Obsessed with Baking... this time with a purpose!

Quick post... sort of off subject for me... but I wanted to post some pictures of my yummies that my daughter and I are making to raise money to go to camp. We're both going to Camp KidJam this year. She's going as a student (duh), and I'm going as a leader. I lead a 5th grade girls small group at church, and since this is the last year that Katie and all those girls can go to this particular camp, I thought it would be fun to go with them. You can find out more about the camp HERE.

I'm a bit of a fanatical baker, and I've recently come upon some amazing recipes that have gone over really, really, really well!!

This is a fresh strawberry cupcake. The cake is so moist and delicious, even without frosting. BUT, we put it over the top with a fresh strawberry buttercream frosting. Oh, so delicious!!

This is a white chocolate cupcake filled with raspberry preserves and topped with a whipped white chocolate ganache. I found this recipe as a pound cake last fall. It was very delicious, but I felt like it needed a little something else. SO, my friend Barbara and I made these as cupcakes, cored out the center, added raspberry preserves and made the ganache.

This is my loaded monkey bread. Yeast rolls bathed in a brown sugar, butter and cinnamon "glaze" with almonds and raisins. After baking, the brown sugar and butter glaze becomes almost candy-like. It's incredibly decadent and rich, but worth every calorie!

While I'm at it, let's post some chocolate chip cookies. Actually, these are chocolate CHUNK cookies. Everyone can make chocolate chip cookies, it's true. But these are beautiful and rich and delicious and made with real vanilla and butter. Nothing artificial go into any of my baked goods!

So, here's the thing... Easter and Mother's Day is coming upon us very quickly. You'll need a fantastic dessert to accompany your delicious meals, so why not order some of my yummy baked goods! It will save you time, and it will go into our Camp KidJam account. :)

You can place an order on my Facebook page.

Can a Christian be a Liberal?

I was going to write a blog about this particular subject, but I Googled it instead. La Shawn Barber, who wrote this blog in 2004, said almost exactly what I would have said. So, instead of recreating the wheel, I am simply going to link to her blog. Enjoy the read!

Jesus Was a Liberal

Here's another of her posts:

A Christian or a Liberal

Hopelessness

Hopelessness

Last week, we were tremendously saddened to hear that one of my son’s friends had taken her own life. Although there is much speculation, no one is quite sure the reasons why she chose to do this. One thing is for sure, though; we know she must have been overwhelmed with a sense of hopelessness.

Personally, I can’t understand hopelessness. I’ve never experienced it. Sure, I’ve been sad, depressed, discouraged, disappointed and unhappy, but I’ve never felt like I couldn’t overcome those feelings or that things would never get better. My heart hurts for her, her family, and her friends. I simply can’t imagine what she was going through or what her family is feeling right now.

What makes this situation even more heart breaking is, if I’m informed properly, this beautiful, young girl was not a Christian. Some may wonder why this is important. I see many, many posts on her Facebook memorial page about being in Heaven, seeing her again, etc. Some may actually see her again, it’s true. But if they don’t know Christ, as it seems she didn’t, it won’t be in Heaven.

This is a sad, harsh reality to come to terms with, especially when we’re talking about a sweet, loving, and kind girl. Everyone has good things to say about her on her memorial page. But, as a Christian, I believe what the Bible says. Simply being a good person just isn’t enough.

In John 3:3, Jesus says, “Truly I say to you, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless they are born again.” Jesus continues to explain that being born again isn’t re-entering your mother’s womb. It’s being “born of the spirit.” One can’t be born of the spirit without accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

John 3 goes on to say this: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.”

It is certainly not my place to judge, and I’m certainly not doing so. I am stating what the Word of God plainly puts before us. My sincere hope and prayer is that this young girl, at some point in her short life, was given the opportunity to learn the truth about our Savior and accept Him as her own.

Friends, it is so important for us as Christ followers to share the beautiful truth of our Redeemer. I hate to admit to the number of friends and family with whom I haven’t shared this truth… what would happen if they died tomorrow? Clearly, as the Bible states, I would not see them again. Even worse? They wouldn’t be celebrating in Heaven… they would be in a much more devastating place.

Not only does sharing our faith with others give them an opportunity to share in our joy, but it also gives them an opportunity to find a way out of hopelessness. This isn’t to say that Christians can’t experience feeling hopeless. Life can be overwhelming, and as humans, it can be difficult to process everything life throws at us. But I know my God is a God of miracles. He can give hope to the hopeless, health to the sick, love to the broken hearted… He is full of unconditional love, mercy, forgiveness, grace and peace…

Every week I get the opportunity to share this truth with children. My prayer is that I can become as bold as I am with these children with everyone else in my life, and not be afraid of the rejection I might receive because of it. My prayer will be the same for each of my Christian friends. Let’s not let another young person get to such a place in their lives where the feel there is no way out.

Expectations of Mediocrity

I don't get it. Why do we expect kids to act or dress a certain way just because other kids are acting or dressing that way?

I was recently involved in an online discussion regarding the way kids communicate with their abbreviated texting language. This "language" is spilling over into everyday life and becoming the norm. People have come to expect this from not only teens, but everyone.

It's kind of like fashion. Everyone wants to be hip and in style and make a statement, regardless of whether or not it looks good. Prime example: low-rise jeans. Why wear skin-tight, low-rise jeans if you have a big ol' muffin top hanging out from all sides? (Let's throw in a fitted t-shirt with that, too.) Because it's the fashion, right? But it doesn't look good. Trust me. It doesn't.

What I seem to find running rampant in our society is the expectation of mediocrity. Please know - I'm blessed to know many amazing families whose children are respectful, intelligent, well-spoken, well-dressed, etc., etc. - I'm not talking about them. :) I'm talking about the people/kids who talk, dress and act like... well... ignoramuses, fools and hoods (short for hoodlums). I honestly can't count the number of times I've gone into a store or restaurant and not been able to understand the employee, not to mention watched as they walked away while yanking up their pants. This is OK? For some, yes, it is. Because they've come to the point of not expecting more. "Well, this is the way it is now. I'll just have to accept it." Sorry, I'm not buying it.

This is one of the responses I posted in the online discussion:

"Why do teenagers/kids have to be like everyone else? Why can't they stand out amongst their peers and NOT write and communicate like imbeciles (regardless of texting language)? And parents who expect that of their children are setting them up for failure. I DO NOT expect my children to ACT like other people's kids just because everyone else is doing it. My friends' kids wear super short skirts and shorts because everyone else is doing it... sorry, not my kids! Skintight clothing and low-cut shirts? Nope, not my kids. Pants hanging down below the butt? Sorry, not gonna cut it. Oh, and I never spoke disrespectfully to an adult EVER as a child or teenager, my children don't either, and if they ever do, boy will there be some heck to pay! My children speak clearly, respectfully and look you in the eye when they speak. I would imagine my 10 year old has a better chance of landing a job than some teenagers. Again - why expect mediocrity?"

One parent's response was she was doing whatever she could to understand her teenager and her friends, and it seemed it also meant accepting behavior because everyone else her daughter's age does the same the same thing. I agree we need to work at understanding where our kids are at in their lives, but it doesn't mean accepting and condoning certain behaviors.

As a Christian mom, I know I hold my kids to a different standard than some other parents. I impress to my children that they should work as if working for the Lord, not men (Colossians 3:23). I also teach my children modesty, not only for self respect, but also to avoid tempting others and being a stumbling block to another (2 Corinthians 6:3). I know by many I'm seen as a prude, old fashioned or someone who isn't "in touch" with the times. As it turns out, I'm totally OK with that!

But here's the thing... I'm afraid that if our society continues on this path of mediocrity, we're going to end up like those in the movie, Idiocracy: a uniformly stupid human society devoid of individual responsibility or consequences. Sadly, I think we may get there sooner than most would like.