Cookie Baking Night 01/17/11

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Ethan, Carissa, and Emily. Yesterday, Ethan turned 8 years old. As is our birthday tradition at Cookie Baking Night, tonight he was allowed to choose the meal and the cookie we made. For the meal, he chose: Macaroni & cheese, french fries, and sliced bananas. For the cookie he chose: Sugar cookies (with frosting).

After we finished our cookie baking project, I brought out a new book I purchased for Cookie Baking Night. It's called 365 Things to Make and Do by Usborne books. We thought we would try our hands at drawing some of the fun cars, trucks, and buses listed on one of the pages. I think we might have some budding artists here.

Evangelism Focus 01/07/11

Tonight I made a quick stop at the grocery store on my way home from work. As I reached the checkout, I could tell my purchase was interrupting an intense conversation between two cashiers (one older and one younger), which seemed to pertain to the personal life of the younger cashier. As I finished my purchase and was preparing to leave, I handed my cashier (the younger one) a gospel tract. She sincerely thanked me. As I was bagging my groceries, she started reading the gospel tract, which usually freaks me out but not in this case because this young lady was so sincere in her interactions with me. As I was leaving with my groceries, another customer was approaching my lane. The cashier put down the gospel tract but made eye contact with me one last time and mouthed the words "thank you".

This interaction was a reminder to me that I do not know the work being done in a heart before I come in contact with them. It is simply my job to proclaim the gospel, and that can easily be done, even in the checkout line at the grocery store, with the use of a gospel tract.

Cookie Baking Night 01/03/10

Tonight was the first Cookie Baking Night of 2011. In attendance this evening: Carissa and Ethan. We made 7 layer bars. Ethan and Carissa crushed the graham crackers (using a rolling pin) to make the crust. Then they layered the ingredients on top of the crust. You may be surprised to know, this is a very kid-friendly recipe. It has a lot of steps for them to do. I highly recommend it.

We continued to work through our book Leading Little Ones to God by Marian Schoolland. Tonight we read lesson 39 "Jesus Showed His Glory", and Ethan read from the Bible for us (great to have some reading helpers).

Then we played several exciting hands of Mickey Mouse Uno, most of which I lost. After about 6 hands, I won a round. At this unusual happening, Carissa exclaimed, "But Katrina you never win!" We were all surprised.

As usual, a fun time was had by all!

7 Layer Bars

2 cups crushed graham crackers

1 stick of butter, melted

Combine butter and graham cracker crumbs to make the crust. Press firmly into the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan.

On top of the crust layer:

1-1/2 cup coconut

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup butterscotch chips

1 cup nuts

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Bake at 350 degrees about 30 minutes (until brown around the edges).

Marriage Musings

Today I interrupt my regularly scheduled blogging for some Marriage Musings. Greg and I celebrate 16 years of marriage today, and I can say most assuredly it is by the grace of God. Left to my own devices and dead in my sins before conversion to Christianity, I don't think our marriage would have lasted. But God saved me and in turn our marriage. For that, I am most grateful to Him.

It is a remarkable concept, this thing we call marriage. Two people from completely different backgrounds and family situations come together and live as one. Though I grew up attending church, before I married Greg I did not know that marriage was to resemble the relationship between Christ and the Church. I obviously missed an entire passage in Ephesians 5 that could not be clearer on this subject:

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Ephesians 5:22-33

May it be so in our lives.

Happy Anniversary, Gregory!

Cookie Baking Night--The Out takes

There will be no more Cookie Baking Nights this year. We'll pick it up again in 2011. I thought I would take this time to explain Cookie Baking Nights again and to share a few of the pictures that didn't get published this year (the out takes, if you will).

Every other Monday night, the nieces and nephews from both sides of our family come over to our house for the evening. We have supper together, bake some kind of cookie or other treat, go over a Bible lesson (we're working through the book Leading Little Ones to God by Marian Schoolland at present), play games, color pictures, etc. We've been doing this for about eight years now, and will continue until the nieces and nephews are all grown up (with new ones being added from time to time, it will be a while before they're all grown up). I would recommend a "Cookie Baking Night" for everyone. It has been a fabulous relationship builder with our family---wouldn't trade it. We're grateful God has allowed it.

And now......the out takes

It's been a good year!

Merry Christmas!

Greg and Katrina wishing you a Merry Christmas from Minnesota!

Evangelism Focus 12/24/10

Today is Christmas Eve and I had a desire to share the gospel. We (Greg and I) made up some packets using the leftover materials from the Black Friday evangelism efforts. We got up early and hit the train stations (commuter train) and bus stops in the area. There were not a lot of people riding the trains and buses this morning, but I feel confident we came in contact with everyone God planned for us to meet. I approached people, handed them a packet, and said "Merry Christmas!" Not a single person turned me down this morning, which is slightly unusual (often there's at least one in the crowd that says "No. Thank you.") Christmas brings that out in people, which is exactly why I wanted to be out there this morning. I also couldn't bear the thought of people going through Christmas without understanding the true meaning of it. I wanted them to hear the gospel.

Each packet contained a note from us, a treat, and a gospel tract.

The note contained these words:

“Peace on earth. Goodwill to men.” That’s a popular phrase this time of year. Do you know where it comes from? It comes from the Bible. Many people think of peace as the absence of conflict or the absence of fighting, but the peace spoken of in the Bible is much greater than that. “Peace on earth. Goodwill to men” refers to peace between you and God. It’s the message the angels brought to the shepherds in the field the night Jesus was born on this earth. “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men!.” Luke 2:14 . It’s the message we proclaim when we sing that classic Christmas carol Hark the Herald Angels Sing (“Peace on earth and mercy mild. God and sinners reconciled). Over 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ was born on this earth. He came here to provide us with the peace of reconciliation with God. That is why we celebrate Christmas.

I have provided for you today two things:

• A treat (Merry Christmas! Enjoy!)
• A gospel tract (my hope is that you will read the message in the tract and spend some time considering it today).

Merry Christmas and enjoy your day!

My prayer is that the gospel message will penetrate hearts today.