LIVING ON THE EDGE

Every single human being on this planet has issues.  If you don’t admit you do, that’s your issue!  As you might have already suspected, I am not one to mince words.

People who live on the edge don’t usually back away from it.  Sin is defined by the Bible as spiritual and emotional death.  Sin leaves us empty, broken and unfulfilled inside.  It also leaves a God-sized hole in our hearts which of course only God can fill.  James 1:13-14 When tempted, no one should NOT say, “God is tempting me.”  For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.  Then, after desire is conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death. (spiritual death) Sin attacks our peaceful relationship with God.

When we are in sin, we do not think straight and it affects us and everyone else around us.  Then it escalates to a cover-up and we sweep our junk under the rug, pretending we are clean, knowing that it will not go away until it is confronted head on.  We become callous when all who are affected are clearly hurt from its deadly results, feelings that do not adequately guide us to what is right.  Why does this happen? 

When we are confronted with sin, we sink lower and lower in it and then we start to feel God’s conviction.  We feel the guilt of knowing that we broke God’s heart.  That in turn hurts us and God’s heart breaks even more when He sees us hurt.  Covering up one’s sins says we don’t trust God, which brings me to the subject of repentance.

First things first, back up from the ledge!  Take several steps back so you still have room to be safe.  Then we need to develop a predetermined moral code.  In other words, draw a line in which you will refuse to cross, no matter how difficult!  Simply, ask God to help you avoid it, just ask, you will be surprised how much God wants to keep you out of sin more than you will ever know.

Next, don’t say, “I need to fix myself first before I go to church.”  That’s like saying “let me straighten up before the maid gets here to clean my house.”  Instead, RUN TO GOD… and fast!  When sin is fresh, run to God!  It will be easier to address this right away because the longer you wait, it becomes harder to address.  God loves you and if you are feeling the guilt, that’s the Holy Spirit making you feel it! 

Then ADMIT IT.  Confess your sins.  It’s not like God didn’t see you do it.  However, you still have to admit that you did and He is there, ready to forgive you, the loving and forgiving father that he is.   God desires the truth on the inside of us. Don’t look at Him like your own father who will still be pissed off about what you did or maybe will give you a punishment or the cold shoulders for a time.  God said when you ask me to forgive you, I instantly do and it is forgotten as far as the east is from the west! Wow! 

Then PRAY FOR CLEANSING AND FORGIVENESS.  This is like washing your hands after you’ve handled something dirty.  It gives you that feeling of cleanliness.  You know the one, after you’ve been in the sun and dirt all day and the fresh feeling you feel after a nice hot shower?

Here is the final but most important step.  ASK FOR RENEWAL.  If you skip this part, you are in trouble.  Why?  This is the part where you should feel completely forgiven, given the feeling of reconnecting with your intimacy with God that you lost.  Hypocrisy is knowing that you CAN be forgiven but refusing forgiveness.  God is waiting to do so.  If God can FORGET your sins, you should as well.  This step does that for you.  It will bring you back to the same spot of happiness in your relationship with God before the sin. 

Remember that there is NO sin so big that God can’t forgive you for.  He is more than happy to forgive you.  The relief that Jesus brings with the power of forgiveness is the best feeling in the world.  He wants to clean you, restore you and renew you to the original peace of innocence and honor before you ever sinned.  Can you extend the same offer to someone else who has sinned against you by forgiving and forgetting the sin?

Till my next reveal... LOVE ONE ANOTHER!

Day 1 BARCELONA

First of all, I dont have the full function of editing so i'M not sure what this would liik like.

I knew I wasn't going to be able to sleep with all the excitement about the trip but normally when I lay my head on the pillow sleep just comes.  Needless to say the Best Western in Millbrae was right next to a train station so with its  pounding tracks and blaring horn, I was awakened pretty much every hour.  But all that fizzled away overcome with excitement, we blew that popsicle stand with a smile.  I've never been on an Air Canada flight and it was surprisingly pleasant.  It helped that the attendants all had french accents. However, they really took to heart that everyone on board was on vacation so they charged their "restaurant" items up the yin yang costing Scott $5.00 for a muffin and a small bottle of water.  Now I'm not certain if it was Canadian dollars or American as they would not accept cash but only credit cards.  There is still an hour and a half left on this flight and Im hungry.  My schedule is off but I still have that smile on my face!  Let's land this baby now, eh? *sits back down to finish watching "Ghost"*

Fast forward to the Toronto terminal, we scrambled to the restrooms and off to get some lunch.  We moseyed over to Carleys and ordered a Shrimp Spinach Salad that was to die for!  I've always thought salads were boring especially for someone like me who's decided to change my eating habits.  Whoa!  What rabbit would not want to get a taste of this!  It was a decadent medley of grilled shrimps on a skewer, spinach, bacon bits, hard boiled egg whites, mandarin orange slices topped with French fried onions and thin Chinese fried noodles! I can't wait to experiment when I get back home.  The dressing was sweet with a hint, just a hint of tang, sort of reminded me of poppy seed dressing.  The onion soup was just as boastful, not smothered with a bunch of onions in it but had French bread baked in it topped with mozzarella cheese.  In fairness, I had three bites, but it was enough to make me want to come back to Carleys on the trip back.

The flight to Barcelona was a bit more cumbersome.  The plane is bigger, so more passengers.  However, people seem very nice and friendly.  We were. It graced with individual tv screens and no charging station for my iPad so I had to pull out the power pack.  I'm just wondering what's going on at the Big Brother house right now.  Did Frank or Kara get evicted?

I couldnt wait to get off the plane!  However, interesting on the way to the Tryp Apolo hotel, I was looking at the side of the mountain trying to figure out what those piles and plies of these boxes on top of each other and then the driver said it was a cementary. Wow they dug horizontally in the side of the mountain.  I found this interesting.

After lunch, I took a nap not realizing how tired I was 2 hours later I woke up with only 1.5 hours to spare before meeting the rest of the tour group. Needless to say I was in a fog. But the 4 hour tour was worth it. We saw the works of modern artist (modern in their day not ours). We saw the works of Gaudi, the Sagrada Familia which is the whole outside of this church depicts Jesus' life carved in concrete. It was so detailed but not yet finished, more towers are going up. This is a must-see in Barcelona. We also went to the statue of Columbus and this is also a must-see! All around the base of it shows his meeting with the queen, correct me if I'm wrong but I was just so in awe about the intricate details of these fabulous architectures chock full of history!

There were a lot of authentic food, but since it is the first day, didn't want to risk getting the wrong food and getting sick. The food we did have was very good though. It was fresh and true to form unlike the food back home that is so tweaked to even taste like it's truth but hey, credit, they are all RDA approved.

We walked from the Santa Maria Church back to the hotel. I really wanted to go see the Picasso Museum but didn't get there in time for the last tour. Save for next time!

We also went to Guell Park (pronounced "well")

Back at the hotel, I tried to upload photos but couldn't keep my eyes open, so I slept through the loud concert next to the hotel! I love this place! I can't really do it much justice with photos or my descriptions but you will have to visit!

Trivial Things that I noticed:

The hotel does not give out individual hand soap or shampoo, they have dispensers
Europe they call them washrooms, America -bathroom/restroom, Philippines-comfort room, you do the math, who calls it the best?
The public stalls smell good (so far) and there is no water sitting in the bowl, they conserve
The porta potties are clean and u don't go in an open hole, it's an actual toilet bowl so the 50 cent euro is worth it
The diet coke comes are in itty bitty bottles and called "light" and they are expensive, about, 3 dollars at the restaurants oh and no refills!
Oh at the hotel rooms you put your key card in a slot to turn on the lights so before you leave, all lights are forced to be turned off.
Because almost everyone ride bikes everywhere, they are fit! You can take and ride these bikes and park them in a parking spot at your destination. Then for those who didn't follow rules and park the bikes willy nilly, a truck drives around and picks them up. The bike lanes are in the middle lane of the road and are respected by car drivers. Here's what's funny, pedestrians are not respected at all, you have to dodge the cars if you're walking, not the other way around like in America. So those people that take their time crossing the street while drivers wait, will be run over in this city. Also, cars can drive over sidewalks and again pedestrians must run for safety!

The buses are first class! The subway is like in New York, dirty and smelly. People are scantily dressed but no one cares because they all dress the same way. I noticed that unless you are selling something, no one really smiles,not that they are unfriendly, they just don't, unless you are asking them for directions, which I often did and they like that you try to speak in their language and will gladlly correct you if you are looking for the right word to say.

All in all, it's been pleasant. Now I'm excited to get on the boat! Till my next rant...LOVE ONE ANOTHER!

SUGAR FREE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES WITH FIREWORKS

What can I say?  I love chocolate but because I'm trying to change my lifestyle from eating too much sugar to eating minimal sugar, I decided to transform this supersweet version into my own sugar free creation.  Believe me, the flavor is not compromised.  It is STILL very good!  I know, I consider myself the chocolate connosieur.  Without much further ado, here is my recipe that I gladly share with you...  and if you feel jaded, I added poprocks to give it that extra excitement, nevertheless!!!

INGREDIENTS

½ c. unsweetened cocoa

½ c. boiling water

1 ½ c. sifted cake flour (sift then measure)

1 c. Splenda, for baking

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

¾ c. butter, at room temp (30 mins after removing from ref)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

¼ c. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  line cupcake tin with papers.

2.       Combine cocoa and boiling water, whisking until blended and smooth.  Set aside.

3.       3. Combine flour, splenda, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.  Add butter and mix with mixer until crumbly.

4.       in a separate bowl, combine eggs, milk, cocoa mixture an dvanilla.  Add 1/3 of the wet mixture to the dry mixture.  Beat on low speed with electric mixer until blended. Beat at medium speed for an additional 30 secs until mixture is smooth (scrape down sides of bowl, as needed).  Repeat two more times, until all egg mixture has been added.

5.       Scoot batter into prepared tins.  Fill cupcake papers and bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Remove and cool.

FOR BUTTERCREAM ICING

6 oz. semisweet chocolate broken into small pieces

1 c. unsalted butter

1 egg (room temp)

4 large egg yolks (room temp)

½ c. splenda

1/3 c. water

1 ½ tbsp brandy (dark rum) optional

1.    Melt chocolate with 2 tbsp butter

2.    reserve

3.    place whole egg and egg yolks in medium bowl, beat at high speed for 1 min

4.    reserve

5.    measure sugar and water into 1 qt nonaluminum saucepan, stir well.

6.    Cook over low heat until mixture simmers, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. 

7.    Uncover sugar syrup

8.    While beating at high speed, imeediately drizzle the sugar syrup into the reserved egg mixture

9.    Continue beating until bottom of bowl is cool to touch

10.                     Gradually beat reserved chocolate mixture at high speed, add beaten butter, about 1 tbsp at a time.

11.                     When all butter has been added, beat about 5 minutes

12.                     refrigerate icing, stirring every 10 min. until firm enough to spread usually 30-40 minutes

13.                     Sprinkle chocolate poprocks on top of each iced cupcake.

**Caveat - I said sugar free, not fat free!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A MATURE PERSON?

When someone says you are so mature, what do you suppose they mean?  Is it by the manner in which you speak?  By your appearance? Or maybe by the great advice you give?  There are young people who are mature thinkers.  There are older people who are still babes in their ways and words. 

Maturity isn’t about age, appearance, achievements or academics.  God determines a mature person as one who possesses a healthy character.  A mature person remains positive under pressure.  They understand that situations that happen in their lives are inevitable, good or bad.  He understands that sometimes events are beyond his control.  So instead of worrying about them, he rides the tide and handles the wave when it reaches a point in which he could gain control over it. 

A mature person is sensitive to other people.  Someone who is empathetic to the needs of others and genuinely listens and assesses the situation as if it was their own and extends assistance to make the other person feel special about not having to go through a rough time alone. 

A mature person has mastered her mouth and tongue.  By this I mean, not letting negative talk come out but instead building others up according to their needs. (Ephesians 4:29).  James 1:26 “If anyone considers himself religious, and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.”  In the same token, whatever words your tongue produces will also control the direction of your life. 

God teaches us to affirm what we want to happen to us.  If we affirm with gratitude that we are healthy, full of God’s grace, and anything positive we want, it is not the universe that grants this to us because the universe is owned by God.  We need to seriously recognize and thank God for all of our blessings already.  Forget about the psychics, no one can tell what is in your future but God.

A mature person is a peacemaker, not a troublemaker.  There are two sources of conflicts within the human race.  They are selfishness and judgment.  We are all guilty of these things at one point or another.  Selfishness and judgment are a result of the desires that battle within us according to James 4:1.  Most of the time we are selfish and judgmental, it is because there are issues inside of us that we battle and in turn create for others.  Be watchful of your thoughts so as not to manifest through your words.

A mature person is patient and prayerful.  There is nothing else on this earth that is more powerful than a relationship with God.  When I first talked with Him I felt so silly.  Now, I ask Him for everything, especially with my art.  My art manifests everything that is God!  He is the producer, director, subject and final finished product.  I give Him praise every day!  I hope you would too.

Ask yourselves these questions:

1)    Are you positive under pressure?

2)    Are you sensitive to the needs of other people?


3)    Have you learned to master your mouth and tongue?


4)    Are you a peacemaker or a troublemaker?


5)    Are you patient and prayerful about life?

Until the next rant… LOVE ONE ANOTHER!

P.S. Are you proud that I quoted the bible verses?  Yay!  Here’s some more pertaining to this subject

James 5:7, 11

James 5:16b
1 Timothy 3:8, 10
Hebrews 5:11-14
James 1:2-4
James 1-12
James 2:8
James 3:2
James 4:1


For more research on stages of maturity in adults and children: http://www.learningplaceonline.com/stages/organize/Erikson.htm

PARMESAN CHICKEN BAKE CRUNCH -- AND AS ALWAYS... LOW CALORIE MEAL!!

OMGosh!  Here is another awesome recipe you will have to try!  It has 250 calories for the whole meal that you see here.  It has some kick to it too!  Very very good!!

This is not mashed potatos.  It is mashed cauliflower and it's so yummy!  The gravy was simply 1/2 c. of cream of mushroom soup and 1 tbsp soy sauce, mix and microwave for about 2 minutes, stir until not so lumpy.

I served it with green beans and a couple of slices of mango.

PARMESAN CHICKEN BAKE CRUNCH

Ingredients:  Recipe is for 5 boneless chicken breasts (sliced in three parts lengthwise)

2 c.  corn flakes (crushed)

1 c. parmesan cheese

1 package Hidden Valley Ranch mix (powder)

Pepper

1)      Mix all of the ingredients together and coat chicken

2)      Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes

There are 5 servings.

DANCE TO THE BEAT OF YOUR OWN DIVINE DRUM

If things aren’t going well for you, are you willing to change your perspective about your situation?  Are you willing to let God give you hope?

When you go through a rough patch, when someone dear to you has passed away, when was the last time you looked at your situation through God’s eyes instead of your eyes?  God takes something that is difficult for you and turns it into something that is powerful in your life if you begin to get a different perspective on it.

Understand this though, it’s not always roses and lollipops when God asks you to do something, He will sometimes want you to have a conviction about Him and to stand alone.  He will sometimes ask you to stand alone regarding Godly convictions.  Standing alone means having a conviction in living a life that God wants us to live in order to operate in our fullest potential.

There are two key issues that are causing cultural decline and moral confusion and they are the redefining of marriage.  You cannot call yourself a Christian if God is not supreme in your life by accepting the ideologies that negate God’s word in the Bible.  The humble acceptance of divine authority and obedience, and obedience is not taking a public opinion poll but by reading the word of God and what He says.  Calling Christians a bigot because they feel judged by them is wrong.  True Christians do not judge, only God will.  We are all sinners and we all need to be saved but God only saves those who want to be saved.  As Christians, we all should stand up to what God says is true.

God will use your struggles to for good if you will put your faith, trust and confidence in Him and continue to go after God’s ways even if it doesn’t make sense.  He will rescue you, redeem you, restore you and give you back what the enemy took away.

Ask yourself this question.  Should I dance to the beat of my own divine drum, or do I conform to the world because I find myself dancing alone?

Something to think about.... Until the next rant.... LOVE ONE ANOTHER, ALWAYS!

TWEAKERBELL RE-PURSEPOSE!

I searched high and low for a messenger bag that is the right size to fit my camera, my ipad and bare essentials for my trip.  I could not find anything at all until I hit Walmart.  However, the bag had tinkerbell on the front of it.  Of course I would never walk around with a tinkerbell bag!  I'm not 6!  So, with a little gesso, paint, pan pastel, I transformed this bag to something that is more ME!  We don't have to spend so much money when we find something that works.  Sometimes, we just have to make what we find work for us.

Watch the video to see how I did this! Click the link below!

http://youtu.be/KeY-tVGm79c