Tag: follow Jesus

Prayer

Silent Before the Lord

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My soul waits in silence for God only; Psalm 62:1

I am a pro at giving God my laundry list of “to do’s”. I talk, and talk, and cry out to Him as I am supposed to as His daughter. We are to cast all our cares on Him. What an incredible blessing to give all of our concerns to God, knowing He will take care of whatever concerns us.

There are times when we need to stop talking and just rest in Him.

When was the last time you were silent before the Lord? I don’t mean not knowing how or what to pray. I mean sitting before the Lord in silence. Not asking, or pleading, or begging Him to do something. Just being in His presence and letting Him, through the Holy Spirit, do the talking.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. John 14:26, NASB 

This may sound weird, or uncomfortable. After all, we are supposed to bring our requests before the Lord, and we absolutely need to do that. What if we hit the pause button on the requesting every now and then, and just sat at His feet, and waited for Him to talk to us. I am learning to do this more and more, and it’s quite remarkable what happens to me. I get more peace just being with the Lord.

Being silent before the Lord takes some discipline, and you can’t have distractions. Turn off the phone, or place it out of ear shot. No music, no noise, no screens. Allow nothing that will grab your attention. Close your eyes and ask the Holy Spirit to speak. Now, be still, wait, trust, and let Him speak to your soul.

As we sit in silence with the Lord our confidence in Him grows stronger. He already knows what we need before we ask Him, so ultimately, every problem we have He has an answer awaiting at just the perfect time. We can take this time to find refuge in Him, knowing He will take care of us.

My soul waits in silence for God only; From Him is my salvation. Psalm 62:1, NASB

God is our salvation. While we wait for His perfect answer to our prayers we can be confident in the God of the universe. Waiting in silence is placing our complete trust in Him. This is not passive. While we wait, God will refresh our souls, give us new strength, and new perspective.

He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken. Psalm 62:2, NASB  

We can trust God.

He will answer. He will come through. He is the Rock.

Love you all,

Meghan

Photo credit: Meghan E. White

grief

The Compassion of Jesus

meghanewhite

img_6507There is no end to the love and compassion of Jesus for the hurting. He still acts the same today as He did two-thousand years ago. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. No one has the amount of compassion that Jesus does, and as His kids we get the benefit of that compassion. It’s unbelievable to experience the love of Jesus through His compassion. What an amazing Savior!

A beautiful illustration of Jesus’ compassion is when He healed the widow’s son. It’s just another example of His many miracles that appear in the middle of an ordinary event, yet it was all part of God’s perfect plan.

Jesus Raises a Widow’s Son

11 Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12 As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.” Luke 7:11-13, NIV 

Jesus stopped everything to help this hurting woman. She had already lost her husband, and now her only son was dead. This poor woman had twice the pain and heartache, and Jesus saw her. His heart went out to her, even though He was surrounded by a large crowd, probably wanting His help. Jesus had compassion on the widow.

It does not say she had been praying and asking God for a miracle. Maybe she was asking for a miracle, we don’t know, but God intervened. There was a perfect meeting between Jesus and the widow at the exact perfect time. Jesus felt her pain. His loving words, “Don’t cry,” say it all. 

It gets even better.

14 Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. Luke 7:14-15, NIV 

Jesus touched the coffin (bier) with His mighty power and brought the young man back to life. In an instant the widow, and all the mourners, went from sorrow to celebration. He brought life from death, joy from sadness. Only Jesus can do that. 

It doesn’t end there.

16 They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country. Luke 7:16-17, NIV

Because Jesus stopped and helped a hurting widow by bringing her only son back to life, the good news spread. It wasn’t just about helping one person. God can multitask like no one’s business. He can accomplish one million things in a nanosecond. 

Jesus’ heart went out to the widow. In the middle of large crowds of people all clamoring for His attention and help, He saw the widow. Jesus helped a grieving soul with His words of comfort and compassion. And then He performed a great miracle by raising her dead son back to life. 

Jesus’ compassion for the widow changed everything for her. The moment He came on the scene a great miracle happened with one touch. A young man sat up in a coffin, a mom’s heart was filled with joy, and many people learned about this wonderful Jesus. Lives were forever changed.  

Jesus sees you. He knows when you cry. He knows when you are hurting, devastated, and hopeless. He sees, and He knows. His compassion for You is powerful, and life changing, because He loves you and will help you. 

Love you all,

Meghan 

Photo Credit: Meghan E. White 

Food

Pickled Red Onions

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Pickled red onions are simple to make, yet they add so much flavor and texture to any dish. These are delicious with pulled pork or pretty much any barbecued meat. Pickled onions are great on tacos, salads, sandwiches, or straight from the jar.

The red onions are crisp, and tangy. I love having these tasty and nutritious onions on hand for whenever I want to add a little crunch to any recipe. I know you’ll enjoy these yummy onions too.

Happy Eating!

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

Pickled Red Onions

Ingredients

2 thinly sliced red onions

1 cup white vinegar

3 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons sugar

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, salt, and sugar until they are dissolved.
  2. Place sliced onions in a large jar. Pour vinegar mixture over the onions and screw the lid in place.
  3. Let sit on the counter for at least an hour. Once the onions are tender and bright pink they are ready to eat. 
  4. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Food, Uncategorized

Banana Ice Cream

meghanewhite

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I had several very ripe bananas that I wanted to use up. Another loaf of banana bread wasn’t going to work, since I had two loaves in my freezer. Then the idea popped in my head to make banana ice cream, since I had seen it online. I love trying new things, so I went for it.

My experiment worked beautifully, and really surprised me. Frozen bananas make great ice cream. The texture is like soft serve, sweet, creamy, and delicious. You just need ripe bananas and a food processor, or blender. So simple, yet so refreshing.

The best part about this ice cream is you can add things like chocolate chips, peanut butter, vanilla, or other frozen fruits to make any flavors you wish. This easy one ingredient banana ice cream is the base, and you can create to your hearts desire and your taste buds desire.

Some call this banana nice cream, since it’s not technically ice cream. Call it whatever you like. But definitely give this banana ice cream a try if you’ve got some ripe bananas sitting around. This is a great way to use them. Enjoy!

May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. Jude 1:2

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Banana Ice Cream

Ingredients

3 ripe bananas

Optional:

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 to 2 teaspoons agave nectar or maple syrup for extra sweetness

Equipment

Food processor or blender

Instructions

  1. Peel and slice ripe bananas into 1 inch pieces. Place sliced bananas in a freezer bag and freeze for at least a couple of hours until frozen solid.
  2. Put the frozen bananas in a food processor or a blender.
  3. Chop or blend banana in short intervals. At first the bananas will be in large chunks until they get crumbly. Scrape down the sides between each pulse of the food processor or blender. After a few minutes the bananas will become smooth and creamy, like soft serve.
  4. Transfer to an air tight container and freeze. You can eat the banana ice cream right away, or freeze it to get it more solid. It’s delicious either way!

Notes

*A food processor works well. I have used my blender, which isn’t very powerful, and it worked fine, it just takes a bit longer.

* One banana is approximately one serving.

*Keep blending until the bananas are smooth and creamy, like soft serve.

* Add in chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruits, peanut butter or anything you like. I’ve made banana ice cream with frozen strawberries and it’s very good. Be creative.

* Use this delicious chocolate topping Homemade Magic Shell

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Trials

My Wonderful Church Family

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My church family is amazing. They have poured into us during this difficult time of Tom’s hospitalization and sickness. As soon as they got word of Tom being in the ICU, the phone calls and texts started pouring in. They were ready to storm the hospital and lay hands on Tom.

Since coming to the hospital was not ideal, my brothers and sisters in Christ stormed the gates of heaven on Tom’s behalf. While in the ICU I’d receive a text letting me know they were praying.  Their words were faith filled, saying things like, “God’s going to heal Tom” “God is faithful” “Healing is His hobby”.

It was so encouraging as everything we saw looked like death. They have stood in the gap for us and they continue to do so. Our pastor and his wife have been supportive and willing to help us, and our whole church family is praying for us. I want to give honor to this very special group of believers that I call not just friends, but family. Here are just a few of my church peeps that I want to give a shout out to. 

Sharon is a pillar of the church and a faithful prayer warrior. She has sent us the most beautiful letters filled with scriptures, encouragement, and hope. She regularly calls and asks for updates. She is a blessing who has weathered her own storms, yet is full of faith. 

My sweet friend Hawah called me while Tom was in the ICU as she was getting ready to leave the country. She took the time to reach out and encourage us as she was preparing for a long trip overseas. Incredible woman.

Joyce is the perfect name for a woman filled with joy. She is an encourager and every single time we talk, or she texts, she reminds me of God’s faithfulness. Her reassurance is so comforting. 

Koffi is a faithful prayer warrior. Originally from Ghana, he’s a big guy, with a big heart, and a booming voice. When Koffi prays I feel like I just experienced God’s presence. He prays with confidence, authority, and humility. 

Koffi called me the first week Tom was home from the hospital. He said in his thick accent, “How is my brother Tom doing?” Then he went on to tell me that he’d been praying for us all day, and that the Holy Spirit impressed on him to pray for us at that moment over the phone. I put the phone on speaker so Tom could hear as Koffi sang a hymn, “There is Power in the Blood”. Then he began to pray a powerful prayer for Tom. 

A couple weeks ago, Koffi and Joyce, who is also from Ghana, showed up at our house with donuts and prayer. Since Tom was sleeping we stayed outside. Koffi wanted to pray, so the three of us huddled on the sidewalk as Koffi called out to God for healing. It was beautiful. 

I share these stories to give glory to God, and to give thanks to some very special people in our lives. When we haven’t had the words to pray, our amazing church family has prayed. They stand in the gap for us, and they keep standing. 

My church family has shown me what love looks like. What humility and sacrifice is. I have so much to learn from these precious people. What an example they are to me. I am grateful. Thank you God for this loving group of believers. Bless each and every one of them for their steadfastness. 

And thank each of you who have prayed for Tom. Our battle is not over, and every prayer matters. Thank you! 

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

John 15:12-13 

Love you all,

Meghan

Photo credit: Meghan E. White