As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
-Matthew 1:20-21 NLT
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: beauty, Bible, Christianity, Christmas, faith, God, Jesus Christ, life, love, nature, personal, photography, salvation, survival
High protein lemony chicken soup.
| 3 | oz | ramen |
| 2 | t | low sodium chicken bouillon |
| 1 | t | diced dried onion |
| 1 | t | dried parsley |
| 1⁄4 | t | true lemon powder |
| 1⁄4 | c | freeze dried green peas |
| 3 | oz | can or pouch chicken breast |
| 1⁄4 | c | finely chopped pecans |
| 2 | c | water |
With canned chicken weight of meal is 9 ounces. Find 3-ounce cans of chicken in 3 packs by Swanson or 3-ounce pouches online.
To save more weight, use 1/4 cup freeze dried chicken instead, packing it with the ramen. Add 1/4 tsp more bouillon and 1/4 cup more water.
The pecans can be left out for a lighter tasting soup. It will have a gentle lemon-chicken flavor, quite nice to soothe tummies. The pecans tend to thicken the soup as well – you will notice your broth disappearing quickly after adding in.
You can use baked ramen (which we did) or Chuka Soba noodles for the ramen.
Based on items used the stats are:
650 calories
33 grams protein
Crumble the ramen and put in a quart freezer bag along with the vegetables and seasonings. Tuck the pecans in a snack size ziptop bag and tuck in with chicken.
One pot method:
Bring the water to a boil. Add in the chicken (with broth) and the ramen bag. Cook for 3 minutes, take off the stove and let sit covered for another 2 minutes.
Stir in the nuts.
FBC method:
Add the chicken (with broth) and just below boiling water to the bag. Stir well, seal tightly and put in a cozy for 5 to 10 minutes.
Stir in the nuts.
Insulated mug method:
Add the chicken (with broth) and boiling water. Stir well, cover tightly and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes.
Stir in the nuts.
For all methods, add salt to taste, if desired.
Courtesy of trailcooking.com
“Each thing in its way, when true to its own character, is equally beautiful.
-Edward Abbey
Picture Credit: Paul Chong
Posted in Nature Writer Quotes | Tags: beauty, conservation, earth, Edward Abbey, enviroment, flowers, life, local, love, nature, personal, photography, spirituality, travel
I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. (John 16:12-13)
There’s more that Jesus wants to say to you, much more, and now that his Spirit resides in your heart, the conversation can continue. Many good people never hear God speak to them personally for the simple fact that they’ve never been told that he does. But he does-generously, intimately. “He who belongs to God hears what God says” (John 8:47).
The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice . . . I am the good shepherd. (John 10:2-4, 11)
You don’t just leave sheep to find their way in the world. They are famous for getting lost, being attacked by wild animals, falling into some pit, and that is why they must stay close to the shepherd, follow his voice. And no shepherd could be called good unless he personally guided his flock through danger. But that is precisely what he promises to do. He wants to speak to you; he wants to lead you to good pasture. Now, it doesn’t happen in an instant. Walking with God is a way of life. It’s something to be learned; our ability to hear God’s voice and discern his word to us grows over time. As Brother Lawrence said it, we “practice the presence of God.”
-John Eldredge, Waking the Dead, 102-103
Picture Credit: Dominic Urbano
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: colorado, faith, God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, life, love, mountains, nature, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival, travel
This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
-Matthew 1:18-19 NLT
Picture Credit: Ryan Estes
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: Arches, Christmas, faith, God, Jesus Christ, life, love, National Parks, nature, personal, photography, salvation, survival
Once we come to accept that we can never find or hang on to the life we have been seeking, what then? As Dallas Willard writes, it matters for all the world to know that life is ahead of us.
I meet many faithful Christians who, in spite of their faith, are deeply disappointed in how their lives have turned out. Sometimes it is simply a matter of how they experience aging, which they take to mean they no longer have a future. But often, due to circumstances or wrongful decisions and actions by others, what they had hoped to accomplish in life they did not . . . Much of the distress of these good people comes from a failure to realize that their life lies before them . . . the life that lies endlessly before us in the kingdom of God. (The Divine Conspiracy)
Blaise Pascal also observed, “We are never living, but hoping to live; and whilst we are always preparing to be happy, it is certain, we never shall be so, if we aspire to no other happiness than what can be enjoyed in this life.”
Desire cannot live without hope. Yet, we can only hope for what we desire. There simply must be something more, something out there on the road ahead of us, that offers the life we prize. To sustain the life of the heart, the life of deep desire, we desperately need to possess a clearer picture of the life that lies before us.
-John Eldredge, Desire, 104-105
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: beauty, desire, faith, flowers, God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, life, literature, love, mountains, nature, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival
God sent a man, John the Baptist, to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. John himself was not the light; he was simply a witness to tell about the light. The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
-John 1:6-9 NLT
Picture Credit: Michal Malinowski
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: beauty, Christmas, faith, forest, God, Jesus Christ, life, love, nature, photography, salvation, sunrise, survival, wilderness
Let me tell you, few things can mess you up as badly as trying to do your best. For the tender heart, the earnest heart, it is so discouraging to give all you have trying to do what you think Jesus would have you do, and find yourself falling short, sabotaging your own efforts at every turn. Discouragement and shame settle in like a long Seattle rain.
And this is what most Christians experience as the Christian life. Try harder; feel worse.
I spoke of cunning traps that replace the simple priority of loving Jesus. Here is a very surprising one—the trap of integrity. What I mean by this is when our attention turns to maintaining personal righteousness. This seems noble and right. Jesus told us to keep his commands. But this can be a trap because most Christians interpret this as “Try harder; do your best.”
I find myself slipping back into this weekly. A handful of symptoms tip me off. Exhaustion, for one. I’ll just find myself wrung out again. Or an unnamed internal distress; my insides all twisted up. Discouragement, that old nagging cloud of “I’m totally blowing it” back over me. Irritation with needy people. These symptoms—and a host of others—are the collateral damage that results from trying my best. They let me know I’ve fallen back to thinking that to love Jesus is to give my very best in living for him. And this is a sticky business. Because on the one hand, that’s true—to love him is to obey. But out of what resources? From what fountain of inner strength?But didn’t Jesus warn, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5)? The good news is this—you were never meant to imitate Christ.
His revolution is not self-transformation, but his transformation of us, from the inside out, as we receive his life and allow him to live through us. Vine, branch. Anything else is madness.
-John Eldredge, Beautiful Outlaw, 229, 230
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: faith, God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, love, nature, personal, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival
Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me.
He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him.
His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands.
He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful.
For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.”
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.
-Luke 1:46-56 NLT
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: beauty, Christmas, faith, God, Jesus Christ, love, mountains, nature, personal, photography, salvation, survival
“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.”
-Edward Abbey
Posted in Nature Writer Quotes | Tags: backpacking, beauty, conservation, earth, Edward Abbey, enviroment, hiking, life, local, mountains, nature, personal, photography, spirituality, survival, travel
hiking2christ 