WORK WITH YOUR HANDS

Are you teaching your kids skills with their hands?

My Mother made many things with her hands…she sewed beautiful, long curtains for our living room and made several silky, white wedding gowns for local brides…She cooked special treats for us each week (this was before fast food and drive-through), and one of my favorites was: peanut butter on saltine crackers, marshmallow on top, browned in the oven…and she crocheted (little gifts, doilies, trim on pillow cases, and many afghans).

She taught me throughout my childhood; but I didn’t appreciate what I had learned until I became a Mommy and discovered how difficult and nerve-racking it can be to try to teach a child. God was busy teaching skills back in Old Testament days with the Hebrews, too. Exodus 35:34-35 “and he has given…the ability to teach others. He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen…”

While my Mother was teaching me the various crafts, she would sing hymns or talk about life lessons—telling me Jesus would always be with me. Our household was simple and middle class…I very rarely got ANYTHING with a brand name on it. To this day I enjoy making things with my hands--and even draw every now and then, which Mother didn’t teach me. I guess God just gave me that one as a bonus. We enjoyed a quiet, happy life even if we didn’t have THE BEST of everything. 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we
told you, so your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so you will not be dependent on anybody.

Recently I started crocheting with a group of ladies at our church one evening each week for a couple of hours…we make prayer blankets and shawls/stoles to give to anyone in need of prayer or support while going through a difficult time. As we’re working there is sweet talk…we share ideas about colors, patterns, and techniques…and we even share needles if someone walks out of the house without the one they NEED. Husbands and kids drop in and out so we get to catch up with them, too. Prayers go into every thread as it slips through our fingers off each skein and into the final shawl or blanket.

I’ve used one skein of yarn on my first shawl and have just worked in the beginning thread of the second skein…this shawl will take three or four skeins, I believe. Anyway, I’m excited and wanted to show you what it looks like so far. I also got the idea to put it up on my website and ask for your prayers to cover it…that will make it even more “prayed over” and you will be helping us in our mission work : )

This is a pattern by Shirley Evers and it’s easy; so if anyone would like it, I’ll be glad to share it. It only involves chain stitch, single crochets and double crochets, there’s not a lot of fancy counting or special turning techniques…I like ‘em simple. I should finish it within the next week to 10 days, if I stay diligent at night while I’m watching TV or listening to the radio.

So we’ll commit this one to the Lord for His Use…one day a stranger or church member will get it and I pray it will soothe them in a very warm, God-encompassing way. I wonder how long it took to make the curtains for Solomon’s temple?…it was the same colors (kinda) as the shawl I’m doing… 2 Chronicles 3:14 He made the curtain of blue, purple and crimson yarn and fine linen, with cherubim worked into it.

Seeking Him...

Lord:
Our family has faced bad weather, too…We have felt anxious because of the unknown--because of our human-ness to worry.

We ask that You guide anyone in the path of Gustav to take the needed precautions or evacuate. Give them peace in knowing friends are praying for them.

You know what the Gulf will be enduring during and after the upcoming storm, and we get comfort in knowing you are steadfast…You promised to never leave us or forsake us.

We give you thanks for the early detection of these type storms.

Give any who are displaced or being displaced, a comfortable place to sleep in safety. May especially the children not be anxious -- we are putting our petitions before you for your yoke is easy and your burden is light. You will care for all involved in ways we cannot comprehend. Please allow the peace of Christ to rule in their hearts (Col. 3:15).

We thank you in advance for seeing them through this storm…and we rejoice in hope. May we stay devoted to prayer as we wait to see the magnitude of this storm system as we seek your protection.

In Your Most Precious Name, Jesus Christ, we pray,
Amen

for more Spiritual Sunday blog posts, go to: http://bloggerspirit.blogspot.com/

Friday Fill-Ins #87

1. When I'm sick, I'm in my recliner usually watching TV...until dinnertime comes, then I'm up fixin' dinner, even if I am sick.

2. When I take a walk, I like to listen to my "First Place" scripture songs and look at yards to get ideas for gardens, all the while making sure I have no dogs following me.

3. Money can't buy happiness but it can influence teenagers, who truly don't understand how hard it is to come by...until they start their own checking account and have to keep up with their withdrawals.

4. Cotton makes me comfortable and cooler...leather makes me remember the 80's and guys wearing it who should have never been wearing it...which brings back visions of heavy gold chains peeking out from button-up silky, polyester shirts as they were reflecting light under the rotating mirror ball as we did the hustle....eeeeewwww!

5. The strangest character I've run into was "Izzy" the 1996 Atlanta Olympics mascot...they said it stood for "whatizit?"...never did figure out how this one won the contest. Part worm, part smiley, part space alien??? I remember the kids running from him instead of running to him/her/it. I wonder what happened to the 1,000,000 stuffed ones leftover at the souvenir shops...'cause I know they couldn't have sold them all...bet you can get them on eBay.

6. My favorite color these days is magenta because it brings out the blue in my eyes and gives me color..."me pale, white face and and need some color!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to going to the first high school football game after supper...to see all the different classes dressed in their "spirit" outfits...they paint themselves, their shirts, dye their hair, glitter themselves, some even wear kilts...we're the Screamin' Eagles and I haven't figured out yet why in the world they wear kilts.

On Saturday, my plans include sending my husband off (unless I feel really good and decide to go) to a local lake and to look at retirement lake property--did I say retirement, why yes I did, yippee!

Then Sunday, I want to have a cup of java, head to church to hear our next history lesson about the Methodist founders, take notes at church, then we have plans to eat Chinese buffet with one of our "graduated" youth kids and catch up on his life...then, it's off to "dreamland" while enjoying a leisurely, Sunday nap...it may be raining by then thanks to "Gustav"...there's no youth activities this Sunday so we counselors are getting a break!

To see other Friday Fill-Ins...

http://fridayfillins.blogspot.com/2008_08_01_archive.html

Right in Your Eyes

It was a busy weekend...I'm tired!
Lord, committing this time to be in Your Word, You will rejuvenate me, please.
Even you, Lord, grew tired... John 4:5-6 "So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar...Jacob's well was there; and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. "

• This would have been around midnight.
• He had WALKED from Judea, which is southern most Israel, to Sychar, which is in central Israel, so this would have taken him about 2 days!
• I traveled in a vehicle at 70 miles an hour during six 100-mile trips--I didn't walk.

While study the word "tired" You told me in Isaiah 40: 30-31 "Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. " Things it brought to mind:

• My bones are getting older, and I get comfort in knowing "even" youths grow tired and weary--it's not just us "old" people.
• Speaking of stumbling, I fell in the driveway last Thursday night and RATTLED every bone in my body, feeling like I had run my hands across a grater and jamming my right knee up into my hip. I'm sure it would have made a pretty picture as I went sprawling down onto the concrete driveway!...thank goodness it was at 10pm and dark outside. But I did feel like a first grader running into the house having my hubby "look at it" 'cause I was scared to...I just knew I had split my knee open and taken off the palms of my hands. But, God was good to me and I was just "stove up" for a couple of days (while I drove).

As my last learning point today from "tired", You showed me 2Thess 3:13 "And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right."

• I could have stayed home this past weekend and not "chauffeured" my Mom around East Alabama and West Georgia...but it wouldn't have been the right thing. Helping her in this small way gave me BIG blessings...seeing the looks on her face as she hugged and talked with her brothers and sisters-in-law...hearing them laugh about old times while we drove in the car through the country roads and on many highways...making pictures with nieces, nephews, new grand kids...things we couldn't have done if we hadn't made the trip.


• How many times has my Mother done things for me when she would have rather been doing something different? They are too numerous to list because my Mother has always been a giving, sacrificial Mother that I am blessed to have, and I'm thankful for every moment I get to spend with her, pray with her, sing with her, love our family with her.


• Yes, Lord, You have rejuvenated me by seeing what is right in Your eyes!!

One Month...and Counting

If you KNEW you had only “One Month to Live”…what would you do?

We're currently studying this question. There have been varied answers, with the majority being centered around worldly priorities…“me” or..."wants" or…things or places in the world to see, or activities to be done.

No mention of Eternity has come up at all. Once life has ceased, are you concerned about Eternity? Is today's society concerned about Eternity? The worldly things seem so trivial when bumped up against Eternity. Don’t you think?
Eternity should be known as the continuation rather than the end!

Teaching more about Jesus Christ and His Biblical promises of Heaven is very important. Reminding today’s young people, and our adult Sunday School classes, Christ is already sitting at God’s right hand and is preparing a place for those who believe on Him! That’s exciting!

Jesus was a real man, yet God, our Savior, walked, performed miracles, was raised from the dead and ascended into Heaven. He was not a “cartoon” or “just a “Bible story” to make us feel better. He will one day acknowledge believers to God when they get to Heaven...if they acknowledge Him to men on earth! That’s exciting, too!

Do we believe Jesus’ own Words?

<Mark 16:19
“After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them,
he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.”

Matthew 10:32
"Whoever acknowledges me before men,
I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.

The “world” certainly re-iterates the importance of “living just for NOW”...who wants to talk about death? When it’s over, it’s over…or so they seem to believe.

I, for one, want to focus on Christ’s words and His Promises. He was very precise in His warnings. He told us not to love the world or things in the world, and He confirms our living with Him in Heaven…after death. We will go to be with Him in the place He is preparing for us.

1 John 2:15

Don't love the world's ways. Don't love the world's goods.

Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father.

Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way,

wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.

John 14:2
In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.

How can we, as believers, not have a passion for those we love, or even those we don’t know, to understand the promises of Heaven? If they don’t believe on Jesus Christ as their Savior, there is no hope for a good eternity; in fact, it is just the opposite.

John 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”

Luke 12: 4-5
Jesus said, "I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.But I will show you whom you should fear:
Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell.
Yes, I tell you, fear him.”

Lord, We have work to do sharing Your Truth. Help give us a passion to spread the Word to this world before it’s too late and they are lost, unable to enjoy Eternity with You in Your Glory. Amen


How are you helping people understand Jesus’ eternal love for His creation?

Is That God (or Jethro) Slapping The Back of My Head?

Have you ever heard of the Bible study, JESUS IN THE GOSPELS?
It's a 30-week class involving disciplined reading, study, note-taking and prayer which focuses on the portraits of Jesus found in the four Gospels. We will also reach into the Apocrypha and the Old Testament for context understanding.

"Who is the Jesus I bring with me to this study?"...this is the question I am to answer now ... then, at the end of the study I will be asked to note "Who is the Jesus I will take out of this study?"

I'm excited to see the differences in my interpretations and God-incidences at the end of this lengthy study. Why have I signed myself up for such a long and rigorous study? In the past, I have taken Disciple 1, 2, 3 and 4--every time I honestly opened my heart, intentionally centered my mind and dug deep and searched my soul while studying His Word, He has given me rich, new understandings.

Even though this sounds wonderfully rosey, there have also been "uncomfortable times" when He has shown me where I need to change...

or better said,

"transformed" by His Holy Spirit through His Living Word...

transformed in things learned,

transformed in listening skills,

transformed in my heart to follow His nudgings,

or in my case,

slaps across the back of my head...

you know like Jethro Gibbs, aka Mark Harmon, does on NCIS --when he gets frustrated with his subordinates and REALLY needs to get their attention. (Now I don't condone physical abuse, but I wanted to get my point across about how my head feels when I finally GET what God has been trying to tell me in His Word in my quiet time.)

Plus, I just love Mark Harmon and thought it would be nice to see him in my blog...

can you tell I'm a child of the 70's and 80's...

Were you as crushed as I was when he married Pam Dawber?

Back to the important stuff...

Have you ever taken this course?

If so, leave me a note with your God-incidences and your interpretation of this study...

How were you transformed...or how did God slap you on the back of the head? lovingly, of course : )

Visiting the Blooms....

I always love to check out http://msgreenthumbjean.blogspot.com/ to see what she has "growing"...get ready to view some awesome blooms. She has definitely received a blessed green thumb. I love seeing things grow in my yard as well... even though mine does not hold a candle to Ms. Deb's from Manitoba.


My little statue is not a bloom, although she is surrounded by my blooming monkey grass. My little lady is in my island's sitting area, and she reminds me of Susannah Wesley with her apron.
As she is holding her apron out to catch water and/or provide a place for seed...she beckons you come sit in the garden. I think I'll call her Susannah from now on as a tribute to Mrs. Wesley in rememberance of her praying two hours a day (you see, when she couldn’t find a room to retreat to for her prayer time, her kids watched her flip her apron up over her head, and knew not to bother her while she prayed....oh, for those who may not know, she only birthed 19 children!)
One of her quotes was, "I am content to fill a little space, if God be glorified."

Her top 5 rules for their home:

1. Eating between meals-- not allowed.

2. In bed by 8 p.m.

3. Take medicine without complaining.

4. Subdue self-will in a child, and those working together with God to save the child's soul.

5. Teach a child to pray as soon as he can speak.

Lord, may we join together to pray to you--

may we lift our aprons over our faces should we need Your presence in any given moment--

remind us to pray with our children, teaching them Your presence is steadfast and that all we must do is seek Your face...let them know You will never leave them or forsake them. Hide us under your wings and hold us in your might hands. May we be still and know YOU are GOD!

Amen

Acts 1:14They all joined together constantly in prayer,

along with the women and

Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

Take a moment to worship with Chris Roth...from YouTube...(2 mins 4 secs.)

Meet Him in the Kitchen...

As we prepare meals for our families this week, may we each remember His Word as we are about our work. His Word gives us many ways to “meet Him in the kitchen”.

Last week I used many different spices in some of my “southwestern” food, and coriander (dried cilantro) was one I used a lot. Have you every thought about the spices the Hebrews used in their Old Testament days are some we STILL use? The next time you buy coriander at the grocery store, say a quick "thank you" prayer since it is so easily accessable and you don't have to “go around gathering” it! (Numbers 11:7-9 The manna was like coriander seed and looked like resin. The people went around gathering it, and then ground it in a hand mill or crushed it in a mortar.)

Before starting your work, and each time you’re handling any raw meats, remember “clean hands” will keep you and your family healthy. (Psalm 24:4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.) Now the pure heart might be a little harder to come by…but you can ponder and pray over yourself as you wash your hands.

When I’m cooking from scratch, it naturally takes longer than when I start with a pre-made mix.

We love New Orleans style rice and beans, as well as shrimp etouffee, and with each of them I must prepare a Roux (pronounced somewhat like the English word "rue"). It’s a mixture of my good flour and a tasty fat of some kind, usually pork fat, cooked down until richly brown—a wonderful base of the gravy. I have to be diligent, stand and slowly cook it to just the right point or it will be ruined. The Levites also stood and cooked their offerings in pans, with aromas drifting up to their Lord. (Leviticus 2:7 If your grain offering is cooked in a pan, it is to be made of fine flour and oil.)

And, I’m sure you and I share this last point:

Once I’ve worked hard cleaning, preparing my various items, cooking all the food, and putting away any leftovers and washing up the pans and dishes, I absolutely love to kick back in my blue leather, winged-back chair in my den. I get great comfort in knowing our Lord rested after all his creativity (Hebrews 4:4 And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world…"And on the seventh day God rested from all his work.")

My actual menu plan is in my right margin...

For many, many great recipes, visit here: http://orgjunkie.com/2008/08/menu-plan-monday-august-18th.html ... you won't be disappointed!!

DIG the ROOTS -- Part 4 of 6 Parts

Are you digging your roots in the Lord deeply?
Do you ponder?...read?... and re-read your Scriptures daily to see what new nutrients He wants to give your roots?

Our obedience to His wooing will richly bless us when we put our day to the side while we absorb His Word. It's only through our study that we will "know the truth" of His Word and be able to compare it to what the world is trying to put in our minds through movies, tv, music and the written press or internet.

Our senses are blasted day and night with ad after ad in today's society; and sometimes the ads touch on subjects so gingerly and subtly, we don't catch the undertone.

One ad that kinda "gets my goat" is one from Staples. It's called "the easy button"...highlighting in various stressful situations they just hit "the easy" button...and handle the situations..."that was easy!" they say. You can even download their Easy Button, http://www.staples.com/sbd/cre/marketing/easybutton/index.html onto your computer for easy access to Staples.

It sounds nice, doesn't it?! Yet a certain part of me cringes. I remember when working hard for something was not a far- away concept like it seems to be today. Am I alone in believing there must be sweat, which sometimes feels like blood, to achieve your higher goals? You, then in turn, are extremely thankful for the end product, the achievement, or His guidance in getting you there.
In Acts 20:35 we're reminded by Paul, "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' "


Working hard and giving of ourselves in study, giving of ourselves in mission, giving of ourselves in attitude, giving of ourselves for someone else's sake IS NOT EASY but IS what we are called to do. This kind of giving establishes us in love and grows long, deep-reaching roots, so we can associate with the deep love He had/has for each of us.
(Ephes. 3:17 “your being rooted and established in love may have power to grasp how long, high, wide, deep is the love of Christ.)

Lord, thank you for wooing us to You for rest, peace, learning, and love.

May we want to start every day at your feet,

being still and listening for Your input.

We don't want to be captured by the world's expectations or tricks

to lure us into thinking Your ways are too hard.

I pray we lay everything before You everyday

and depend on You and Your yoke,

which has already triumphed!

Amen

Colossians 2:6-8
" You received Christ Jesus as Lord. So keep on living in him. Have your roots in him. Build yourselves up in him. Grow strong in what you believe, just as you were taught. Be more thankful than ever before. Make sure no one captures you. They will try to capture you by using false reasoning that has no meaning. Their ideas depend on human teachings. They also depend on the basic things the people of this world believe. They don't depend on Christ."

GOD DELIGHTS IN HIS CREATION & Wordless Wednesday

Because God inspires us through His Word...I'm learning so much from so many as I read and blog. I want to send my thanks with a little of God's beauty to boot!

So, My Hands...His Glory will now have a "BEE-cause" Award...inspired by Psalm 91.

It will be given when there are special moments of time spent with God--"listenings" to His instructions, "restings" in His presence, or "rescues" and "shields" from traps and hazards. (God-incidences will also be included, because I love to capture and read back over God's creativity IN our lives...no coincidences, I believe they are GOD-incidences).

God truly does delight in His creation...

You are His creation--He delights in you, where you are, when you share with Him, and even when you don't share with Him--He never leaves your side. Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End, Holding you in the palm of His Hand!

Many, many times she has captured my heart in her words from His Word, so my First recipient is: Elaine, at http://peaceforthejourney.blogspot.com/ for "seasons of change"

Go here to check out some great "wordless wednesday" pics

http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/?p=401#comment-23216

3. EXPECT THE TEST OF THE WORD (third of seven)

Testing comes to us in many forms:

-school testing measures knowledge
-mechanics testing car parts for maintenance and upkeep
-mothers’ hands testing baby bottles to ensure warm milk
-then there’s testing of our WILLPOWER

Power to exert our personal will over our actions—firmly, decisively, and yet at times reluctantly, as was the case today at lunch.

Tempting morsels indeed…fried eggplant with tomato sauce, fried chicken and fried catfish…then there was buttery macaroni & cheese, turnip greens with pork, roast beef with dark-brown gravy, candied sweet potatoes, and fluffy white mashed potatoes.

I also definitely noticed the varied layered cakes, fruit pies and deep-dish cobblers, which were audibly calling out my name as I walked back to our table.

You’ve seen these down-home cooking-type spreads, where you are tested and tempted at every step along the buffet. Tested at the sight of the many choices, tempted by the rich smells of the hot food in trays hovering over the steamers.

I was reminded of Beth Moore’s lesson on testing…and how we must be ready for those “decision moments” and “apply victory” attitudes and words.

Being weak I struggle to be victorious in my food choices; however, I can take more steps forward than backward and make changes little by little. Beth also had said last week on her simulcast that “whatever we are not praying through is when we are defeated”.

So, it’s no wonder those around me in the buffet line were eyeing me strangely as I was praying over the choices I was making with the tongs!

In some ways there were victories...
Even though unable to ward off the fried catfish--at least it was fish instead of beef; and.
since I had “fried”, I didn’t get a "dessert"...a small victory, but a victory!!

What tests have you been faced with this weekend?

What scripture will you have hidden in your heart to “ward off” the evil one’s temptations?

1 Cor 10:13

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

2. PROTECT YOUR HEART

As another follow-up "pondering" to the simulcast, "siesta Beth" said the following:

"Anytime we take the word of God away from the heart of God we take it out of context."

How do I know the heart of God?
Sometimes he shows me through discipline...I don't like it, but sometimes it's the only way to get my attention. Deuteronomy 8:5 "Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you."

I learn about God's heart when I truthfully examine myself. I want to be in the "in crowd", and be liked by lots of people and have lots of things. I find myself measuring myself and/or my things to those around me--oh, if I could have a bigger house...if I could have more friends. These are such trivial worries in the scheme of life, yet I still fall into them at times. The more important thing to be asking, "How often do I ask how pleased God is with my actions rather than what I have for a little while?" Luke 16:15 "He said to them, 'You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.' "


God, please direct my heart to Your love, Your Word that isTruth, to live it, teach it, and rest on it as each day unfolds. Forgive me for seeking temporal today things. Your perseverance is like none that I can ever achieve so I rest in You, and You alone. Amen

2 Thessalonians 3:5

May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.

BABY BLOSSOM BLOOMS!... 1. Treasure the wonder

Looks like there's going to be a NEW blossom soon...I'm a little "eager" to see what God has planned.

It's been several weeks since I planted the "seeds" and I have watched over them along the way as they have developed in the rich soil...(seeds were planted on 6/18/08 ... see the difference?http://skirkman.blogspot.com/2008/07/simple-womans-daybook.html

Just having participated in the Beth Moore simulcast, the "seeds" were so much of the focus--and they are to be nurtured so they will "take root"...the WORD takes root and will grow in our lives like the seeds grow in the soil.

Treasure the wonder...see the new "coming" blossom...He's busy equipping my seeds into blooms...to be the best blooms they can be.


Gal 3:29 Galatians 3:29
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Update: 8/6/08 FIRST FRUITS!

Here she is...

I'm not sure if there will be more, but His glory shines EVEN IN JUST ONE!

beth moore/invisible...JESUS/VISIBLE ! !

Wake to the WORD

Ponder the WORD

Pray in the WORD

Guard the WORD in your heart

Keep the WORD on your lips

Share the WORD

Be thankful in the WORD

Rest in the WORD

God' truth is taught from her lips and today she reached >70,000 in 715 cities around the world in LivingProofMinistries' simulcast...WWWWWWWOOOOOOOOWWWWWW!
May we all guard the lessons Christ taught us today...re-read our notes and may His seed produce 100 fold.

U

"Get all excited,

go tell EVERYBODY that,

JESUS CHRIST IS KING!"

U

AWWWW, SHUCKS!!!

Lots of shucks...52 ears to be exact will yield lots of shucks. A deal(?) for $.43/ear. You who are quick mathematicians know that's $22.50 a bushel--corn has gone UP, as you well know. How much is it where you buy?

On to the important, experience--opportunity to TEACH my offspring about her past and getting my 16-year-old "shucking" soon (with me) a fete in itself. Time alone with my child, woo hoo! And her response when I asked her opinion about helping?...she chimed in, "I think it's weird we have corn to shuck, but I don't mind."

And trust me, she won't "mind" eating it either, 'cause this is SWEET, SWEET white Silver Queen corn from my favorite fresh produce stand, Chadwick's about 3 miles from here. Since I don't have an acre or two to seed, nurture and harvest my own I must rely on the Lord to provide from another source, and I am so thankful for that source. My granny's source was a friend who had his own fields and he would lovingly bring her a couple of bushels after he would harvest--'cause in the "kuntry" folks take care of their elderly and share when the crops are ready.

Granny, my mom and I would rock in the high-back rockers or sit in the porch swing, singing Cokesbury hymns as we worked throwing into the "husk" or "clean" paper grocery bag. Pulling, peeling, picking strings as we went (note: shucking's easier when you keep the corn dry as possible)...washing would take place later in the sink followed by cooking and packing in "Tupperware" for the fridge and freezer.

My plan: blanche it all; cut 3/4 of the batch off the cob, dry and place in Ziploc bags to freeze; leave 1/4 of the bushel on-the-cob for eating this week.

All this corn talk made me think of the Indians who kept this at the center of their existence. They praised corn as one of their gods. I don't praise it as a god, but it is so sweet, sweet to eat and to get toys for the kids. "What?", you say. My granny would sometimes make corn husk dolls for us...(http://www.nativetech.org/cornhusk/dollinst.html. This art can be quite elaborate but our were very simple.

Lord knows I'll have my weight's worth in husks once we're done, so contact me if you'd like some for dolls (or compost). You may be exclaiming, "Husks?!...no way, I want some of the corn."

OK, OK, I'll share if you'll come help shuck--AWWWWW, SHUCKS! you, say?!

Acts 14:17

"...He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy."