. One of the ladies that came lives only a couple of blocks away from the church. She told me afterwards that she has been around to several churches in the area but couldn’t find what she wanted. “I have been fed today!” she joyfully exclaimed to me.  I give God all the glory, because that’s what we want. People need to be nourished on the pure, unadulterated Word of God.

 

Finally, finally, I know how to make good Spanish rice and refried beans. Another minister’s wife that we were with on New Year’s Day gave Jen and I a tutorial on how to do it.   So on Sunday, I made the beans, Jen made the rice, and my husband made his homemade salsa.  Mmm mmm good!  Muy muy bien! I love good Mexican food. In fact, I enjoy it so much that I wouldn’t mind at all if this is what the Lord would want to have at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb! (Revelation 19:9) I’m looking forward to more of those beans after I go off this 3 day diet.  LOL

25th Anniversary in Oahu

We had a fun day on August 13th, our 25th wedding anniversary. After sleeping in we had a wonderful lunch at the Kona Brewing Company. The coffee was outstanding. We then headed over to Hanouma Bay, which is about 15 minutes from our hotel. It was very beautiful, and we spent a couple of hours there walking around, taking pictures, dipping our toes in the water and playing hide and seek with some sea turtles. Afterwards, we took a long drive and ended up at the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We were able to tour their lovely gardens, ride the pineapple train which takes you all around the plantation and visit their large gift shop. For our anniversary dinner, we went to Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. I have heard a lot about this place from people who have eaten their in San Francisco, but we had never gone to one. The food was outstanding, and the steaks were almost as good as my husband’s, but I would still have to give his steaks first place. I know I’ve gained some weight on this trip, but what a way to go!!

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