Where does the time go? It seems like only days ago that we were making rock soup in the backyard, sliding down the stairs on sleeping bags, transforming ourselves into princesses with nothing but a box of old dresses and gloves, and risking life and limb to walk down the stairs in high-heels that were 5 sizes too big.
And then we blinked.
Carissa turns 20 today. Please help me in wishing this very special young woman a happy birthday =)
Today we celebrate the glorious fact that we have a glorious Savior who gloriously rose from the dead. If this is not so, as Paul said, our faith is futile. We might as well close down the churches and wallow as the most pitiable among men.
But this great Savior.
"My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour." ~John Newton~
Magnitude.
We can not fully comprehend what has been done for us, but I assure you if we could, we would be utterly overwhelmed by two things:
Number one, the magnitude of our sin, and number two, the magnitude of God's amazing grace.
"Guilty, vile, and helpless we, spotless Lamb of God was He. Full atonement, can it be? Hallelujah, what a Savior!" ~Philip P. Bliss~
This magnitude of love is beyond human comprehension. You will find this in no other religion. The fact that the God of the universe would send His only beloved Son to die for His fallen creatures....we can only shake our heads at such mysteries. We who were too depraved even to attempt to love Him.
"I love Thee because Thou has first loved me, and purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree. I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow; if ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now." ~William R. Featherston~
May it never be forgotten that the death of Jesus Christ in no way proves our great worth, but quite the opposite. It proves our total and utter depravity. So on this blessed Resurrection Sunday (and every other day as well), let us celebrate this undeserved gift with reverence and humility. What else can such magnitude do but make us fall to our knees?
Hello to all our blogging friends! I've decided that it is high time that at least one of the 3 sisters made a appearance in the blogging world. Unfortunately, we have no real excuse for our silence and long time lapses between posts! But after that slight blogging break, I think I'm ready to pick this back up again =)
Sooo, I thought I'd just share a mish-mash of updates to give a brief glimpse of what's been keeping life bumping along at such a crazy pace!
Let's get some winter pictures out of the way first, shall we? This, my friends, is Lady Liberty. And no, she is not having a bad hair day, as some people were wondering. You should see her when she IS having a bad hair day...
My dad and I were blessed again this year to attend a youth ski retreat in the Catskills. Beautiful weather and powerful messages. What a blessing! You can actually listen to the message that was delivered Sunday morning here: http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=310101119240 Definitely worth a listen if you have the time!
The view from the girl's dorms as the sun rose. Breathtaking. Awe-inspiring.
O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made; I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee, How great Thou art, How great Thou art. ~Carl Gustaf Boberg~ And this is the sign at the top of the black diamond hill that I miraculously made down alive. (A black diamond is skier's code for "turn back now if you value your life". Just in case you were wondering.)
Skating day with several new friends. Blessed fellowship and only one broken bone! (sorry JohnMichael)
Wrapping up with a romping game of Dutch Blitz.
SPRING! J.O.Y.
This is the grub that my little sister mistook for a caterpillar. Umm....ewww.
Happy garden shoes =) A little dusty after a long New York winter.
With spring comes the little sister's begging to pull out the croquet set...
...along with the mad urge to jump rope. I decided not to fight the urge =)
Alrighty, moving on. In the kitchen! (This is actually not what I look like when I cook, just so you know. That picture was completely posed. Shhh!) Here's a new and delicious cookie recipe that I am totally in love with:
Chocolate Chunk Cookies
INGREDIENTS: ~2 cups all purpose flour ~1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda ~1/4 teaspoon salt ~3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature ~2/3 cup (130 grams) granulated white sugar ~2/3 cup (140 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar ~1 large egg ~1 large egg yolk ~1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract ~1 1/4 cups (210 grams) chocolate chunks (can use chocolate chips)
DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 2 - 3 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and egg yolk, beating until well combined. Beat in the vanilla extract.
Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture and beat just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in the chocolate chunks.
Form dough into balls. Gently flatten each ball of dough. Bake the cookies for about 9 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through the baking time. The cookies are done when they are light golden brown in color and just set. They will still seem a little soft but they will firm up as they cool. Remove from oven and let the cookies cool a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool.
Yum.
Researching for a church history paper brings you across many interesting pieces of...umm...what would you categorize this as?
is a sermon series by John Piper on the new birth that I have been challenged and encouraged by over the past several weeks. Powerful, powerful stuff. (And if any of you are as un-tech savvy as me.....all you have to do is hit the "listen" button below the sermon title when you click on the link. Some of us make things soooo much more confusing then they have to be....;)
And on one last note, here's a video that I recently re-discovered. I have to admit, I laughed just as hard as the first time:
Well, I think I've filled up enough blog space for one day. If you've actually made it to this point, thank you so much for wading through all of that! Until next time.
Well I didn't have access to a computer for Blogging while in England. So I'll posts of what I did in some of the days I was over there starting with....
February, 17 ~ D day
Saying goodbye.
It was a nice day above the clouds.
Our first look at England!
My room..... ..... with a street view.
After having some dinner we went to bed and slept for 11hrs. Traveling across the ocean does something to you!
O precious saint! Three questions call for your answer: 
W
It was a nice day above the clouds.
Our first look at England!
My room.....
..... with a street view.