Be a Chatty Cathy!

I've been dwelling on ways to improve myself as a Christian. I have a goal to allow God to mold me into a patient, self-controlled and deeply compassionate woman. My motivation? You might think I'm crazy or silly buuut.... I wanna be a great mom! I have several years before we start having kids (this means I am NOT pregnant! lol), I'm going to stay at home with them and I want to do a good job. I want to be an example for them, to be the virtuous woman. Now that I write this, it sounds kind of selfish but its the truth! A lot of women my age are working hard toward a career but I don't really care about that. 

Anyways... I decided that I need to pray more. And pray better. So I went to the good book and studied some truths. It's not incredibly deep but it is a start!

Sermon on the Mount

Matt 6:9-13 “. In this manner, therefore, pray:

“Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen”

Teaching his disciples  

Luke 11:1-4 “Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” 

Jesus has taught basically the same prayer in two different situations. Why? Well he’s Jesus and the stuff he says is important! It’s obvious that talking to our Father is essential but there are elements to our prayers that need to be said.

*Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name

{Praise him!}

*Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

{Ask for His will, not yours.} 

*Give us this day our daily bread.

{Ask for what you need…not silly wants!}

*And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.

{Matt 6:14-15 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”}

*And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

{Ask for help for your struggles and for others!}

*For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen

{Give Him the Glory!}

Matt 6:5-8 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”

   1. Don't pray for attention, because that's what you'll get. What you won’t get later is what you’re going to miss out on! (That’s heaven…) 

    

      2. Be honest in your prayers.  Don’t just repeat things that you know you should say- get deep with God!! You won’t regret it! 

    P.S. Don't forget to thank Him for sending His Son to the cross! An amazing blessing that cannot be fathomed! 

   P.S.S. Jesus is our mediator, you get to the Father through Him. John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." I like the simple phrase "In Jesus' Name, Amen" but it's however you like.

nnym.com

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas!

This is an ad for Swanson, but it really describes why I have really started to enjoy cooking!!

I was originally going to post my Poppy Seed Bread recipe, but I think I'll keep that to myself for just a little while longer...

Instead, I'm going to post a Chicken Enchilada Recipe that is super easy and super delicious! I fed this to my in-laws, that's how confident I am in this one ;) 

I actually got this recipe from a weekend class that Jeffrey had to take to graduate from OSU- Outdoor Cooking. Poor guy, he hated it. BUT, we got some awesome recipes for both the oven and the dutch oven!

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas
8 oz softened cream cheese
8 oz sour cream
2 c shredded cheddar cheese (I usually use alot more because I LOVE CHEESE)
15 oz canned chicken
         If you want a better texture, boil some chicken breasts and then shred them with a fork
8 large tortillas or 16 small ones

This is the bare bones, now its time for you to get creative! I add a lot of salsa personally, but you can add bacon, Rotel, canned green chilies, taco seasoning, or anything that you would think would be great in an enchilada! I would recommend a little salt as well.

Go ahead and preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

1. Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, chicken and your added ingedients in a bowl, stir until well blended.

2. Spoon the mixture onto the tortillas, I like to spread it out so I can stuff more in!

3.Roll up the tortilla and place it flap down in a lightly greased casserole dish or dutch oven.

4.Bake for 30 min. In the last 5 min, sprinkle cheese on the top or some red sauce

The centers are warm and gooey, the cheese is golden brown, the tortillas are just a little crispy on the edges... YUM.

These aren't mine, but this is basically what they will look like!

Self Control for the Uncontrolled

      As Christians, we are called to have self-control, over our body, mind and emotions. It is my opinion that self-control is the foundation for being a successful follower. If you can rein in your sinful thoughts and actions, you can be more like Christ. My personal struggle is controlling my emotions, so they don’t control me. I will refuse to use the excuse that “I’m a woman and that’s my nature, so I can’t change.”  In order for me to grow into the virtuous woman I want to be, I need to lead my heart, not my heart lead me. So this study is a step-by-step process on how to be in control!!

Proverbs 16:32 “Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.” ESV

It sounds as if having control over your emotions is a more difficult task than being mighty or taking a city, it is worth more praise than an accomplished warrior!

Gal 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” NKJV

When you are practicing walking in the Spirit (verse 25), one of the characteristics you will exhibit will be self-control among many others. 

Proverbs 25:28 “A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.” ESV

Enough said. 

James 1:19 “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,” ESV 

Quick to hear.    Slow to speak.   Slow to anger.  This verse is key. When your emotions are spilling everywhere and your thoughts are tumbling around:  stop, take a breath, even step back if necessary. If you are in an argument, listen to the other side and don’t let it offend you. TELL yourself that it will not offend you. Force your thoughts into a funnel, think about what is about to leave your mouth.

Ephesians 4:28-29 “Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”

Here, Paul is teaching to change your behavior, bring those sinful lusts and words under control and replace them with things that are beneficial to you and others! For example, when somebody flips your trigger and you’d like to implode, Tell that anger NO. If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything! Excuse yourself politely or apologize. Don’t bring down the kingdom because you allow your emotions to stampede around.

1 Corinthians 9:26-27 “Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”

A lot of self-control is telling yourself no and turning your thoughts to your goal: serving God. If you have a clear goal in mind of the Christian you want to be, telling yourself no will actually have a reward! 

Matt 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

People will notice the change in you and just how different you are from others! Your light is a shinin!!

Proverbs 15:1 “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

Self-control is not as complicated as I thought once I studied it out further. Have a goal in mind, slow your thoughts and tell yourself no. Some other useful techniques might be taking deep breaths or anything that might work for you!

Now that I have the tools, my emotions under my control!

Sugar Baby!

This post is all about.....Sugar Baby!

I've loved this little lady for a very long time. Her momma was a mare that Grampa rescued, the two look almost identical! She was born and raised in the mountains and was everybody's favorite horse. Going to see Gramma and Grampa was even better because Grampa and I would go riding in the mountains.

 She is almost 19 years old! She has aged well, don't you think?














When I was twelve, Dad, my friend Emily and I went to go get her and bring her to Claremore.
Best. Day. Ever. I'm still so grateful to my Grampa for giving her to me.

She's got a great booty :)

She's been the best teacher. When I first started riding her, I wasn't very good, but she was patient and would let me know when I was being an idiot (unscheduled dismounts is what I like to call them). She would listen to all my problems, let me do goofy stuff to her hair and would even let me nap on her back in the summer.

Look at that face!!











 

We've gone  on some awesome adventures!

And... some not so awesome ones. During high school, she caught a very serious case of pneumonia. She almost died. Worst. Day. Ever.































But to this day, she still works her butt off for me.

Too many beautiful people in this picture!

This is Willard, a pack mule up in Creede. He's 43! He helped me take some awesome senior pictures.
             Anyways, now you all know why I'm a little horse crazy :)