“… in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.” 1 John 3:16-18

Took my first stab at croissants from scratch. It was a three day process. Lot’s of rolling and resting involved. Pretty tasty, flaky, and buttery. Next time I want them to proof better. But for my first try I’m pretty happy with them. 

I went on a hot air balloon ride and it was magical. 

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family on heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height-to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:14-19

For rest and shelter of the night,

For each new morning with its light,

For health and food,

For love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometimes i look at Mario and think, “This is the man that loves me completely.” Then i smile and take a deep breath, because knowing this is overwhelmingly comforting. 

When the Christian dies and stands before God, he/she won’t say

…I was baptized

…I went to church on sundays

…I prayed “the prayer”

…I prayed to you when my life got hard

…I believed you existed

…I was a good person

…my parents were really important in our church

…I went on a missions trip

but simply,

“I’m with Him (referring to Jesus). He paid what i could never pay for me.”

I’m so glad that I can both humbly and confidently say that I’m with Him. 

Yummy Peanut Butter Pretzel bites!

C.S.Lewis, ‘Mere Christianity’ excerpt

People often think of Christian morality as a kind of bargain in which God says, ‘If you keep a lot of rules I’ll reward you, and if you don’t I’ll do the other thing.’ I do not think that is the best way of looking at it. I would much rather say that every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, and with other creatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war and hatred with God, and with its fellow creatures, and with itself. To be the one kind of creature is heaven: that is, it is joy and peace and knowledge and power. To be the other means madness, horror, idiocy, rage, impotence, and eternal loneliness. Each of us at each moment is progressing to one state or the other.