His hands - our hearts

Every Saturday mid-morning, we are out there in the parking lot of Suggs and Kelly Law Firm under our canopies, tables set for the midday service of a hot meal, dessert and a bag of snacks to go. We serve cold drinks in summer and hot coffee in winter, and for every change of season, there is a chance for the homeless to change out their wardrobe. Not only does CJ(founder) receive an abundance of donations in food kind, but tons of clothes, shoes, accessories and toiletries come in. His back-yard garage is full, and he likes to set up an extra table in the parking lot, laden with shirts and trousers, coats and other garments, sorted out according to size. In case one lucky person obtains a job interview and needs to look dressed up, he can likely pick out something suitable from the lot. You'd be surprised at the great

Kit-Kat Krave

Krispy Kat
Krunchy Kat
Kit-kat junkie
Kandy Krush
Kandy rush
after lunch
Krumble
....krunch-krunch

We only remember the good

This early on a Sunday morning, I am sitting at the desk, writing a short mémoire or personal remembrance of my Aunt who passed away 2 weeks ago, to be read at the funeral service.

It turns out to be a beautiful recollection of her goodness to us as kids. I can picture listeners nodding and maybe smiling as they identify with the feelings I express, and maybe there will be a titter or two at the pictures I painted. They will all agree, I am sure, that there was something almost "saintly" about my Aunty.

I think of the eulogies I have heard at funerals and I wonder: Do people only choose to remember the good after someone dies or do they really only see goodness and perfection when they look back, their minds totally eclipsing any negative memories of the past?

Tell me what you think or what has been your own experience.

TheSouthernJackAss: Fool's Gold ...

TheSouthernJackAss: Fool's Gold ...

Some healthy vegan substitutes

Cream and eggs are two frequently used ingredients in the making of desserts, especially ice cream. Vegans prefer to substitute with a more healthy non-dairy choice. Depending on the brand product used, the type of effect desired and the job to be done by the cream or eggs, in some cases the outcome is very near the original, and one can hardly tell the difference.

VEGAN HEAVY CREAM SUBSTITUTE
To make vegan heavy cream substitute you will need:

1/2 block of silken tofu (extra firm)
1/2 cup of plain soy milk.
Blend until thick and creamy and perfectly smooth.

HOME-MADE EGG SUBSTITUTES
Vegan egg replacements are not hard to find. However there are a number of ways you can create your own substitutes from ingredients found in your own kitchen.
To substitute for one egg, try one of the following:
Two tablespoons of cornstarch
Two tablespoons of arrowroot flour
Two tablespoons of potato starch
One heaping tablespoon of soy powder plus two tablespoons of water
One tablespoon of soy milk powder plus one tablespoon of cornstarch, and two tablespoons of water
One tablespoon milled flax seed and three tablespoons of water
One tablespoon chickpeas and one tablespoon of water
One medium banana or half of a large banana, mashed
Two ounces of mashed soft tofu and one tablespoon of water
Two ounces of mashed potatoes and one tablespoon of water
Two ounces mashed beans and one tablespoon of water
1/4 cup applesauce or other pureed fruit
One teaspoon soy flour plus one tablespoon water

Shepherd

At the
point of departure,
up from your knees,
you left me


and you,
I found,
far distance away,
a-stray,
caught in a thicket,
bleating,
my one
lost
sheep

Papier-mâché recipe and building Egypt

We worked last night until late o'clock, laying the ground work for the transformation of the school gym into Egypt, our choice this year for VBS. Last year it was Rome and it came off successfully. Most of all, we had a blast. (See photos at this link
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=30217&id=1317527766&l=7e09ad7c80

Can't think how two people can built pyramids, gardens, a palace, sphinxes (sphynges), a prison and Joseph's throne in a week or two, but it has to be done. Last year we proved that Rome could be built in three weeks, but I don't really know the time frame for Egypt. The further along we got last night, the happier Sue became... and the more doubtful was I! By signing-off time, I had singed my fingers making papier-mâché paste, dyed some of my hair green, splashed yellow paint over my jeans and sprinkled my face and arms with glitter. But Sue assured me it was all good.

Here's my recipe for the best papier-mâché:

Combine 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and 2 cups cold water in a bowl.
Add this mixture to a saucepan of 2 cups boiling water and bring it to a boil again.
Remove from the heat and stir in 3 tablespoons of sugar.
Let it cool; it will thicken as it cools. Once it does, it's ready to use.

Backyard fireworks display spirals out of control

GASTON, SC (WIS) - A Fourth of July fireworks show in one South Carolina town got out of control Sunday night. New video shows the aftermath of the accident.

A viewer sent WIS the original video Monday.

According to the viewer, who asked not to be identified, about 100 church members gathered at a house in Gaston to watch the annual backyard fireworks show.

The fireworks were set up on a small island in a pond when something went terribly wrong.

The video shows what appears to be

The musician, the man, the composer...

Push the pause button on my player (right column of homepage) and go to the1st video (interveiw) or just listen to him play (2nd video). OUAIS! (yeah mon!) Fritz Kreisler - the man - the composer. Love it!

Personality in Art
The influence of the artist's personality in his art finds a most striking exemplification in the case of Fritz Kreisler. Some time before the writer called on the famous violinist to get at first hand some of his opinions with regard to ...Read More

Does God really speak to us?

My friend Andrew is quite annoyed at people who claim that God spoke to them. "How dare anyone stake such a claim on the personal attention of the Almighty? Only great prophets of old heard God's voice from heaven. People today are only trying to justify their own convictions and desires, trying to give them credibility by saying that 'God told them' or that God called them"

I rarely meet a Christian who has actually heard a voice addressing them from heaven or from some corner of a room, announcing itself to be coming from God. When they do say that God spoke to them, they never go into details about how things really happened and how they knew it was a message addressed to them by God. I am not sure why I hardly ever ask for details. Maybe I don't wish to give an impression that I am doubting , since each person is entitled to believe what he wants about his own experience. Or perhaps I am more interested in hearing what God had to say.

Has God ever spoken to you? How did you know it was God? Does God necessarily use an audible voice or does He send messages through others, through His Word or through events that you witness? How then do you know that it isn't just your own conscience or a strong feeling about something - does it have to be God speaking?

On the other hand, if you doubt that God ever speaks, what do you make of the verse that tells us
"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” John 10:27 ESV
And why entertain the thought of praying/conversing with God if he doesn't talk back? Where will you get answers?How will you really know He was listening?

I read an article on the subject and I will share it with you:

God Speaks Today
By Martha Noebel
CBN Staff Writer

CBN.com -- God still speaks to the hearts and minds of His people today. Dr. Charles Stanley wrote of four reasons why in his book, How To Listen To God. They are:
1. He loves us just as much as He loved the people of the Old and New Testament days.

2. We need His definite and deliberate direction for our lives as did Joshua, Moses, Jacob, or Noah.

3. He knows we need the comfort and assurance just as much as did the believers of old.

4. He wants us to know Him.
Dr. Stanley shares that some of the ways God chooses to speak to us are ... Read More...

Wide asleep in the pew

Do I really need to explain the reason why I slept all the way through the sermon this morning?

Have you ever done that? The sermon's not boring and you're not particularly tired, but a cloud of heavy slumber descends just as the preacher gets into it, and there you are, wide open in the pew, head tilted over almost touching the seat , mouth open and drooling...
I believe I heard my mother say once that the Enemy does that. If he can't distract you or cause some kind of confusion or upset for you on the Lord's day, he can just throw some sleep dust into your eyes and there you go. Do you believe that? Can't quite remember if C.S. Lewis had included that ruse in his Screwtape Letters.

Feeling too guilty to give the customary compliment or show some sign of appreciation to the waiting pastor, I found myself filing out with everyone else avoiding the pastor's eyes. It must have been a spanking good sermon ( no less from John Earnhardt, racing car driver Dale's cousin). Maybe I did hear the intro. Something about mosquitoes feeding on blood. He wanted to draw some kind of parallel with Christians needing to feed on the blood of Christ in order to live His life.

I slipped between two old folks shuffling out as though I was in a hurry and looking for someone over the other side of the foyer. But I didn't escape the smile of the most beautiful Pamela, and she caught me inside a warm embrace, beaming up at me as though she was delighted I was just there today! Dear Pamela. Maybe in eighty years you have grown shorter, more fragile, wracked with arthritis and suffering from Parkinson's, but you still manage to remind us of God's all-embracing, forgiving, unconditional love

Waiting for the night

At the backside of the neighborhood
on the wrong side
sitting on the front steps
hanging with friends
blazing gold earrings
drop from lobes
strained stretched by their weight
wait
for the night
jukebox glamour
dressed in best
club bound
swirling
puffing
sniffing
high
till morning light