Monday, December 29, 2014

SPRING CLEANING?


Don't you love it when spring time comes along and everything is fresh and new?  People often do deep cleaning and organization of their homes when the season comes.  My mother is a little different.  Spring cleaning would occur in December.  She always says, "You don't start the new year with dirt and a mess!"  So, every year, we would deep clean the house, rearrange furniture and get rid of things we didn't need and donate it to charity.   It was a tradition.  A few years ago I decided to take my childhood tradition and take it to another level: spiritual house cleaning.  As we say goodbye to one year and enter in to another, let's make an effort to go it with a fresh start and a clean house.    

Imagine this…
It is garbage day and you forgot to take the trash out to the curb.  Because of your busy schedule, you haven’t been able to put the trash out for quite some time and now you hear on the news that the sanitation department is on strike.  You panic because you already have a lot of trash built up and you have no idea when the next pick up will be.  Two things happen:

1.    Your home smells foul and is dirty because of all of the trash 
2.    You have no room in the house for the new furniture being delivered because the house is a mess

Of course, this example is a little extreme (hoping no one can relate to this) but it helps to explain the purpose of spiritual cleaning.  Many of us go through our busy lives fitting God in when we have time instead of making time for God.  As time goes by, we are busier and more detached spiritually.  We become used to the filth around us and become more exposed to the enemy’s tactics.  The results, similar to my example above, are two-fold:

1.    We become irritated and irritating. Our relationships suffer because instead of the sweet aromatic personality, we give off a stench of bitter garbage.
2.    Our spiritual house is so cluttered with junk, we have no room for the blessings God has for us.   Often times we can’t even recognize a blessing when it is coming our way because our focus is on the wrong thing.  

Spring cleaning - [spring klee-ning]
noun: the activity of giving a place a complete cleaning

We can polish our silver and organize our pantry but the spiritual cleaning goes deeper.  Sometimes we have things in our homes that leave us open to spiritual attacks.  Here is a list of few things that you would want to get rid of during your cleaning:

  •  Ouija board and other items associated with witchcraft (even if you think it’s just for fun)
  •  Things associated with past sins (there is no reason to keep the bong as a souvenir)
  •  Art with demonic influence, such as, skulls, snakes death, etc. 
  •  Mementos from past inappropriate relationships (that bracelet from the person you were having an affair with has to go)
  • Pornography

If you have any of these items on my sample list, now is the time to part ways with them.  If you want to go in to the new year prepared for what God has planned for you, it starts with a spiritually clean house.  Once you have gone through and thrown away what doesn't belong, that's when the prayer begins.  Pray for forgiveness.  Pray for a spiritually clean home.  Pray that whatever spirits that were attached to those things are gone from your home and God's protection prevails.

The bible says in Hosea:

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Hosea 4:6 (ESV)

Now that you have some knowledge, what will you do with it?  In my last post for 2014, I encourage you to start the new year off with less junk, clutter and filth, physically and spiritually.  

If you want more information and details on how to spiritually cleans your home, email me directly at info@mendingmaria.com.

Have a blessed 2015!

Mending Maria


Monday, December 15, 2014

LET IT GO


It seems everywhere I go these days, I hear the song from Disney's Frozen, Let It Go.  I was at the diner the other morning and it was playing and the song stuck in my head for the rest of the day.  "Let it go.  Let it gooo"
There's a part in the song where it says, "I'm never going back.  The past is in the past."  After singing it for the 20th time, I started thinking about the past, specifically, 2014. 

This year has been a challenging one for me to say the least.  I would be lying if I said that I didn't pick up an offense or two along the way and held a couple of grudges by the time the spring flowers in were in bloom.  But what good did that do me?  Thankfully, I didn't let it consume me for too long, because when I think of all the time I wasted being bitter, it was just time wasted.  

One of my favorite quotes is “Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die”.  This is crazy but it’s so true!  While you are going through all of the bitterness and anger, the other person feels nothing.  They could care less.  Why not just forgive them and move on?  Why not just let it go?

It sounds like a simple task.  There have been many books written about it and just as many sermons preached on it.  So, why is it that we find it so hard to do?  It’s almost like a bad habit.  Let’s take smoking as an example.  If you want to stop smoking, the trick is that there is no trick.  You have to just make the decision to stop.   It is the same thing with unforgiveness.   You have to make the decision to forgive the person who wronged you and go on with your life.  When you don’t forgive, you are the one that is missing out on life.  You are the one that is being hurt.  You are the one that is drinking the poison.

As we go in to 2015 and I am looking towards a brand new year with new opportunities, I am excited by what is to come.  I am thinking about today and anticipating what God has for me for the future.   Life is short.  Spending time thinking about the past and griping over how people have done you wrong is time you will never get back. 

One thing that I never claim to be is perfect.  I have to remind myself, why do I look for perfection in others?  We are only human.  We are bound to hurt each other eventually.   Though sometimes the blows seem to come one after another like the final round in a match with Ali, we have to remember that there is grace.  As we are shown grace, we have to extend grace.  I refuse to be shackled because of unforgiveness.   I refuse to let unforgiveness manifest itself in me, making me a bitter and angry person without a light. 

Take Paul’s advice to the people in Ephesus:

31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  32Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32 ESV)

So as you are saying good bye to 2014 and you’re looking at the year in review, don’t reflect on the hurts.  Forgive.  Start 2015 with a clean slate and a clean heart and truly let it go. 


Mending Maria


Monday, December 8, 2014

Oh Christmas Tree....



One of my favorite Christmas traditions is watching A Charlie Brown Christmas.  Creator Charles M. Schultz did a beautiful job in this television special reminding viewers the true meaning of Christmas.  My favorite part is when a discouraged Charlie Brown runs off after unsuccessfully decorating his tree and his friends step in and make it beautiful.   When Charlie returns to his tree, he is overwhelmed by what his friends have done and they start singing Christmas carols.  I love it! 
That scene gave me a great idea.  Every year our family decorates our tree as well as décor around the house and I have to admit, it is a gruesome chore.  This year, to maintain the Christmas spirit and peace and joy, I’ve decided to have a tree trimming party.  Family and close friends are on my guest list to help me decorate the tree while enjoying appetizers, eggnog and holiday tunes.    I’m excited!  I have never had a tree trimming party let alone a Christmas party.  So, for this month’s food blog post, I want to share a couple of appetizers I plan to serve at the gathering, one sweet and the other savory:  Key Lime Pie dip and Hot Crab Dip.  They are tasty, filling and festive!

Key Lime Pie Dip
Ingredients:
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ fresh lime juice
½ cup heavy cream
3tbsp confectioner’s sugar

   1.   In a small bowl, beat together milk and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth.  Add juice and combine.
   2.   In another bowl. Beat together cream and sugar on medium speed to firm peaks.  Fold in to cream cheese mixture.  Serve immediately or chill and serve cold.



Hot Crab Dip (Paula Dean’s recipe)
Ingredients:
1 lbs jumbo lump crabmeat (no shells)
1 cup grated pepper jack cheese
¾ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
¼ cup green onions minced (optional)
5-6 roasted garlic cloves or 2 cloves minced
3tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice
1 tsp hot pepper sauce
½ tsp dry mustard
Salt and pepper

   1.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
   2.   Combine all of the ingredients in a casserole and gently stir until thoroughly mixed. 
   3.   Bake for 40 minutes.  Serve hot with crackers or toast points.

Do you have any plans to host a Christmas party?  Share your ideas with me!  info@mendingmaria.com


Mending Maria  

Monday, December 1, 2014

LET PROVIDENCE BE YOUR GUIDE


I was flipping through channels the other day and saw an old episode of Oprah’s Master Class.  Morgan Freeman was the guest and I couldn’t help but put the remote down.  I’ve loved Morgan Freeman since I was a child watching him on The Electric Company.  It was interesting seeing a side of him that I never knew. 

At one point in the show, Freeman spoke about how he was faced with the choice of continuing his military career or following his dream as an actor.   He said, “When you have made your choice, it is Providence that is your guide.”  Providence.  Providence?   

[prov-i-duh  ns]
noun-
  1.   the foreseeing care and guidance of God or nature
  2. God, especially when conceived as omnisciently directing the universe and the affairs of humankind with wise benevolence. 

In other words, when you are making decisions, let God be your guide.  Yes!  Amen!   I agree! 

Easier said than done, right? 

We go through our everyday lives making decisions and hoping it is the right one.  Should I marry him?  Is this the career for me?  What state should I move to?  We call our mom, our friend, our psychologist, but we seldom call on the one that holds our lives in His hands.   Proverbs 3:5 says: 

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. (MSG)

Even when we are at a fork in the road and our way looks better than His way, we have to trust that His path is the one to take.  We have no idea what is waiting for us down that road, only God does. 

I love this graphic of a whale playing “trust fall” with a few men in a boat.  Common sense would tell us these men will not survive if the whale fell backwards expecting them to catch him.  Sometimes we see our circumstances the same way.  Common sense says you have to settle and marry that man because you may never find your soul mate.  Common sense may say that you have to change careers because doing what you love won’t make you rich.  Common sense may even tell you to stay where you are and not move to another state where the hope of better opportunities awaits.   Trust tells us that God is in control and when we have faith and believe in Him, he will guide us down the right path (the right decision).


What are you struggling with right now?  Give it to God.  Let Him counsel you and lead you to the right decision.  As it says in Deuteronomy 31:6, God goes with you and will never leave you or forsake you.  Trust in that.  

Mending Maria