Saturday, November 2, 2024

Corn Chowder

 

 

corn chowder
 
Ingredients
1 TABLESPOON BUTTER
             
1 CAN POTATOES (DRAINED AND SLICED)

1 CUP DICED HAM

2 CUPS MILK

1 CAN CORN (DRAINED)

1 CAN CREAM CORN

1 CAN CHICKEN BROTH

SALT/PEPPER

Directions
COMBINE IN CROCK POT.

COOK ON LOW FOR 2 HOURS.



I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Friday, November 1, 2024

Watch the Temptation Tree - Martin Wiles

watch the temptation tree
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT

The tree was unlike any other tree I had ever seen.

Two peach trees stood on the other side of the privacy fence, separating our small subdivision from a lot of woods and a neighboring business’s back parking lot. They belonged to our neighbor across the road. The young trees filled with blooms and small peaches every year in early spring. And every year, the squirrels and birds that lived and played in the trees in those woods ate every one of the peaches as soon as they reached the size of a golf ball.

One year, as I rounded the fence on my daily walk, something in the tree startled me: a snake. Not one to overly fear snakes, I walked closer to see whether it was poisonous. That’s when I noticed it wasn’t a real snake at all. Our neighbors had placed a rubber snake three feet up in the tree, hoping to scare off the squirrels and birds.

The trees continued to change as I walked each day. I suppose the snake wasn’t enough—or, at least, the neighbors didn’t think so. They wanted peaches … badly. The following items were tin pans. They had cut them in half and tied them to various limbs in the tree—a trick I had used in my gardens. A trick that also had not worked when it came to keeping out deer. Perhaps it would work for squirrels and birds.

One day, as I rounded the corner of the fence, I jumped, thinking someone was standing near the tree. They weren’t. Our neighbors had stuck a tomato cage in the ground near one of the trees and decorated it with clothes. Another “person” hung in the other tree, waving like a Halloween ghost.

But even all of the above wasn’t enough. Our neighbors perched a fake owl on the fence. They also hung pieces of hose in both trees, along with other implements—even a plastic gorilla. So many things, in fact, that it was difficult to see the small peaches anymore. The wife wanted to make sure this tree wasn’t a temptation tree for squirrels and birds. She wanted peaches and set out to do whatever it took to get them.

Satan has a way of acting like my neighbor: decorating things up a bit so they look good and beneficial. That way, I don’t see how harmful they might be to my body, soul, and spirit.

But my neighbor prepared, which is the only way to adequately face temptation. In the heat of the moment, without any forethought, I’ll make the wrong choice every time, but when I’ve stored up a pattern of spiritual disciplines—Bible study, prayer, meditation, worship, fellowship—I’ll be more prepared to face and reject what Satan uses to entice.

Accepting Christ results in a new nature—as well as a new want—which leads us in new directions. Paying attention to God’s Spirit as he works through this new nature helps keep us away from the pretty things Satan hangs in our life’s trees to entice us.

When we decide not to sin against God, he will give us the power to do just that—at least sinning will not be the norm. He promises to show us a way out when we look and assures us he won’t allow the temptations to grow so intense that we could say, “God, I couldn’t help myself.”

Don’t let life’s temptation trees take your eyes off obedience to God.

Father, give me strength to overcome the temptations Satan hangs before me. 

Tweetable: Which temptation tree tempts you? 


I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Look for the Buried Treasure - Martin Wiles

look for the buried treasure
And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. Ezekiel 36:26 NLT

I walked by it numerous times but never knew it was there.

As I stood by our front door, waiting on my wife, I saw one of the many squirrels scampering through our neighborhood subdivision, doing what squirrels do. Except for a few oaks, our neighborhood had no nut-producing trees. I often wondered what these squirrels constantly buried.

I observed him scooting about our small front yard on this particular day. Suddenly, he stopped at a particular place, positioned his tiny front feet for digging, and got to work. Within seconds, he had unearthed a pecan, which he promptly placed between his front teeth. Our yard held a buried treasure I knew nothing about.

We find a buried treasure of greater importance in the innermost parts of everyone who follows Jesus Christ. Ezekiel prophesied of a time when God would give the Spirit in a new way.

God’s Holy Spirit is every believer’s buried treasure. It is not buried in that it cannot be located but in the sense that the Spirit is an untapped resource for successful living for many. Just as buried treasure does no one any good as long as it’s buried, the indwelling Spirit doesn’t either if we don’t tap into his power.

God gives his Spirit the moment we trust his Son as our Savior. If we unearth the power of his presence, he will provide unexplainable comfort when we need it. Since life is tough and regularly tosses bombshells our way, we need this comfort regularly. His comfort is a feeling deep inside that everything will be all right because God loves us and is in control.

God’s Spirit also strengthens us to keep going when times are tough, when others oppose our work for God, and when disappointment and depression zap our energy level.

A further advantage of God’s buried treasure is the gifts he gives for work in God’s service. Our work for God would be impossible to complete with any notable track record without his Spirit awarding us with callings, talents, and unique gifts.

Unearth the power of God’s buried treasure.

Father, thank you for the presence and power of your Spirit, who gives me the authority and strength to do the work you’ve called me to do. 

Tweetable: Have you unearthed the power of God's buried treasure? 


I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Monday, October 28, 2024

Take a Daily Bath - Martin Wiles

Take a Daily Bath
A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet to be entirely clean. And you are clean. John 13:10 NLT

As I sat at my computer writing in the early morning hours, my wife hollered, “Come quickly.”

Although we lived in the city, a few months ago, an opossum came waddling between the privacy fence surrounding our backyard and made himself at home rummaging around in our yard. He was petite. I saw him again a few weeks later, trekking atop our privacy fence. He was much larger then.

On this particular morning, my wife discovered his hideout. A small patch of brush and trees separates our subdivision from the one behind us. One of the larger trees had a hollow, and he had made it his home. He sat upon a strong limb in the early morning light and bathed himself, much like a raccoon or cat.

On one occasion, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet to teach them about serving. When he came to Peter, Peter refused. He thought it was beneath the Messiah to perform such a menial task. Jesus explained that though Peter didn’t need to wash all over, his feet still needed washing. After all, people in this period walked the dusty roads barefoot or in sandals.

With rare exceptions, I, like the opossum, take daily baths. I feel cleaner when I do even if I’ve done nothing that day to get dirty. Oils build up on my skin. I may have eaten at a restaurant with sizzling smells or been junking in thrift stores.

Jesus, however, talked about a spiritual bath. The disciples had bathed when they trusted him as who he claimed to be—God’s Son. Once this is done, all our sins are washed away—past, present, and future. I don’t need a whole-body bath again, but I do need daily cleansing. My feet get dirty from walking through the world. The opossum didn’t jump in the lake; he just licked parts of his body.

My daily baths consist of confession for sins of omission and commission. I also apologize for missing opportunities the Savior has sent because I was too busy, selfish, or consumed by my own world. This daily bath keeps me on good terms with Christ and helps me hear him clearly when he calls.

Don’t neglect your daily bath.

Father, move me to daily confession so I can hear you clearly when you call me to ministry opportunities. 

Tweetable: Are you taking a daily bath? 


I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Saturday, October 26, 2024

Homemade Cornbread

 

homemade cornbread
 

Ingredients
3 cups Martha White Hot Rise Buttermilk Cornmeal Mix

2 Eggs

2 cups of Milk

¼ cup Vegetable Oil

Directions
Pour vegetable oil in cast iron skillet.

Heat oven to 350 degrees and place skillet in oven for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and pour mixture in skillet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

(If sweet cornbread is desired, add ¼ cup of sugar to mixture.)



I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Friday, October 25, 2024

Soul Comfort - Martin Wiles

soul comfort
Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 NKJV

A red sign that read, “COVID-19 HOME UNDER QUARANTINE” decorated the door of every home the virus had infected.

Newscasts informed citizens of conditions in America and sometimes in China, but I rarely heard of conditions in any other country. However, I knew people fared poorly in India because my missionary friend who serves there periodically told me so. His recent message gave a sobering scene.

The virus had infected twelve of his neighbors, who were hospitalized. Officials had extended the national lockdown for another month. As in America, many companies were forced to close, and thousands were unemployed and struggling to make ends meet. What differed, however, were the daily wage laborers in India—something foreign to America. Thousands had returned to their villages, walking more than one hundred miles to get there, a journey that would take six to seven days.

One night, a truck had run over and killed eight of the day laborers as they slept on the street—two of them children. A goods train had run over another seventeen—six of whom were children—as they slept on railroad tracks during the night. Many of those walking were pregnant women or mothers with small children.

The news saddened me. As terrible as things seemed in America with millions infected by the virus, things could have been worse.

I prayed the night of my friend’s message that God would protect His children, give strength to medical professionals and first responders, provide wisdom for those working on a vaccine, and protect those who worked to manufacture and transport essential goods.

Many things lie beyond our control. The virus did. Yet, I remember God’s promise through Isaiah.

Following Christ doesn’t necessarily mean we won’t contract COVID or some other virus, but we do have the promise that God will meet our needs. He is as good as His word. When He says not to fear, we shouldn’t fear, but trust. We walk by faith, not sight. When we do, it builds our faith and character. Spiritual growth takes place, and we form a message we can share with others who face difficult times.

God is in the business of comforting our souls. Don’t let anything deprive you of the peace found in trusting Him. Fear not, weary pilgrim.

Father, when my soul is weary from traveling through this difficult world, comfort me with the promise of Your presence. 

Tweetable: Where do you look for soul care? 


I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.

Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Change with a Purpose - Martin Wiles

change with a purpose
Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless. Hebrews 7:18 NLT

Change isn’t easy for most people, but it’s easier to stomach when it has a purpose.

Gossip had driven the previous pastor to another venue. The church had dwindled to around thirty faithful attendees during the interim period. When the church leaders interviewed a new prospective pastor and invited him to take the helm, he said, “Here’s what I plan to do if I come.”

Change is difficult for any church, but some find it even more challenging. But this congregation knew if they didn’t change, death was just around the corner. They agreed to his goals and called him as their pastor. Soon, attitudes made a radical shift. People were excited about coming and what would happen next, perhaps because the changes had a purpose. The pastor designed the changes to transform a dying church into a living, breathing organism that would make a difference in God’s kingdom.

The writer of Hebrews wrote to people who had inherited a several-thousand-year-old tradition: the Levitical priesthood. Men were selected from the tribe of Levi to tend to the Temple, offer sacrifices for the people, and intercede with God on behalf of the people. Now God—through Jesus Christ—had changed all that. Jesus descended from the tribe of Judah, not Levi. The old system was good for a time, but it wasn’t God’s plan for it to last forever.

Change for the sake of change is difficult for most people. Most love time-honored traditions as well as the same old same old. Life is easier when we have a pattern, a routine. When something happens to uproot the norm, we often react with anger, confusion, depression, or resistance. But we can respond with acceptance.

Rarely does God work the same way during the entirety of our lives. His overarching plan for our life requires many changes along the way. Rather than resisting the changes, when we know they come from God, we should willingly accept, adapt, and conform. He is working out His goal for us and conforming us to the image of His Son. Resisting the changes God initiates can prevent our spiritual growth, put us at odds with others, and keep us from realizing the good rewards He is attempting to give us.

When God sends change, accept it willingly.

Father, help us accept the changes You send that are for our good and Your glory.

Tweetable: Does change unnerve you?  


I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on FacebookTwitter, and Linkedin.