Lysa TerKeurst

Friday, April 26

Never Doubt The Power Of A Simple Note

(I covered so many of my favorites in the webcast this week so I didn’t do a Friday Favorites post. But never fear, next week’s Friday Favorites is one of the most fun yet!)

Legacy. It’s a beautiful word. Part old-fashioned grace mixed with a stirring desire to have this word be true of the marks I leave with my life.

A life that hasn’t always been pretty. There was a season of my life that was very dark. When my baby sister died very tragically and unexpectedly, my entire world flipped upside down.

What I knew to be true suddenly became questionable.

Is God good? If so, why this? And if I never know why, how can I ever trust God again?

Hard questions. Honest questions. Questions that haunted me.

Until.

One day I got a note from a friend. A girl I not-so-affectionately called my “Bible friend.” She honestly got on my nerves with all her Bible verse quoting. I wasn’t on good terms with God at that point in my life. I didn’t want to believe God even existed. And I certainly wasn’t reading the Bible.

I made all of this very known to my Bible friend. But in her gentle, sweet, kind way… she kept slipping me notes of truth with gently woven verses tucked within.

And one day, one verse cracked the dam of my soul. Truth slipped in and split my hardhearted views of life open just enough for God to make Himself known to me.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Personally. Intimately. Relentlessly.

I held that simple note with one Bible verse scribbled on the front as the tears of honest need streamed down my cheeks. My stiff knees bent. And a whispered “yes God” changed the course of my life.

I will never doubt the power of a simple note again.

And I will never doubt the power of one woman reaching into the life of another woman with some whisper of love.

She reached me. She helped change me.

So, I want to reach into her life now and thank her. But how?

Here’s a beautiful way… a “Legacy card” from Proverbs 31 Ministries.

legacycard1
legacycard2

These are also perfect for Mother’s Day. For more information on getting a Legacy card sent to the special women in your life, click here.

I love doing life with you, my blog friends. I treasure you and count you as one of my greatest blessings. So, as I remember to thank my special friend who sent me that life-changing note so long ago… I want to pause… to also thank you.

Thank you for taking time to visit here at my little blog home. Thank you for taking time to slip comment notes under my door.

Your words of sweet encouragement spur me on in so many ways each day. You have left a beautiful mark on my life.

I just wanted to make sure you knew.

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Wednesday, April 24

Unglued Summer Sanity Savers Webcast Replay Available

I had so much fun last night with my friend Crystal sharing our summer sanity tips! But here’s a little reminder of the most important tip from the webcast — don’t try all of these tips or you will go insane. Seriously. Try one or two that work for you and your family!

And in case you weren’t able to tune in to the live feed, the replay is available to watch below. Technology — it’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it?

{Webcast replay no longer available.}

Here are some of the links mentioned in the webcast:

Crystal Paine – Money Saving Mom
Motivated Moms
Amazon.com
Kids Bowl Free
HolisticHomemaking.org
CamelCamelCamel.com
Unglued
Unglued Devotional

Friday Favorites: Healthy Summer Recipes

It’s time for my Friday favorites once again! This week we’re going to talk about some easy, healthy meals that my husband, kids and I absolutely love to have for our family dinner nights.

One requirement to continue reading past this point is that you keep an open mind to the recipes I’m about to give, okay? Okay.

{Thanks to Closet Cooking for this photo!}

First up, BBQ chicken pizza with a cauliflower crust. Remember, open mind! It sounds like the strangest thing ever, I know. I can only imagine what my face looked like when my sweet friend Laci first introduced me to this interesting food choice, but I promise you it is delicious. And it’s healthy. A win-win!

Here’s the recipe so you can try it for yourself…

1/2 Large head of cauliflower (= 2+ cups of shredded cauliflower)
1 Large egg
1 Cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese
1 Teaspoon of oregano
1/2 Teaspoon of dried minced garlic (or fresh garlic)
1/2 Teaspoon of onion salt

To make the crust:

1. Shred the cauliflower into small crumbles. You can use a food processor, just be careful not to puree. I use a cheese grater and it works fine. You will need 2+

cups of cauliflower crumbles. Place the cauliflower crumbles into a large bowl and microwave them dry for 8 minutes. Let the cauliflower cool.

2. Prepare the crust: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spray a cookie sheet or pizza pan with non-stick spray. In a medium bowl, mix the cauliflower crumbles with the remaining ingredients. Pat the “crust” into a 9 to 12 – inch round shape or a rectangular shape on the prepared pan. Spray the crust lightly with nonstick spray and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Remove the crust from the oven and turn the heat up to broil.

3. Prepare the Pizza: Decide what toppings you want on your pizza. I chose to make BBQ chicken Pizza (see topping recipe below.) Top the crust with the barbecue chicken mixture, add red onion and top with cheese. Broil the pizza for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the toppings are hot and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Top with fresh cilantro. Cut and serve immediately.

This pizza is best served on a plate with a fork.

For the BBQ chicken topping:

1/2 Cup barbecue sauce
1 Cup cooked, shredded chicken breast
3/4 Cup shredded Gouda cheese (you can use mozzarella or any kind of cheese you
like – Gouda goes well with BBQ Chicken)
Thinly sliced red onions
Fresh cilantro

You can really tailor this recipe to whatever kind of pizza your family likes – pepperoni, veggie, extra cheese, etc.

And then for dessert… drum roll, please… avocado chocolate ice cream!

{Thanks to Vegan Culinary Crusade for this photo!}

Y’all. I don’t know about you, but when someone tells me there’s a healthy way to get some chocolate into my system, my excitement level rises. I love chocolate. My family loves chocolate. This is perfect!

1/2 Avocado
3/4 Cup coconut or almond milk
1/3 Cup hot cocoa mix (You can use sugar-free if you’d like. You can also switch out the chocolate for frozen strawberries)
2 Cups ice, add more for thicker mix
4 Baby carrots
1 Rib of celery

Blend on high speed of blender for about 45 seconds.
Serve immediately.

If these recipes just saved your mind a whole lot of trouble in deciding what to have for dinner tonight, you won’t want to miss my FREE Summer Sanity Savers webcast on Tuesday, April 23 at 8pm (EST). My friend Crystal Paine and I will be talking about how to save money, time, and of course, your sanity! Just sign up below to receive a reminder about the webcast.

Here’s some more exciting news… today I’m giving away a $250 Amazon gift certificate! Yes! You can win a $250 gift certificate (that would be crazy fun, hunh?!) There’s a whole lot more on Amazon than just books. You could use that credit toward new kitchen appliances to whip up some healthy meals this summer. Smiles.

All you have to do is leave a comment below giving me your summer sanity saving tips. I will announce one blog commenter as the winner on the webcast Tuesday See you there!