Please read Luke 19: 28-40

These verses provide a brief glance of just a fraction of the glory our coming King will one day receive.

The disciples found it “just as He had said.” I wonder how many things we will one day discover were just as He had told us they would be. Of course, everything will be as He has told us/promised us. I am wondering if we will be surprised that it all is true or if we expect it because He is Truth.

This event took place on the Sunday beginning the week towards the cross at the end of it.

It is a fulfillment of the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9: “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

I have read this many times but as I typed it, the word “gentle” jumped out at me. Oh, how gentle our Lord Jesus Christ is. He is so good and kind, loving and gracious to us. And He is infinitely gentle. How beautifully He portrays this fruit of the Spirit.

Here are three other verses about His gentleness. May His gentleness comfort, strengthen and encourage you today.

“Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.” 1 Kings 19:11-12.

“For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: “Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth“; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.” 1 Peter 2:21-23.

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.

“Gentle Shepherd come and lead us
For we need you to help us find our way Gentle Shepherd come and feed us
For we need your strength from day to day There’s no other we can turn to
Who can help us face another day Gentle Shepherd come and lead us
For we need to you to help us find our way There’s no other we can turn to
Who can help us face another day Gentle Shepherd come and lead us
For we need to you to help us find our way.” Copyright: Gaither Music Co.

Our family reads the Scripture together every evening. We are currently in the book of Judges. A verse jumped out at me a few nights ago and I have not stopped thinking about it and praying the words of it since, given the situation with Covid 19 that we are undergoing. It was the last part of the verse that especially struck me at this time.

Judges 10:16 “So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the LORD. And His soul could no longer endure the misery of Israel.” NKJV

Despite the sad numbers we are seeing on the news, I trust my God. I know He is in complete control of this situation. He knows what we are thinking and feeling and He knows how this is all going to turn out. It is my prayer that people are turning to the Lord Jesus Christ in this difficult time and finding He is a trustworthy, comforting source of strength.

Lord, I pray that Your soul can no longer endure the misery this virus is causing. I trust You completely and know that You will act according to Your perfect timing and purposes. I know You are with us in this crisis and that Your love for us is unchanging and steadfast. Amen.

For the sauce:

1/4 Cup Chicken Broth

4 tbsp Rice Vinegar

2 tbsp pickled ginger, sliced

2 tbsp chopped ginger, ideally from a tube of prepared ginger paste

1 tbsp chopped cilantro, ideally from a tube of prepared cilantro

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1 cup flour, powdered ginger (optional) and salt and pepper

2 cups hot, cooked rice

Slice chicken breasts into strips. Coat with flour. For an extra ginger taste, add powdered ginger to the flour before coating chicken strips. Add salt and pepper to taste and fry the chicken in 2 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp oil of your choice until brown and crisp. Add the sauce, stir well, cook for 1 minute more then serve over hot, cooked rice.

This afternoon there are thunderstorms rolling through our area. My one cat is absolutely terrified of them. I certainly didn’t like them as a child but as an adult I can occasionally enjoy a cracking storm. Truthfully, I still don’t like them at night as the lightening is so much brighter and so you know when those deafening crashes of thunder are about to hit. It definitely helps to know God created thunderstorms along with everything else. I know that no matter how severe the storm is, He is in control. Isaiah 4:6 tells us “And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.” Likewise, several chapters later we read “For You have been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm,” Isaiah 25:4. Are the storms of life getting to you? Do you cringe when the lightening flashes and the thunder crashes? Run into the everlasting arms of the Lord Jesus Christ. He will see you safely to the other side. You can rest in Him. “He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; so He guides them to their desired haven.” Psalm 107:29-30, NKJV.

2 radishes, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

5-6 bok choy, chopped

1-2″ fresh ginger root, chopped or grated

Striploin steak, cut into strips

Rice noodles, 1 package, softened according to package directions

1/2 cup marmalade

1/8 cup low sodium soy sauce

Place 1-2 tbsp oil, vegetable or olive, in a frying pan with the radishes, carrot and boy choy. Once cooked, 5-8 minutes, push to the side of the pan and add the striploin steak. Fry quickly. Remove the steak and add the ginger and stir fry. Add the steak back in and then add 1 package of rice noodles. In a separate, small saucepan melt the marmalade and the soy sauce together. When melted and nicely mixed, add to the pan of stir fry. Dish up and enjoy!

 

 

I was reminded yesterday of the verse in Isaiah that tells us our God comforts us like a mother comforts her child. “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem,” Isaiah 66:13 NKJV. Isn’t it wonderful that our heavenly Father Who loves us as only the perfect Parent can, comforts us like a mother would? He has our best in mind and even though the way can be dark and difficult at times, He never leaves us, nor forsakes us, Hebrews 13:5. Be encouraged dear one today. He knows what you are going through and He is with you in it.

 

1 Cup butter, softened

1 Cup sugar, I use 3/4 white sugar and 1/4 lightly packed brown sugar

2 Cups All Purpose flour

1 egg at room temperature

1 package Dr. Oetker’s Vanilla Sugar

1 tsp baking powder

6-8 apples, peeled, cored and grated

1/4-1/2 Cup seedless raisins

Ground Cinnamon

You will note this recipe looks a lot like my last post on Butter Cake, (Boterkoek), but there is a difference. This one adds in a little baking powder!

Sift together the sugar, flour vanilla and baking powder loosely with a fork. Make a well in the centre and crack in the egg, then fold flour mixture into the egg. When loosely mixed, drop in the butter a bit at a time and knead gently until mixed together. Roll as you would normal pastry. Soak raisins in warm water for 10 minutes to soften. Grate the apples into a pile, add the raisins and stir together with a touch of brown sugar and some flour to evenly coat the fruit. Add some ground cinnamon to this according to personal taste.

Roll out half to two-thirds pastry and place into bottom of glass pie dish. Add the apple mixture. Shake some more cinnamon onto the filling if desired. Roll out one-third to half of pastry that is left and cut into strips 1/4″ wide and make a lattice topping for your top pie crust. Lay strips across pie in one direction, turn pie 90 degrees and lay the rest of the strips across the top.

Bake in 325-350 oven, keeping an eye on it. You are looking for a golden crust. My oven takes about 50-55 minutes for this.

Enjoy!

In my last post I wrote about the Lord Jesus Christ and His family. I wrote about the fact He is both man and God. He is fully man and fully God. As I write this, Christmas Day is six days away. At this time of year we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The angels proclaimed His first advent to a group of shepherds that night. “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord,” (Luke 2:11 NKJV). This was the best news the world had ever heard and remains the best news ever to this day. We all need a Saviour. We all sin and we all need forgiveness. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Romans 3:23). We give gifts to our loved ones at Christmas because God gave His greatest gift to us when He sent His only begotten Son, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” Romans 6:23. We can all have forgiveness and it is so simple. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Ask Him to forgive you for all of your mistakes, past, present and future, and invite Him to be Lord of your life. He bore all the punishment for sin on the cross and He loves you so much! Gratefully accept His gift of eternal life today.

 

1 Cup butter, softened

1 Cup sugar, I use 1/4 packed brown sugar and 3/4 white sugar

2 Cups All-Purpose flour

1 egg at room temperature

1 package vanilla sugar powder (I use Dr. Oetker’s which come as a 3-pack)

Pinch of salt

Using my stand mixer with its dough hook, I combine the sugars and the butter until smooth. Add the egg and mix until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the vanilla powder and the salt and mix again. Add the flour and mix until a smooth dough forms. Divide the dough into two balls and press into greased (I use cooking spray) round, cake pan. You should get about 1/2 to 1 inch of height in each pan.

Bake in a 325-350 degree oven for about 35 minutes. You are looking for an even, golden top.

Let cool for 10 minutes then carefully remove from pans. Cool completely. Slice into eighths, pizza slice style. Store in the refrigerator.

My sister considered this a secret family recipe, but I have found it in my two Dutch cookbooks. So here it is! Enjoy!

This is one of my favourite desserts at Christmas time probably because this is when my grandmother would always make it. She would make it occasionally at other times of the year, but it seemed to be a special treat at Christmas. As we celebrate the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, reminders of family traditions make me smile. His family was special too. His mother was a virgin and His birth had been predicted over 600 years before by the prophet Isaiah. “Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel,” Isaiah 7:14 NKJV. “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace,” Isaiah 9:6. The prophet Micah accurately predicted where Jesus would be born, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me, The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting,” Micah 5:2. His human father was thought to be Joseph, (Luke 3:23), who married Mary despite her being with Child, Luke 2:4-5. As Luke tells us, the angel Gabriel came  to Mary with a message, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God,” Luke 1:35. You see, Jesus Christ is fully human and fully God. He is the Son of God. Christmas is about Him. Jesus is the reason for the season!

We find ourselves eating a lot of beef, but not huge portions anymore. Skirt steak is an economical cut and can be quite delicious when marinated for a few hours.

One package of skirt steak

For the marinade:

1/2 lemon juice (Realemon or fresh squeezed)

3 tbsp liquid honey

1/4 tsp salt

1 tbsp Old Bay seasoning

4 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

Mix well and place in freezer bag. Add meat, close bag tightly, and lay it down and let marinate for 3-4 hours, turning the bag once or twice.

Cook the steak in a hot frying pan, turning every 3-4 minutes, for 10-12 minutes or so. Let the meat stand for 4 minutes on a plate after cooking. Remember to slice it against the grain! Enjoy this delicious steak with rice, or mashed potatoes and a salad.

*********************************************************************

“But He [Jesus] said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” John 4:32-34 NKJV

The King James Version uses the word “meat,” instead of “food” as used here in the NKJV. Jesus always knew why He had come to earth. Fully God and fully man, He came to rescue us. We were lost and separated from God forever because of our sin. Jesus came to do the will of His Father; to provide salvation for those who would personally believe Him. He died on the cross, and He rose from the grave three days later. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life, John 14:6, and the only way to heaven. He offers salvation as a free gift. We cannot earn it, and once we have believed Him and accepted the gift, we cannot lose our salvation. Praise Him for His great love and grace today!