Gifts from Above

Daniel Ridgeway Knight  - The Washerwoman

 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.  James 1:17


I am thanking God today for His special gifts to me. Do you ever lose sight of those gifts in your life? I am so frail and I lose sight of them so often!

A special gift He has given me right now is friendship. I can just "feel" the prayers and love from so many ladies back home in the States. I am so full of gratefulness for that... I'm sure if I had each and every one of them right here, I would give them the biggest hug!

Sometimes I might dwell on the fact that they aren't right here.... that I can't actually talk to them as I would like to. Then... then... God in His mercy and love to me ... reminds me that He is here! He also sends me an email or special chat time on Facebook that reminds me of His extra special love to me through them.

Ladies, we have such a power in encouraging each other. I just love this picture above. Wouldn't you just love to wash your clothes with a special friend! We could chat for hours while doing that! Just think of the things we could share as God works in and through us! Laundry would take on a whole new meaning....

Today, I will focus on His many gifts to me.... Today, I will thank God for you .... and as you think of it, write me a comment and let me know what you would tell me while we washed clothes together....

Blessings to your Day,

Anna

Needing to be Kneaded

Homeschooling brings me such joy as I get to teach and learn and participate with my children. We all get to ask questions, to learn from each other and sometimes ... fail ... with each other.

Have you ever made Bannock bread? It's a new bread that we learned about as we study Medieval Times.

My daughter joins with me in making this quick and easy bread for our family.

My desire to mold her in to the lady that God would have her be brings us together to mold and shape this loaf of bread.

I can feel His molding of me too. Kneading, pulling, shaping. I need to be kneaded. She needs to kneaded.

Sometimes we both resist... these two people who are more alike than she or I would like to admit.

Funny how God keeps kneading me ... patiently, wisely. I long for that wisdom in kneading her.

We learn, we grow ... together. Lovingly making this gift for our family.

You too can make Bannock Bread ...

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp soda
2 T butter, room temp.
1 1/4 cups buttermilk, room temp.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Work in butter with your fingers or cut with two knives until the mixture resembles moist bread crumbs. Add enough buttermilk to make the dough moist and sticky to the hand.... allow the flour to absorb the buttermilk. Knead lightly until the dough is well mixed and loses its stickiness, adding more flour if necessary. Turn into a 7 or 8 inch greased cake pan. Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes then reduce heat to 325 degrees and continue baking for 15 minutes. When done, remove bread and carefully turn out onto a wire rack to cool. The bread should not be sliced until it has set for at least 6 hours. Enjoy!


This post is linked to:
Raising Homemakers