begging for recipe ideas

I need some help for a new project I am working on... Do you have some favorite holiday recipes that you would like to share?? Maybe it's something you've found online. Share the link with me. Have you made it recently? Send me a picture. Is it an old recipe that you can always count on? Send it to me. Maybe you just have a great tip that you would like to share.

I do not discriminate. I want recipes or how-to's for anything and everything: appetizers, entrees, sides, desserts, party food, etc. You can post in the comment section or email it to me at tanya6124@hotmail.com

Thanks guys!

to Tebow or not to Tebow...

Several years ago, there was a church that made a lot of headlines—Westboro Baptist Church. When I heard what they were saying “in the name of God,” it honestly made me embarrassed to be a Baptist. I was ashamed and didn't want to be connected in any way to these protestors and their hate. When asked where I went to church or what denomination I was, I would hesitate and fumble around trying to think of a new and creative way to describe my faith.

I think many Christians began to struggle with the whole issue of being politically correct and tolerant. Some wanted to love others and not step on any toes. Some wanted to be accepting and tolerant and avoid all issues that would turn into a possible debate. At the same time we wanted to stay true to our faith and what the Bible teaches. Then others wanted to fight and take a stand on what they believe. Debating 'til death. It began to become not necessarily difficult but inconvenient to be a Christian in America.

Many of you will not be shocked if I mention Tim Tebow at this moment. On October 23^rd, after the Broncos beat the Dolphins, Tebow quickly took a knee and offered up a quick prayer of thanks. This small action caught a lot of attention and was dubbed “Tebowing.” The next Sunday during the game between the Broncos and Lions, two Lions' players mocked Tebow and his prayer stance. In an article concerning this, the author pointed out if Tebow were a Muslim and prayed towards Mecca at that moment of victory, things would have turned out drastically different when those players had mocked him publicly. The author goes on to say, “We have become so enamored of politically correct dogma that we protect every minority from even the slightest blush of insensitivity while letting the very institutions that the majority holds dear to be ridiculed. And this defense that Tebow invites such scrutiny with his willingness to publicly live what he privately believes calls into question what exactly it is we value.”

The author also points out in the article that the Christians defending Tebow have turned just as ugly. She says, “This is where Christianity so often loses people, the ardent preaching of the gospel of “I'm right, you're wrong” and the demand for tolerance and the unwillingness to grant it.” This is what makes Christianity embarrassing at times. Why can't we take a cue from Tebow and just be? Why have we become so insistent on shoving and forcing, yet choose to ignore the whole concept of just living, doing, and being? Be Christ. Be love. Live out God's Word.

It brings to mind a passage of Scripture in Psalms 22:

“...but I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads: 'He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue him. Let Him deliver him, since he delights in Him.' Yet You brought me out of the womb; You made me trust in You even at my mother's breast. From birth I was cast upon You; from my mother's womb You have been my God.”

In a book I read a few years ago, it mentioned how this is a picture of Christ. There is a reason worm is used instead of snake. A snake attacks. It doesn't allow anyone to mess with it without paying a penalty. However, a worm is just the opposite. Small children pluck them up off the ground and play with them, mutilate them, stomp on them. No matter what is done to them, the worm never fights back.

The psalmist, David, is being mocked and insulted. His faith is being ridiculed and tested, yet He praises God. At the end of the chapter he says:

“For the kingdom is the LORD's and He rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, all those who go down to the dust will bow before Him.”

There is so much to learn from this. Ultimately, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess His name. In the meantime, we need to do our part. Be more like the worm and less like the snake. It isn't about being right and proving someone wrong. As I mentioned in my last blog, it is about bringing Him honor and glory. Let's not be embarrassing or embarrassed any more. They say actions speak louder than words, so isn't it about time we stop talking so much and starting being like Christ?