SAMPLE: Focus Friday

Your challenge: Be on the lookout for magic pennies this week. When you find one, give it away to someone, and remind them of its message: In God We Trust. Let them know their good fortune--God's telling them they can trust Him!

SAMPLE: Think On It Thursday

Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the husband's employer's home. My friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her house.

The first day and evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live. The husband's employer was quite generous as a host, and took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so was enjoying herself immensely.

As the three of them were about to enter an exclusive restaurant that evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband. He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment.

Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts. Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny.

He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny? Why would he even take the time to stop and pick it up?

Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer. She casually mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value. A smile crept across the man's face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for her to see.. She had seen many pennies before! What was the point of this? 'Look at it,' he said. 'Read what it says.' She read the words ' United States of America .' 'No, not that; read further.'

'One cent?' 'No, keep reading.'

'In God we Trust?' 'Yes!' 'And... ?'

He explained, 'And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him. Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my trust IS in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as my response to God; that I do trust in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God's way of starting a conversation with me. Lucky for me, God is patient and pennies are plentiful! '

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, 'In God We Trust,' and had to laugh. Yes, God, I get the message.

It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful! And, God is patient...

Author Unknown

Guest Speaker: Michelle Gressel

BIO: Loving mother and wife, expert connector and community activist, Michelle believes in the power of spirit and the blessings of laughter. Approaching life with equal does of optimism and realism, Michelle inspires through action and shines most when helping others.

Michelle's Courage Statement - Courage to be Beautiful and Content with the canvas that God gave me.

The word beautiful is rife with expectations, isn't it? I'd venture to guess that the majority of us equate beautiful with appearance; why else would our mentoring generations frequently use the phrase 'beauty is only skin deep'?

My own personal journey through beautiful has been marked by thyroid disease, which caused fluctuations in my weight. During my heaviest times, I FELT how people would rely on their superficial perceptions of me based solely on my size. Even without knowing me, they determined my beauty through a filter of dimensions that had absolutely nothing to do with who I am as a person. But anyone who knows me knows that over the years I've cultivated the courage to be beautiful in layers. I consciously take my ordinary, average canvas and create extraordinary things.

Contentment is another word that is deceptive on the surface. Some might think it's synonymous with complacent; they are wrong. Contentment means that I am at peace with myself, that I have the courage to be pleased with the gifts and the package that God has given me rather than worrying about what "the Jones'" might have. 1Timothy 6:6 says "But godliness with contentment is great gain"; knowing there is truth in the word gives us assurance that we shall all be set from the bondage of seeking perfection.

Much lip service is paid today to the concepts of 'balance' and 'having it all.' I, respectfully, disagree. I believe more in the concept of pieces, because my daily life is a symphony of them. There are pieces I give to others, pieces I grip for myself, pieces I share and pieces I squander. There are pieces of work, play, love, sadness, hurt, rapture and pleasure. What we see, if we are mindful enough to pay attention, is that the pieces all blend together without any true delineation of who or what they represent; they simply form the story of ME. I declare this OUR time, time to recreate our canvases by rearranging those pieces of our lives. It is time to claim the beauty that has been lost in the pieces and rediscover our worth.

 

Name:  Michelle Gressel

Family Stats:  Married to Brian Gressel and Mother of 3 Children (Jacob 13, Chloe 8, and Luke 4)

Spiritual Gifts:  Pastor/Shepard, Showing Mercy, and LOVING people OUT LOUD.

Spiritual Pathways:  I believe in recognizing the most simple of things that God has provided and seeing the beauty in them.  I also love amazing worship music that speaks to my heart!!!

Passions:  Performing random acts of kindness in unlikely situations.

Pet Peeves:  People chewing with their mouth open, selfishness, and people that don’t follow through with their word

Secret Shames:  A super soft place in my heart for a man in uniform with flashing lights (that is why I married one).

Book that I love:  The Gifts of Imperfection by Dr. Brene’ Brown

Can’t live without:  Diet Dr. Pepper, Young and the Restless and great glass of Blueberry Wine

Favorite room in the house:  I love them all if…they are picked up and have some awesome music in them.

Favorite tradition:  Sitting at the dinner table every meal

Michelle's Gallery:

Facilitator Bio - Judy

Facilitator for the "Extreme Grandmothering Class"

Judy and her husband, Doug, of 46 years have three daughters and four grandsons. Throughout their lives they have had a passion for encouraging and supporting strong marriages. From 1999-2009 they regularly hosted numerous dinners for young married couples to offer encouragement and support. They opened their home to host a wonderful meal and had intentional discussions about selected topics for the group to share and discuss. Currently Doug and Judy are on the board of the Association of Marriage and Family Ministries (AMFM) organization out of Scottsdale, AZ and enjoy serving the community in various ways as well as being actively involved in their children and grandchildren’s lives.

Doug and Judy’s grandsons are 10, 7, 4, and 2 years old. Judy can be characterized as a Grandmother who enjoys doing a variety of activities and traveling with her grandkids. When each of her grandsons was fairly little, she took them to the Gymboree Play Program where they would sing and dance together. On weekends, you can spot her in the bleachers cheering on her grandsons while they play baseball and soccer. She and Doug have taken the older ones on adventures to Chicago, New York and San Francisco as well as gone snowmobiling and skiing with them. On warm afternoons she is often outside taking her grandsons on exploration walks and bug hunts. She is not a big fan of trips to Disney World but does enjoy playing some tennis.

Judy is friends with a number of Heartland families and one of her daughters is actually attending Mothers Together this year.

Brunch Bake

Brunch Bake - Southwest Egg Casserole
from the kitchen of Tara G.

Makes 8 servings

ingredients:
2 T butter or margarine
8 oz med mushrooms, sliced
10 green onions plus some green tops, sliced
12 large eggs
1 C milk ¼ C all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
3 C grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 C diced cooked ham
½ tsp salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 can (7 oz) whole green chiles, split and seeded
Fresh tomato salsa or purchased
Chunky Guacamole or avocado slices
*May be good with some sour cream too

directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In skillet over med heat, melt butter and sauté mushrooms and green onions until tender. In large bowl whisk together eggs, milk, flour, and baking powder. Add cheese, ham, salt, pepper to taste, and mushroom mixture. Arrange chiles on bottom of lightly greased 9x13 baking dish. Pour egg-milk mixture over chiles. Bake, uncovered, until set, about 40 minutes. Let stand for 10 min. Cut into squares and serve, passing the salsa and guacamole separately.

Regal Romaine Salad

Regal Romaine Salad
from the kitchen of Tara G.

ingredients:

5 slices of bacon

2 heads of Romaine lettuce

2 C cherry tomatoes, halved

1 C swiss cheese, grated

1/3 C grated parm cheese

2/3 C slivered almonds, toasted

Croutons

Dressing:

4 T lemon juice

3 cloves of minced garlic

Salt and grnd pepper to taste

¾ C vegetable oil

directions:
Make salad dressing ahead of time ideally 3 hours before using. Then mix salad ingredients and toss with dressing when ready to serve. Enjoy!

Italian Beef Sandwiches

Italian Beef Sandwiches
from the kitchen of Tara G.

10-12 servings

ingredients:

1 4-lb boneless beef sirloin or rolled rump roast

1 C water

1 0.7-oz pkg Italian salad dressing mix

2 tsp dried Italian seasoning, crushed

½ - 1 tsp crushed red pepper

½ tsp garlic powder

10-12 kaiser rolls or French style rolls, split

Roasted red sweet peppers, cut into strips

directions:

Trim fat from meat. Cut meat into 2-3 inch pieces. Place meat in a 3.5 – 5 quart slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the water, dressing mix, Italian seasoning, red pepper, and garlic powder. Pour over meat.

Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 10-12 hours or on high-heat setting for 5-6 hrs.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer meat to a cutting board. Shred using two forks. Drizzle some of the cooking juices over meat to serve and top with red pepper strips if desired. Also good with slices of provolone cheese.

Chicken Enchilada Dip

From the kitchen of Rachel McKenna

ingredients:

1 lb chicken

1Tbsp Chili Powder

½ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp red pepper

½ tsp crushed red pepper

½ tsp salt

1-8oz pkg cream cheese

1 cup real mayo

8oz shredded cheddar cheese

1 can diced green chilies

directions:

Boil chicken in water and the first 5 ingredients until chicken is done.  Cool chicken and shred.  Add cream cheese, cheddar cheese and green chilies.  Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes until lightly brown and bubbly on top.

Corn Casserole

From the kitchen of Rachel McKenna

ingredients:

1 box Jiffy cornbread mix
1 small can corn, drained
1 small can creamed corn
1 8 oz. container plain yogurt
1 egg
1/4 cup oil or melted butter

directions:Combine all ingredients, pour into a greased 8x8 pan, and bake at 350 until set, about 45 minutes.

I usually double the recipe, especially for parties, and pour in a 9x13 pan instead.  It doesn't take too much longer to bake, maybe 5 or 10 minutes.  You can also use vanilla yogurt instead and it makes it even sweeter, although I think it is sweet with just the plain.  Also, the small cans are those teeny tiny little guys, not sure of the exact size, but probably only 7 or 8 ounces.

Sausage and Greens Pasta

From the kitchen of Liz Sears

dressing ingredients:

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup lemon juice

1 Tbsp. chopped garlic

Salt and pepper (1/2 tsp. each)

other ingredients:

1 lb. Italian sausage

5 ½ oz. mixed baby greens or spinach leaves

1 lb. cooked pasta (penne or spaghetti)

Parmesan cheese for topping

directions: 

Mix together dressing ingredients.  Set aside.  Brown sausages and then slice into coins ¼” thick.  Cook pasta according to directions.  Just before serving, pour dressing over hot pasta and toss in greens.  Divide portions into pasta bowls or on a plate.  Top with slices of sausage and grated parmesan cheese.  Serve with Italian bread.

This is an easy recipe that looks so pretty that we use for company or when my husband and I want something different then I can just give the boys pasta and sausage on the side without the dressing or greens.

Oriental Beef Brown Sauce

From the kitchen of Liz Sears

ingredients:
¾ cup soy sauce
½ cup chicken stock
¼ cup brown sugar
4 tsp. sesame oil
4 tsp. corn starch
2 tsp. chopped garlic
1 tsp. powder ginger
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

directions:
Combine all ingredients. Heat in a saucepan or add to sliced beef after stir fry. Makes a great sauce for beef and broccoli over rice. Also great for using leftover beef, pork or chicken as the sauce to jazz up leftovers.

Calico Beans

From the kitchen of Kathy Getman

ingredients:

1 lb hamburger

¼ lb bacon

1 ½ chopped onion

1 21 oz can pork and beans

1 15 oz can lima beans

1 15 oz can butter beans

1 15 oz can kidney beans

½ c brown sugar

2 T vinegar

½ c ketchup

1 T mustard

salt and pepper

directions:

Brown hamburger and onions; drain. Combine remaining ingredients, put into roaster or casserole and bake at 300 degrees for 1 ½ hours.

Corn Casserole

From the kitchen of Kathy Getman

ingredients:

17 oz whole kernel corn (1 can)

17 oz creamed corn (1 can)

1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix

1 cup sour cream

4 T minced onion (dry)

2 beaten eggs

1 stick melted butter

2 T sugar

salt/pepper

1 c shredded Swiss cheese

directions:
Mix all ingredients together. Place into a greased 9x13 casserole. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Blueberry Whole Wheat Yogurt Muffins

From the kitchen of Jessica Gunkel

ingredients:
1C Flour
1C Whole Wheat Flour
1/3C and 1T Sugar
1/4t Salt
2t Baking Soda
1/4C Unsweetened Orange Juice
8oz Vanilla Low Fat Yogurt
2T Vegetable Oil
1t Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
1C Blueberries (fresh or frozen and thawed)

directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredient mixture. Combine OJ and the next 4 ingredients in a separate bowl and stir well. Add to dry ingredients, stirring until just moistened. Gently fold in blueberries. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling almost to the top. Sprinkle one Tablespoon of sugar evenly onto muffins. Bake for 18 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan immediately. Enjoy.

Family Day

From Jessica Gunkel:

We celebrate "Family Day" on August 22nd, the day we flew home with Jadon from Guatemala on the day he turned 7 months old. We call it "Family Day" because it is the day we celebrate adoption and the day we became a family! We celebrate by focusing on Guatemala and Jadon. The day usually consists of learning about Guatemalan culture, going to a Guatemalan restaurant in town, going mini-golfing (Jadon's choice) and giving Jadon one of the 18 gifts we bought for this day while we were in the country finalizing his adoption. We have been blessed so much by adoption and LOVE celebrating together what it means to our family!!

Leprechaun Poo

from Wendy Connelly

We get a bit feisty around St. Patrick's Day and surprise our neighbors and friends with a little treat of green speckled jelly beans and this poem in a ring-and-run:

Leprechaun POO!

A fresh heap of it, written by Wendy Connelly

I spotted at the rainbow's end

A leprechaun and his gold

He did a jig then sprang away

I frightened him, I'm told.

For all the blarney devil left

(To skip straight to-the-loo)

Inside his pot, instead of gold

This pile of leprechaun POO!

Empty Tomb Meringues

Empty Tomb Meringues
from allrecipes.com (link HERE)

ingredients:
1 cup pecan halves
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
3 egg whites
1 pinch salt
1 cup white sugar

directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
2. Place pecans in a resealable plastic baggie. Crush the pecans into small bits. Read John 19:1-3
3. Put 1 teaspoon vinegar into a medium bowl. Read John 19:28-30
4. Add egg whites to the vinegar. Read John 10:10-11
5. Sprinkle salt into the egg whites. Read Luke 23:27
6. So far, the mixture isn't very appetizing. Add 1cup sugar. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.
7. Beat with mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.
8. Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto parchment paper lined baking sheet. Read Matthew 27:57-60.
9. Place cookies in the oven close the door and turn the oven off. Read Matthew 27:65-66.
Go to bed. Read John 16:20 and 22.
10. In the morning open the oven and take out the cookies. Read Matthew 28:1-9.

Unwrapping Christmas Stories

from Wendy Connelly

Each night of December, our family snuggles together by the tree, grabs a package from our special book basket, and unwraps a Christmas story.  Most of these stories (which we reuse every year) I purchased at library sales or garage sales, though others I bought online or on sale in stores.  We have one book for each day of December leading up to Christmas.  The kids love unwrapping the surprise book each night, and remember these books from the Christmas before.  Some of my favorites are Old Befana and The Legend of the Poinsettia, both by Tomie DePaola.

You've Been Egged

from Wendy Connelly

Fill an Easter basket with candy-filled eggs and this poem, and secretly leave it by a friend's door. Each person who gets it removes one egg and eggs another house--the egging goes on!

YOU'VE BEEN EGGED!

The Easter Bunny
Was out for a hop
He saw your house
He made a stop
That wascally wabbit!
He had you pegged
No bunny was home, so
YOU'VE BEEN EGGED!
(Keep one egg, and egg someone else!)

by Wendy Connelly

Prayer Pot Stew

from Wendy Connelly



We've started a new tradition before meals: I modified a long garden-inspired inspirational e-mail into a shorter before-dinner "Prayer Pot Stew." The kids get all stirred up over their Prayer Pots, and it's fun to watch them throw their ingredients (BAM!) into the pot with each phrase.

We couldn't find artificial veggies to match the prayer, so we had to be creative. I think we came up with even better stuff with interesting textures from the dollar store: green bath puff=lettuce; copper scours=turnips; sponges cut into squash (they get great enjoyment from really squashing them when we "squash" the bad stuff); puff balls=peas; and a shaker of thyme.  I printed out the words and made copies for all the families in our small group, too, and hope maybe other friends will adopt it and pass along the fun!

Here are the ingredients:

"PRAYER POT" STEW

GOD, STIR IN US…

ONE HEAD OF LETTUCE:
Lettuce love one another

TWO TURNIPS:

Turnip on time

Turnip to serve

THREE CUPS OF PEAS :

Peas within

Peas with others

Peas on Earth

FOUR SQUASH:

Squash gossip

Squash grudges

Squash grumblings

Squash negative thoughts

AN ABUNDANCE OF THYME:

Thyme for family & friends

Thyme for wellness

Thyme for talents

Thyme for You

Cover us with living water so that we bubble over with joy and thanksgiving.

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit: the Maker of our Feast.

Amen.

Christmas Card Prayer Time

From Tara G.

Each Christmas we display the cards we receive on a wire card holder in a hallway near our kitchen. Then each week following Christmas we select one of the cards to display on our kitchen table and pray for that family throughout the week. Then we choose another card and so on throughout the year with the goal of praying for a different family each week.

Dried Cherry-Orange Scones

Dried Cherry-Orange Scones
from the kitchen of Tara Gazaway

Prep: 30 min

Bake: 10 min

Makes 12 scones

ingredients: 

½ C snipped dried sweet cherries or raisins (can use dried cranberries too)

2 C all-purpose flour

3 T brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

½ tsp baking soda

¼ C butter

1 tsp finely shredded orange peel

1 egg yolk, beaten

1 8-oz carton dairy sour cream

1 recipe Orange Glaze (see below)

directions: 

1. In small bowl cover dried cherries with boiling water and let stand for 5 min. Drain well.
2. In large bowl stir together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.  Using pastry blender cut in very cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add drained cherries and orange peel; toss lightly to coat.  Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.
3. In small bowl stir together egg yolk and sour cream.  Add yolk mixture all at once to flour mixture.  Using a fork, stir until combined (mixture may seem dry).
4. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface.  Quickly knead dough by gently folding and pressing for 10-12 strokes or until nearly smooth.  Pat or lightly roll dough into a 7 inch circle.  Cut into 12 wedges.  Arrange wedges 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 min or until light brown.  Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.  Drizzle warm scones with Orange Glaze.

Orange Glaze:  In small bowl stir together 1 C sifted powdered sugar, 1 T orange juice, and ¼ tsp vanilla.  Stir in enough additional orange juice, 1 tsp at a time to make a glaze of drizzling consistency.

Nutrition summary per scone:  214 cal, 9 g fat, 32 g carbo, 1 g fiber

Source:  Better Homes and Gardens. Quick & Easy Comfort Cooking.  Des Moines, IA: Meredith Corporation, 2002.

Baked Brie with Nut Crust

Baked Brie with Nut Crust
from the kitchen of Tara Gazaway

ingredients:
1 whole wheel (8 oz) Brie cheese
1/3 C pecans
1/3 C almonds
1/3 C walnuts
1 egg
1 T heavy cream
2 T sugar-free raspberry jam

directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Using a food processor, pulse nuts to finely chop but don’t overprocess. Transfer nuts to shallow dish or pie plate. Whisk egg and cream to blend in shallow dish. Dip Brie (rind on) into egg mixture and then into nut mixture, turning to coat and pressing nuts to adhere. Transfer Brie to baking sheet and spread jam over top. Bake 15 min. or until cheese is warm and soft. (I think it is better to leave it in for 20-25 min.) Serve with apples, pears and/or a cracker assortment. Makes 8 servings