Letting Your Guard Down

To be honest, I am often not as aware of the spiritual world as I should be.

Let't clarify what I mean by spiritual world: the metaphysical battle of angels and demons that occurs out of human sight. 

I'm aware of my sin- I experience it and it's consequences every day. But I don't pay attention to the spiritual world- the one that really matters. My first reaction is to say I don't experience it every day, but maybe that is a warning sign. Maybe I don't recognize what is part of the battle around me. 

That's where the title comes in. 

Imagine you have a castle to defend. Your enemies attack the front gate relentlessly, but you don't back down. Victory is certain, if you just keep the enemy from getting inside the castle. But something is wrong- men in strange armor are attacking from inside the walls! Your men are quickly overpowered and the battle seems completely lost. 

(Don't worry- you won't lose though!)

Letting your guard down is what loses the battle- it's when we assume that we have control. 

If I focus all of my strength on one temptation I have, and fail to pay attention to knew weaknesses creeping in, the devil get's a free foothold. A free way in to whisper lies.

(Not cool)

There are two ways to deal with this information: 

                                1) The way of the Flesh: This means I must aways pay attention to every area, I must never stop to rest because I might believe lies, I must always be fighting, always be casting down my enemy! 

Don't you hear the weariness in this relentless list of "must do's"? Even though I might think I'm actively fighting the devil, really I'm giving him a greater opportunity to creep in by keeping a close-fisted grip on control. 

This leads to the second way. 

                               2)The way of God: God is fighting for me- this doesn't mean I need to stop fighting, but I need to trust that God can handle this. I will be vigilant, not because I must but because I see the value of it! My desire is to please God, to seek after him, and in this act of worship the awareness of the spiritual world is learned. 

Bottom line for this post: 

Give God the control- true worship of him is what truly matters, he will give you what you need.

I have to go make dinner before life group- otherwise this would be longer… anyway, I'm praying for you all this week!

~Avery

Why Does Evil Exist?

We've been learning about this question in Worldview class lately, and this week I've come face to face with people having to deal with this question every day.

To start this post off, I'll begin by saying that I feel things. Even if I am not experiencing someone's emotions, I still feel them. I don't know why, but I do! This week has been a flood of other people's emotions:)

Last night I spent about an hour just asking God why, asking God how he can be good, and yet evil still exists. What I learned in Worldview has been essential to my struggle with this issue, so I thought I would share it with you! (From my perspective:)

Many people use this logic to say there is no God:

-If God was all-powerful, he would not allow evil

-Evil exists

-Therefore, God does not exist.

But this doesn't deal with the real question we are all asking- why do bad things happen to me?
I want to know why I have to have physical pain every time I eat, I want to know why other people can experience such grief that I can hardly stand to think about it.

There are three different types of evil, natural evil- by natural causes, moral evil- from human choice, and maximum evil- against the innocent.

Of those three, what bothers you most? For me, and I assume most people, it is maximum evil. It isn't fair for first graders to be murdered, it isn't right that they don't have a chance to live. Us humans think that we are innocent.

But we are not.

God gave us a free will when he created us, or we would just be his puppets! He didn't want a bunch of children who had to follow him, but people who chose him! God gave Adam and Eve the command not to eat of the fruit- but they ate it. In their sin, humankind fell.

We are all sinners. We are all guilty.

But we have a Saviour. God looked with sorrow at his people, and made a way for the evil choice to be redeemed.

God promises that he will come again. He promises that he will destroy evil! We have to wait here- but we aren't alone. The Christian God, our God, is the only one who suffers with his people. You are not alone in your sufferings, God's heart is breaking with yours, he is weeping with you. To him, all these thousands of years are just a moment, because he is outside of time. God hasn't obliterated evil yet, but he will.

So the answer to the why question?

Evil is evidence of the fallen world, and our knowledge that there should be something different shows that we are longing for our eternal home: heaven. God knows our sufferings and feels them with us, he cares. 

~Avery

When Praise is Forgotten

I think something I forget too often is Praise.

Take a moment and really think about what it means to praise.

Praise means to express one's respect and or gratitude. Think about this: how often do you turn around and thank God for his gifts? I don't know about you, but my answer would be a cringe-worthy "I forget". One of the devotional books I'm reading talked about this. It simply reminded its reader to remember. If you are a forgetful person like me- this seems kind of like a death sentence. My initial thoughts were "I can't even remember to do my laundry every week- how am I going to remember to thank God- to truly take the time and actually praise him?" but then this sad realization came to me:

Is God really that unimportant in my life that I forget about him?

When did I let that happen?

Do you ever feel like you know all the right things to do- but you never get to the actual doing?
It frustrates me that I can be in such slavery to sin, and yet be so forgiven! I don't understand why God continues to shower me with his love when I keep forgetting! The key is there can be no fine line, no balance.

I can be whole-heartedly for God, or lukewarm and stagnant in my faith.

I don't want to have God be a 'forget' kind of thing in my life. I want him to be a 'can't let go' part!
But to do that I have to change my attitude from assuming I deserve the gifts I've been given to an attitude of humble, grateful awe that God would choose me to love. At this point, if I were reading this I would assume the writer would now end the post. But that would be a depressing ending, there is no way I'm going to make that happen! I can't force myself to praise- it wouldn't be praise! I have to come to the understanding that there is nothing I am doing that brings me God's love. He is the one that can and will do it. I need to just be willing to ask for help. Right now I'm asking that He would give me a heart full of wanting to praise him, because if God gives me the desire, it will truly be praise that glorifies him.

A line in one of the songs we sang this morning talked about how God is drawing close to him the cynic and the proud.

That means me. I praise him that he wants me. What love he has that he would pour out gifts to people who forget him. He wants the prideful, selfish, haughty, jealous, angry, sad, scared, stressed-out person,. Not because they can do anything for Him, but because He LOVES them. He wants you, turn around and let him pursue you!

Praying for us all this week!
~Avery

Runningrunningrunning

Can I just say I love running? 

That's all that really needs to be said here, honestly.

I ran my first 5k (3.1 miles if you're wondering) this morning, and it was everything I thought it would be! I ran in the Annual Run Against Slavery- a fundraiser for K-state Freedom Alliance (a non-profit organization that raises awareness of human trafficking). 

Sign up at 7:30... I really just wanted to run, but we had to wait for other people to show up... 

Putting on our numbers

Yay! So excited! (I couldn't keep my feet still)

warm up until the race begins at about 8:00.

24:00 minutes later...

Finished!

It wasn't too hot, so at least I (emphasis on I) wasn't that sweaty:)

posing with the sign... 

Yay! Prize money! I made $10...

Dad and I both got second place in women's and men's divisions. It was super fun to get to talk to Dad the whole way, and have fun laughing at each other while we tried to navigate the twisty path! 

(Also, Mom and Deborah were awesome cheerleaders, Deborah did some of her homework outside her building for the morning, just so she could cheer for us for the 30 seconds we were in sight! Mom was gracious enough to come and watch us too:) 

Just saying, I cannot wait until my next race!

  

   ~Avery

Glorious Failure

It's fall.

What a wonderful sensation, typing those words.  Fall means I'm a year older, it means a fresh start, it means fun. It means work.

It's been a few weeks since we dropped Savanna off at Cornerstone(I don't know exactly how many...) It's strange how fast our family has adjusted. It's not a sharp pain like I thought it would be, just a dull, aching, 'something's not quite right' sort of feeling.

But that isn't what I wanted to write about:)

I wanted to write about idolatry. Or just sin in general. I feel sort of like that is a lot of what I wrote about last year... but I have learned so much since then that those posts seem so silly!

First, I have learned that sin is something that can't stay ignored for long, and if it does, you have some serious hiding skills. I've learned that I sin every day, just by not being overwhelmed by the grace I have been given to just keep on breathing. Sin is seeing God reveal his nature, and rejecting him. I have rejected God by choosing my own way. Why can I not just choose God? Why is it so hard? BUT- why am I relying on myself to choose him? Truth= I CANNOT. It is impossible for me to choose to say no to the flesh. (As Kevan from CYIA says: "DOWN SELF") I might be able to turn away for a little while, but I cannot resist the temptation of my own path. God has strength beyond measure. He tells me over and over that it is mine to have, I only need ask. I ask, he gives, I forget. 

Let that sink in. I FORGET the God of the universe, who's presence is inside me. How devastating. To be clear, I know exactly who God is, but I get so wrapped up in my world of small, insignificant ups and downs that I grow spiritually lukewarm. So much for burning with passion for Christ.

I've always wanted to know what makes certain people-missionaries and martyrs- so awe-inspiring to me. Something about how they talk, how they act makes me want to know their secret to being so content. But there is no secret, just the fact that they TRUST God. They acknowledge their need, and act on it, by throwing themselves onto his mercy. I want that. I want to hunger, burn, thirst for God's presence in my life! But I rely on myself. I try to make myself want God more. How can I change this pattern?

I can't.

But God can. His Holy Spirit, who lives in me, can!

I don't want this realization to fly over my head each morning. I want it to sink deep into my soul, and
change me. The best part is that even though I fail he still loves me, He knows that I am sinful, he knows that I can't do it. Still He loves me. So in my biggest 'I-can't' moments- that is when His power shines the brightest. So I can embrace my failure. It shows God's strength, God's mercy, that He still loves me even though I'm me! Praise the Father, how glorious!


In another post I'll talk about the second thing, I've rambled slightly longer than I thought I would! Thanks for reading the workings of my brain- which are probably hard to understand(all the commas!:)

~Avery

Rejoice!

How to Survive Camp on a Paleo Diet

As CYIA began to loom ahead in the future, wondering about what I was going to eat became a "we-need-to-do-something-about-this"-problem. I'm currently on a Paleo diet, which is grain, sugar, and starch free. This means I eat mostly vegetables, fruit and meat. At CYIA everyone is blessed with home-cooked meals, which unfortunately are full of sugar, grain and starch:) Mom and I decided to check with the cooks, and they agreed to let me bring all my own food to camp! 

This means I need to make all my meals ahead of time. 

That said, I've been furiously cooking, baking, and editing recipes! Mom suggested that I blog the recipes for the things I made, so here you go! 

First off, I made Paleo muffins. I got the basic recipe from Elena's Pantry, here, and edited it a bit by adding fruit and *gasp* vegetables! These are great to add a bit of protein to your lunch or breakfast, and you can get creative by trying different fruits and veggies! (I really want to try Spaghetti Squash!)

Paleo Almond flour/Coconut flour Muffins

1 cup almond flour

• 2 tablespoon coconut flour 
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ cup coconut oil
• ¼ cup agave nectar, honey, or crushed medjool dates mixed with water
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (omit if you want, it's not too necessary, unless you like the taste:)
• 1-2 cups fruit, such as blueberries, mangos, or any other kind of berry
• If you want extra protein, add 1 zucchini, or 1 sweet potato, raw, grated

• 

1. Combine almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and salt 

2. In a large bowl stir together oil, sweetener of choice, eggs and vanilla

3. Blend the dry ingredients into the wet, dumping a little dry into the wet at a time(it still works if you just dump it all in, I tried) 

4. Add fruit of choice, and vegetable if you want

5. Drop batter into muffin tin and bake for 15-20 minutes at 350º or until a toothpick comes out clean

Next is cauliflower!!! Seriously guys, I never knew how awesome this veggie was. Chopped up, it tastes a whole lot like rice, and it can be made into a pizza crust! 

Cauliflower-Zucchini casserole 

1 cauliflower head

1 Zucchini

Few shakes of pepper, salt, and 1/2 T. minced garlic

1 Chicken breast, cooked

1. Wash cauliflower, cut into pieces like broccoli, and roast at 420º for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned

2. Grind Cauliflower in a food processor until the texture of rice

3. Transfer cauliflower to a towel and wring out excess water

4. Grate zucchini and put it into a cast iron with the cauliflower on medium heat

5. Stir frequently to avoid burning

6. Add spices, and chicken (please cook the chicken before this step!!) 

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

1 Cauliflower head

1/4 c. Dairy free yogurt, or 1/8 c. almond milk

2 T. Oregano

1 T. Minced Garlic 

2 T. Almond flour

(1 egg if you want it to stick together really well, but it's not necessary ) 

1. Repeat steps 1-3 in the instructions for Cauliflower-Zucchini casserole

2. Add all other ingredients to cauliflower and press into a ball

3. Transfer "dough" onto a cookie pan lined with parchment paper

4. Cook for 15 minutes at 350º, then add tomato sauce and desired toppings

5. Bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned

I froze most of these meals in containers lined with parchment paper in between servings, so that at mealtime I can grab a (I guess it will be a cube...) serving and warm it up in the microwave! I'm also planning on bringing several fresh fruits and vegetables! 

I'll give you the recipe for the way I cook my chicken, also:)

Chicken-The Avery Way!

1 Chicken breast

Shakes of salt and pepper

1. Cut Chicken into cubes and place in a coconut oiled cast iron skillet

2. Turn heat to medium, bake for about five minutes, then begin to stir periodically at a five minute interval

3. Cut one cube of chicken in half, if it's still pink inside it's not done, if it is not pink, it's done!

4. Bake for five more minutes to assure done-ness 

5. Eat however you see fit

So, yeah. Now you are up to date on how I am continuing my Paleo diet outside of the home! Thanks for reading!

~Avery

Summer Break

As most of you have noticed, my posts have moved to being nonexistent, seeing as I'm not obligated to do it any more:) Please feel free to ignore this blog until fall, when I will probably start again! (Although I might do a few after vacation and such:)
Thank-you for being faithful so far!
Avery