Safe in His arms

" I lay down and slept;

I awoke, for the Lord sustained me."

Psalm 3:5

My heart has been heavy these days and I've been appearing in our Almighty God's presence with my petition. I know in my heart that the Lord is with us every moment of our lives. He is a supernatural God and He has the power to be everywhere though we maynot understand how it is.

Yet our flesh is such that it makes us look at our circumstances and when life happens, or tragedies occur we start wondering and questions just pour into our minds- -HOW ? WHY ? WHY NOT ? etc...you name it.

This morning during my time with the Lord the portion I read was Daniel 1 :1,2 . Right there, the kind Lord spoke to my heart, the verse 2 says " And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God,...."( King Nebuchadnessar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it)

The Lord is in control even when we feel things are not in our control. Who better to trust than our Lord. I am safe in His arms, the Lord is fully aware of each minute detail of every issue of all the people everywhere. Our God is a big God. I am so glad He is my God and I am His.

The heaviness that was in my heart lifted up and a peace came that took all doubts away.

"The heavens declare the glory of God;

And the firmament shows His handiwork."

Psalm 19:1

Recipe for Butter Chicken my family loves

Don't forget to be kind to strangers,

for some who have done this

have entertained angels

without realizing it!

Hebrews 13:2

My hubby and my children love this chicken. Here's the recipe.


Ingredients:
One whole chicken
Butter - 4 table spoons
Cream --1 cup
Tomato puree--3 cups
Garam masala Powder ( Mixture of powdered spices like cloves, caradamoms etc.)

Red chilly powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Ginger paste - 1/2 tsp
Garlic paste - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Chopped green coriander leaves
for garnishing




Method:
1. Take 1 whole chicken, cut it into pieces, wash it and set it aside. I wash it with a little vinegar diluted in water. It takes all the slime away.
2. Heat half of the butter in a frying pan. Add ginger, garlic and and saute for a minute. Now add the chicken pieces and toss them. Cover it and cook until chicken is no longer pink or it's done. Set it aside.

3. While the chicken is cooking in another pan add the remaining butter and reheat. Add tomato puree, red chilly powder, garam masala powder ( can be bought at any Indian stores) coriander powder and salt. Stir well.

4. Add little water just enough to make a thick gravy and bring it to boil on high. Reduce the heat and add chicken pieces.
5. Stir gently to coat all the chicken pieces with tomato gravy. Add 1/2 cup cream and simmer for 10 minutes.

Garnish with coriander leaves and rest of the cream and serve hot over rice or with bread or wheat tortillas.

Visit www.anniekitchen.blogspot.com for more recipes

My Daily Routine

Commit your works to the Lord,

And your thoughts will be

established.

Proverbs 16:3

I am so thankful to God that He gave us a will and ability to choose to live the life God wants us to lead.

4 A.M Wake up! Time with God

5:30 A.M Make beds, Start Laundry

6 A.M Start coffee,

Wake up children

Make breakfast

Pack lunch

Learn memory verse, Pray

Drive children to school

Time with God

Dog to buisiness

Feed dog and cat

Tidy Living room

Quick bathroom, mirror, sink and toilet clean up

Water plants, I eat breakfast if not allready done with the children and Hubby

9 A.M Exercise

9:30 A.M Quick shower

9:40 A.M Sweep and vaccum ground floor

10 A.M Cook dinner

12P.M Fold Laundry and put it away

1:15 P.M Pick up dog buisiness and empty cat litter

1:30 P.M Organize craft section and steel cabinets

2:45 P.M Pick up child from school, serve snack and ask about what was taught today etc....

3:30 P.M Pick up older children from school, serve snack

4:30 P.M Supervise Homework, Read with child

Supervise Piano practise

5 P.M Serve dinner

6 P.M Free play time, walk with family and dog

7 P.M Bath time

8 P.M Family devotion time

9 P.M Bedtime

Time with Hubby

Time with God

Sleep zzzzzzzzzzzz.........

Other tasks that will be included into the daily routine on other days are below---

Task A- Wash down garbage cans

Pick up dog and kitty litter

Task B- Plan meals, Make shopping list

Task C- Major bathroom and toilet clean up

Refill soap

Dust furniture

Task D- Sweep and vaccuum ground floor

Mend clothes

Task E- Check for cobwebs and vaccum first floor

Fold laundry and put it away

Task F- Sweep and mop loors

Organize an area

Task G- Vaccum furniture

Plan on inviting someone over for sunday lunch

Plan games with children

Task H- Pull weeds

Tend to flower garden

Task I- Vaccum blinds in an area

Task J- Change sheets

Wash sheets

Task K- Organize photos

Task L- E-mail friends

Pay bills

Blog on website

Task M-Bathe dog and cat

Task N - Sweep and clean front porch and patio

Cleaning tasks-

Stove

Fridge

All screens and mirrors

Sinks, bathrooms, toilets,counter tops, showers

Mop floors,wash trash cans

Vaccum car and van

Spice cabinets, pantry

Coat closet, garage

This is just a guide to help get started and each one can tweak it as necessary according to our needs.

Homemaking

....young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.

Titus 2:4-5

Wow, this is so wonderful. I feel so blessed to be the wife of this great man and mother of our precious son and daughters.

The Lord spoke to me that I was doing a very important job at home. My hubby is travelling and he was looking for some place to eat his breakfast at the airport. What if the cafe workers thought that it was a boring job or demeaning job to cook food and wouldn't open the cafe. My hubby and many others like him would go hungry and their bodies wouldn't get the nourishment needed. This would result in him not being able to function well and serve the people he had to serve.

In a way if we look, all the people are serving someone who has been placed in their path by way of occupation or family or friendship. It wouldn't be a pleasant feeling if everyone decided that their service was not worth their time which they could use for their own self. And things wouldn't get done and any nation wouldn't be what it is, if the citizens didn't do their part.

Homemaking is a great job. Home is the background against which our life is lived. A safe retreat from the world's buffetings. Home is the most sacred and exciting place on earth.

Committing my family early every morning to the creator of this universe my Lord Jesus Christ.

As a homemaker I am preparing nutritious food for the nourishment of the bodies of my husband and children.

I am making sure our home is a clean and orderly place where they can come and rest and be replenished.

The clothes are all laundered and ready to wear. Teaching my children by example and training to have order in their life.

Teaching my children to set their priorities God first and all things will be well and in order.

Always being available for my hubby and children whom I have chosen to make the center of my life next to God.

Showing hospitality to those the Lord has put in our path so they will be refreshed and be inspired to get closer to the Lord.

Being charitable to those the Lord has put in our heart and path and thereby being a good steward of all that's given to us.

This is my gift, may be different for each person. I am gifted with the ability to appreciate Landscapes and paint them . It draws me closer to the Creator whenever I paint, it's a spiritual experience for me.

Now it's my prayer for all those wives and mothers to take their job seriously. No matter what you do, remember you are a child of God, a woman , a full time mother. By doing so we are making this unit of society called home the launching pad where we are getting our family launched into life.

A clean, happy, well organized home life enriches the lives of those who live in it and all those who come in contact.

There is cleanup always launching any worthwhile project. Focus on the end result. Cleaning feels good, necessary and even noble.

Need of the early morning quiet time

Now in the morning having risen

a long while before daylight,

He went out and departed to a solitary place;

and there He prayed.

Mark 1;35

If the Lord Jesus felt the need of this early morning quiet time,how much more should I!

He opened His ear each morning to receive instructions for the day from God the Father.(Isaiah 50:4,5)

How often the Lord has woken me up,

and I just tried to roll on and catch some more sleep.

Pretty soon as the day dawns,

say a quick prayer and a quick reading of the Word.

And all that needs to be done crowd into my schedule.

Chaotically every thing's done as if to keep from drowning,

in all that needs to be accomplished.

I realise, oh I haven't spent my quiet time with my Lord today,

No wonder I have been gasping for time.

when I did not give my early morning to the owner of time,

To come and meet quietly before daylight.

He's waiting there for me,

to give me the secrets, for my day ahead.

I earnestly repent and He quickly forgives,

and is always ready to restore ,

the close relationship I cherish.

My Father,my Daddy,my Lord!

Abraham, a hero!

And truly if they had called to mind

that country from which they had come out,

they would have the opportunity to return.

But now they desire a better,

that is , a heavenly country.

Therefore God is not ashamed

to be called their God,

for He has prepared a city for them.

Hebrews 11:15-16

This was the portion my son was memorising this morning for kid's club and it spoke to my heart.

Wow! Abraham made a good choice. He could have called to mind, in other words thought about or stay stuck in his memories of the country he had come out from.

Oh dear, then he would have had the opportunity to return, how sad that would have been, but instead he chose to desire a better, a heavenly country even while he lived on this earth and had all the great possessions he had acquired.

And how wonderful, God was not ashamed to be their God and prepared a city for them.

My aim should be to look forward not to worry about the past mishaps, portion of dissappointments, not even the past sweet memories that I can't get to.

This was a choice I had to make. My life is not on auto pilot. The Lord is my captain, I choose to listen to what He has to say in His Word and then choose to obey Him in all my day to day activities.

I am so glad I know Him. There is none better to trust. He is trustworthy and He is faithful.

I am so thankful for the free gift of free will He gave to mankind . And most of all for giving up His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ to make a way for us mankind to have friendship with Him.

Though many a times we stumble, He understands us and provides a way out.My life and my family's life is proof of His mercy and forgiveness and provision.

The eye glass Miracle

My son's eyes were hurting. His eye glasses could'nt be found anywhere. My heart went out for him, it was hard for me as a mother to see him blink to try to focus his eyes. We prayed . As usual when something is missing we looked at all the possible places and also in some of the unusual places. But there was no clue of it. Before he left to school he kneeled on the couch and prayed earnestly to the Lord. My child needed a miracle today.

I ushered him off to school and comforted him that I would bring his glasses if they could be found. After dropping my darling children at school, I started my search prayerfully at 8 AM . I looked all over the place under the couches, everywhere up and downstairs . I tried replaying the events of the weekend in my mind to see if I could hit a clue somewhere.

It was almost 10:30 AM now and I thought "Well I've got to get my work started, the laundry is waiting to be folded , the floor looking at me as to when I was going to sweep it , couch craving to be vaccummed. Maybe I'll get started and keep looking as I go. "



From the bottom of my heart I whispered to the Lord, " Lord, how I wish the glasses were found and I could take it to my son" I did'nt know how he would manage to see his work in class today.
Resigned to the fact that I needed to start the routine, I plugged the vaccum to the outlet to vaccum our trusty couch, and instead of starting the vaccum , I found myself led without my own intention to the china cabinet to look behind our children's picture and lo and behold! there was our son's precious glasses!

Filled with joy I praised my Father in heaven who led me to the place where the glasses were. I was so excited to take my son's glasses to school and tucked a small note that the Lord had answered his prayer. I can only imagine how his heart would be filled with awe at His God's looking out for him.



Our God is such a great God,



nothing is too small or too big for Him.



Nothing is hidden from His Sight.



I am so glad our Lord has not left us



alone here to fend for ourselves.



His word is true when He said ..



"...Lo, I am with you always,



even to the end of the age.."

Mathew 28: 20