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Friday, April 22, 2011

Comfort Food

A sign in front of a favorite local restaurant beckoned with the lure of "Comfort Food."
Immediately, warm thoughts of some of my favorite foods came to mind. Delicious, home-cooked country food steaming as it is placed on the table. In my mind's eye there were heaping bowls of my grandmother's chicken and dumplings next to another bowl full of mashed potatoes with rich gravy in a familiar antique gravy boat. A plate being passed from one hand to another was stacked high with my mother's cornbread, followed by home-grown, fresh picked butterbeans and corn. Homemade biscuits hot out of the oven dripping with fresh-churned country butter made my mouth water. Dessert would be a tough choice; my other grandmother's three-layer, made-from-scratch German Chocolate cake or her equally delicious three-layer Coconut Cake. Usually, the choice would be one itty-bitty slice of each. Well, honestly now, not all that itty-bitty. But, you get the picture.

As my mind rested there for awhile reminiscing, I contemplated what made those particular dishes so comforting. Then, the view from my mind's eye panned out. There underneath all those steaming bowls and plates of food was the lace table cloth carefully laid over the beloved oak table. I saw the hands placing the hot food on the table, the same hands that spent all day preparing it. On my right the hands that passed the food to me and then to my left, the hands that took the food from mine. I looked up and all around the table. It was full of family and friends. Every leaf of the table had been called to duty from the nearby closet. There was the chaotic sound of many conversations going on at once. There was familiar laughter. The smell of all the food mingling together warm, comforting, and safe. It was home.

Comfort food.

No wonder it's so appealing. My, how we all need a little comfort now and then. Love, understanding and soothing from the cares and troubles of the world. As women, many times we are on the end of giving comfort to others. What a glorious blessing that is to be able to provide comfort to others. Think of how good that feels to them. Having a few kind words, a smile, a hug, a meal, some much needed encouragement during a time of disappointment, just being there without one single word that can change or make the situation better; but being there all the same. The comfort of our presence.

Yes, we all need comfort. What about you, dear friend? Are you weary, tired, discouraged or lonely? What is your greatest need of comfort right now? Think about it. Whisper your need. Maybe right now you can't even put it into words because your need is so great. That's okay. God knows, He's always known that eventually this is where He would find you.

On this dreary Good Friday afternoon, I am reminded of another family supper. A supper where Jesus and His disciples gathered around a table. In my mind's eye I see His hands breaking the bread, pouring the wine, gently touching the shoulder of a disciple and then lifting in prayer to His Father. Hands that in a few hours would be held by nails to a cross.
At this meal Jesus was providing comfort and preparing them for the days that were to follow. Unlike our family meals that provide nourishment and comfort for a time, this meal would be the prelude to Jesus' provision for our eternal comfort.

Once we know Him, no longer will we hunger and thirst. Our comfort needs will have been met. If you are feeling in need of comfort, go to the only one who can provide lasting comfort.
Jesus. Bow down before Him.
Remember Him.

Hanging in my dining room is a picture with these words by an unknown author but I love them and would like to share them with you.

You are invited to come and dine
               with me,
From now through all eternity
Believe in the Father, Son
          and Holy Ghost,
And dine with with Jesus as your
                 Host.
To live in Heaven eternally,
       all you must do is
               R.S.V.P.
                             

Have a blessed Easter!
Bonnie

(c) 2011 Bonnie M. Evans

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Bona Fide

Hi. Welcome back.
God bless you, dear friend. I'm so glad you're here.

Go ahead, and take a moment to get a cup of tea or coffee. But, don't get distracted. Come right back. I'm waiting to share this "breathing" moment with you. That's right, "breathing moment." Take a moment to say a prayer. Something simple. Something like, Thank You, dear Father for this day that You have given me. I praise your Holy name and thank You. Amen. Great! Now, breathe out slowly, let it all go, all of the stress, anxious thoughts, and fears.

Now, breathe in slowly, deeply. Breathe in this precious breath of life that the Lord has given us. With a breath blown into a handful of dust God gave us life and today He continues to give us breath and life through His Holy Spirit. Draw on Him, dear one. Breathe it in deeply. Let it nourish every cell, filling each one of them with the knowledge of His great love for us. His glory. Let your soul soar! Feel it lifting?

Isn't it wonderful what a little praise can do? It's no accident that I just stumbled upon. There's a method to my madness...Satan can't stand to hear the Lord's praises. He must flee from the presence of praise that is offered to the one and only true God our Father. Don't let Satan have his nasty little way filling you with distress, distracting you from the Lord's gifts all around you and robbing you of joy. He has no authority over us. If our God has the power to make people out of dust mixed with His holy breath, He has the power to hold us and sustain us. Nothing can snatch us from His hand. Check it out in Romans 8:35-39. It's fact. The indisputable word of God.

Which brings us to the name I chose for this blog.
Bonniefied.

Bona fide-made, done or presented in good faith, without deception, authentic, true.
Synonyms-honest, sincere, genuine.

So, with a little play on words, that's how I arrived at the title for my blog.

 I want this blog to be all of those things; most of all a place to get real with God, with who we are in Christ Jesus, with who we are on a daily basis.

 Let's face it girls; life's not always blue skies, and sunflowers as the little picture here shows. (By the way, I took that picture myself last summer while out for a driving lesson with my son.) It was one of the earlier of nearly a hundred hours that we would log together over the next nine months.
Anyhow, when I got my fingernails out of the dashboard and my foot out of that hole in the floor on the passenger side; after a few moments of reflecting on the Lord's gift of beauty before me, my eyesight to behold it and my precious son to share it with, I was finally able to steady my camera enough to snap a picture.
I realized what a blessing it was to stop and focus for just moment on the beauty of this day that the Lord has made. Sprinkled down directly from the Lord's hand in the midst of my anxious moments was something calming, beautiful, unexpected and extraordinary.

That's what I'm talking about. Those clouds are gonna roll in and bring with them storms, terrible winds, floods, lightning, thunder and the damage that follows for us to deal with. For a moment we may be stunned, not knowing what to do next.
But, if we look with Christ's eyes, He will show us the way. He will show us new and wonderful things. Out of the wreckage He will sustain us. He can be trusted. He is BONA FIDE. Praise God!! Hallaleujah! He may even send us a rainbow!

(c) 2011 Bonnie M. Evans