Oh, Jesus—why do we doubt you so? Why do we place so many limits on you? Forgive us.
Would you like to see his eyes? His smile? Ask him! Let Jesus be who he is with you. Take off the limits you or others have put on him. Oh—one more thing. You need to be open to the ways Jesus wants to come to you. Don’t insist it be in exactly the way he comes to someone else. This artist is infinitely creative.
-John Eldredge, Beautiful Outlaw, 221, 222
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, life, literature, love, nature, personal, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival, travel, winter
So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
-1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: Bible, Christianity, faith, God, Jesus Christ, life, love, photography, salvation
| 1⁄2 | c | instant mashed potatoes |
| 2 | T | cheese sauce powder |
| 1 | T | dry milk |
| 3 | T | shelf stable bacon or bacon bits |
| 1⁄2 | c | water |
When hiking in very hot weather, a good helping of potatoes will help you absorb water better and ward off painful leg cramps.
Cheese sauce powder can be found online or in some grocery stores. You can use cheese sauce powder from boxed mac n’ cheese or use 1-ounce cheddar cheese, diced up and added in with the water.
At home pack everything in a pint freezer or sandwich bag. If taking shelf stable bacon pack separately in a small plastic bag.
FBC method:
Add near boiling water and mix well. Add a bit more water if needed. Let cool.
Mug method:
Add boiling water and mix well. Add a bit more water if needed. Let cool.
Courtesy of http://www.squidoo.com/the-best-hiking-and-backcountry-recipes.
Posted in Backpacking Recipes | Tags: backpacking, bacon, cheese, food, hiking, life, recipes, survival, travel
“Few people know how to take a walk. The qualifications are endurance, plain clothes, old shoes, an eye for nature, good humor, vast curiosity, good speech, good silence and nothing too much.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Posted in Nature Writer Quotes | Tags: art, beauty, books, conservation, earth, enviroment, literature, love, nature, photography, Ralph Waldo Emerson, spirituality, travel
Organize to Avoid Freezing.
>> Water Store bottles upside down. The water surface will freeze first, leaving the top easy to open and ice-free for longer. Hydration bladders and tubes are hard to keep frost-free at temps below 15°F (even with insulators). Pack bottles instead. Place one in an insulator and a second tucked mid-pack, wrapped in a puffy.
>> Layers Put a down jacket near the top of your pack for easy access during rest stops and so you’re more likely to grab it when your exertion decreases or the weather worsens. Also, keep a hooded windbreaker like Marmot’s Essence ($185; 6 oz.; marmot.com) in an outside pocket. Winds usually strengthen above treeline.
>> Sleeping bag If your warmest piece of gear gets wet, you’ve lost a huge safety net against the cold and hypothermia. Pack your bag in a waterproof sack like Sea to Summit’s eVent Compression Dry Sack ($25-45; seatosummit.com) or a garbage bag, or get a new bag stuffed with water-resistant down.
>> Food Pack snacks in an inside jacket pocket, next to your torso. They won’t freeze, which makes them easier to eat and better tasting. High-fat snacks are especially warming. Try salami, mixed nuts, string cheese, chocolate-covered espresso beans, energy gels, and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups—not Snickers, which freeze.
Bulk up for Better Mobility
“Wear an extra layer on your torso. When cold, your body shunts blood away from your extremities, but by keeping the core extra toasty, you can get away with wearing thinner clothing on your arms and legs.”
–Kelly Cordes, alpinist
Drive There Safely
“Your car needs eight times the stopping distance on ice versus asphalt. Pump your brakes, make small steering adjustments, and if you go into a slide, back off the gas as you gently turn the wheel in the direction the car’s headed.”
—Mark Osborne, winter driving school program manager
Check the Latest Forecast
“Look at backcountry-specific sites like mountainweather.com for the elevation where you’re headed, and read the ‘discussions’ at weather.gov, which detail the rationale behind the forecast and provide insight about potential changes.”
—Jim Woodmencey, meteorologist3
Courtesy of Backpacker magazine.
Posted in Weekly Survival Skill | Tags: backpacking, health, hiking, life, mountains, nature, photography, survival, travel, winter, winter camping, winter hiking
When we recover the humanity of Jesus, it helps us find him in the messy parts of our own humanity, of humanity at large. We discover for ourselves the vast richness and beauty of his heart. If his heart is such, in whose image we are made and are being remade, might our own hearts one day be so rich?
The religious fog has many, many Christians trapped in the Old Testament view of their hearts—deceitful and wicked. They have been blinded to the New Testament teaching that God gives us a new heart: “The seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart,” and “He purified their hearts by faith” (Luke 8:15; Acts 15:9). That’ll rock your world.
-John Eldredge, Beautiful Outlaw, 220, 221
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: beauty, books, God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, literature, love, nature, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
-1 Peter 1:3-4 NLT
Picture Credit: Yann Pinczon du Sel (http://www.flickr.com/photos/grandyann)
Posted in Daily Scriptures | Tags: beauty, Bible, Christianity, faith, God, Jesus Christ, life, local, love, mountains, nature, photography, salvation, survival
At home: Combine the pudding and powdered milk in a zip lock bag. Carry the nuts and marshmallows in a second bag.
On the trail: Add 2 cups of water to the pudding mix. Top the pudding with the marshmallows and nuts after the pudding has set up.
Makes 2-4 servings
Posted in Backpacking Recipes | Tags: backpacking, chocolate, food, hiking, life, local, recipes, survival, travel
“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”
-Leo Tolstoy
Posted in Nature Writer Quotes | Tags: beauty, conservation, earth, enviroment, life, literature, nature, personal, photography, spirituality, survival, travel
When I was little girl, I used to love World War II movies. I imagined myself being in them. I dreamed of growing up, keeping my hair long, putting it in braids and then tucking them up under my helmet. I planned to disguise my gender so that I could join in. I sensed that the men in these movies were part of something heroic, valiant and worthy. I longed to be a part of it, too. In the depths of my soul, I longed to be a part of something large and good; something that required all of me; something dangerous and worth dying for.
There is something fierce in the heart of a woman. Simply insult her children, her man, or her best friend and you’ll get a taste of it. A woman is a warrior, too. (You ought to see Stasi at laser tag. It cracks me up. I mean, she gets intense about it.) But she is meant to be a warrior in a uniquely feminine way. Sometime before the sorrows of life did their best to kill it in us, most young women wanted to be a part of something grand, something important. Before doubt and accusation take hold, most little girls sense that they have a vital role to play; they want to believe there is something in them that is needed and needed desperately.
Think of Sarah from Sarah Plain and Tall . She is needed; their world is not right until she becomes a part of it. She brings her courage and her creativity to the West and helps to tame it. We are awed by the nurses in Pearl Harbor, how in the midst of a horrifying assault they bring their courage and strength to rescue the lives of hundreds of men. The women in The Lord of the Rings trilogy are valiant and beautiful – women like Arwen, Galadriel and Eowen bring change the fate of Middle Earth. And what about women like Esther and Mary and Ruth, biblical characters who had irreplaceable roles in a Great Story.
-John & Stasi Eldredge, Captivating, 11
Posted in Ransomed Heart | Tags: beauty, God, Jesus Christ, John Eldredge, literature, love, mountains, nature, photography, Ransomed Heart, salvation, survival, Warrior, woman, Women
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