To any believer of God this would be like pointing out a mole that the person has had on their face since birth. But do you really understand the depth of His love?
Romans 8:37-39 reads, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (ESV).
Romans is saying that there isn’t a mountain high enough to keep us away from the love of God, but come on. There has to be a time when even God gets exasperated by our foolishness. What if my next mistake is the last straw? Then what?
While these fears may seem reasonable and rational, 1 John 4:18 states, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love,” (ESV).
There is no last straw with God.
God’s love is undeniably endless.
Even when lose our faith in Him, He keeps His faith in us.
As any parent would be, He may be disappointed in a decision we make, but God will never leave or forsake us.
You could be the worst sinner out in the world, if one even exists, and God would love you regardless.
In church, you may be told that you’re loved with the love of the Lord and although I am not at all times open to it, to be loved with the love of the Lord is a very powerful thing. Having a love for another person like the love the Lord has for us is loving on a level that is beyond passionate.
Loving with the love of the Lord would cause a person to cross the line and become obsessive in the unhealthiest form.
No one can love you in the way the Lord loves you.
Loving someone the way God loves you would be like loving your partner for better or worse times a thousand.
Could you forgive your partner for cheating on you?
Could you forgive your partner for committing murder purposefully?
With repentance, God forgives us for things without a second thought. As humans, it’s more than just a little difficult to turn an eye unbattingly at things like that.
It’s for that no one can truly love with the Lord.
To love with the love of the Lord would be to accept every flaw that a person wears when you meet them, and accept every flaw that forms after. It means that you must be willing to sit with a person and listen to them cry for hours on end about their issues. It means that you be open to effortlessly forgive someone for acts that they commit before you know them and every day after.
God’s love is unconditional to the point that if He were a person, He’d probably be diagnosed as undoubtedly insane.
For these reasons, the love of the Lord is not achievable by anyone but the Lord himself.
Maeve Binchy once said, “The great thing about getting older is that you become more mellow. Things aren’t as black and white, and you become much more tolerant. You can see the good in things much more easily rather than getting enraged as you used to do when you were young.”
The song “Eternal Sunshine” by Jhene Aiko is the epitome of this quote.
Despite the singer being 27-years old, she starts the song off by crooning, “Is it strange for me to say that/ If I were to die today/There’s not a thing that I would change/I’ve lived well.”
She goes on to acknowledge that she has made mistakes and been hurt, but still claims that her life has been “well”. She also recognizes that in reflection of her life, she is only able to “recall all of the good things” that occurred.
The pre-hook and hook of the song is what really mirrors the ideology of the quote by Binchy. Aiko sings about how the more she experiences, the more knowledgeable she becomes. Besides this revelation, the song and quote also acknowledge that with age, comes a sense of euphoria.
You begin to hone in on the good things in your life.
What makes you happy?
Who makes you smile?
For those reasons this song inspires me to be a good person so that I can reflect on my life with the same appreciation that Maeve Binchy and Jhene Aiko have about there’s. Listening to this song, you may have a similar revelation or a different epiphany entirely.
In celebration of July being National Blueberry Month, I will be writing one article a week for the fabulous month! This week I am going to help you plan an entire meal filled with blueberries. From the appetizer to the dessert, there won’t be a piece of your meal that will not include the delicious fruit.
Drink—Blueberry Lemonade (4-6 servings)
Ingredients:
3/4 cup of fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup of sugar
1 cup of fresh blueberries
1 cup of hot water
3 cups of cold water
Ice
Directions:
In a blender, blend together the lemon juice, sugar, blueberries, and hot water until the berries are pureed and the sugar is dissolved. Pour into pitcher.
Add cold water.
Chill for at least an hour.
Serve over ice.
Appetizer—Fresh Fruit Salad (10 servings)
Ingredients:
1/3 cup of fresh orange juice
1 small cantaloupe, cut into chunks
2 cups of fresh strawberries, sliced
2 cups of green seedless grapes, halved
2 bananas, sliced
Directions:
Combine the fruit in a large bowl.
Pour the juice over the fruit.
Toss the mixture to coat the fruit with juice.
Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours
Then serve.
Main Course—Grilled Chicken House Salad with Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette (2 servings)
Salad Ingredients:
4 ounces of croutons
2/4 cup of cucumbers, chopped
2/4 cup of carrots, chopped
1 cup of grilled chicken, diced
4 cups of iceberg lettuce, chopped
Vinaigrette Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
4 tablespoons of honey
½ cup of balsamic vinegar
1 cup of olive oil
2 cups of fresh blueberries, mashed
A pinch of salt and pepper
Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.
Add vinaigrette on salad as desired.
Enjoy!
Dessert—Blueberry Muffins (12 servings)
Ingredients:
½ teaspoons of kosher salt
2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 tablespoons of turbinado sugar (optional)
½ cup of milk
½ cup of unsalted butter, melted and cooled
¾ cup of granulated sugar
1 ½ cups of blueberries
2 cups of all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
2 large eggs
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375° F.
Line 12 muffins cups with paper liners (or coat the cups with nonstick cooking spray).
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a medium bowl, mix granulated sugar, butter, milk, and eggs. Then add the mixture of flour, baking powder, and salt into the second bowl. Carefully, fold in the blueberries.
Divide the batter among the 12 muffin cups as evenly as possible. Then sprinkle the turbinado sugar on top of the batter.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out of the center of the muffin clean).
Let it cool in the pan for 5 minutes, and then serve.
Be sure to comment below to share your blueberry recipes or to let us know how you liked our suggestions!
Two days before Christmas last year I got the urge to get presents for the adults in my family. Two days before Christmas with little money in my pocket. In order for my parents not to pay for their own gifts, I took the ten dollars that I had, and began to do research for meaningful, but quality gifts for my five elders and stumbled upon this project on Pinterest.
This project is not just good for Christmas or adults. Personalized mugs can be made by anyone and given to anyone for any occasion or even used as decoration to spice up your home.
You’ll Need:
Sharpie markers*
Blank white mugs
An oven
Instructions:
Now that you have purchased the white mug, then you must decorate it. If you want to keep the design simple, then use a black sharpie. If you are looking to make something extravagant looking, then you multiple colors. And if you’re looking for inspiration, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Google are all amazing outlets for ideas pertaining to this project.
Once you are satisfied with the way your design looks on the mug, give it time to dry completely.
Generally when you put something in the oven, you allow the oven to warm up first. This is not the case with this project. Put the mug in the oven before you heat the oven to 350°F, and keep the mug in there for 30 minutes plus the time it takes the oven to cool completely.
And you’re done! Please note that it is best for you hand-wash the mug, otherwise you may wash off the design.
*For long-lasting results, use oil-based paint sharpie markers.
It’s summer time! And what better way to cool down other than spending the day at your local swimming pool? But are you aware of the problems that may arise from swimming a pool?
If a pool looks like it’s clean, then it’s obviously clean.
Fiction! In most cases, you would be correct. But there have been instances where dangerous microorganisms have been present in a seemingly clean pool. If the pool reeks of chemicals or you see something fishy, don’t take the chance.
I can get sick from swimming in a pool.
Fact! According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), 1,326 reported to be affected by recreational water-associated outbreaks during 2009-2010. Swallowing, breathing, or having any form of physical contact with contaminated water can spread a variety of illnesses.
If I can smell a strong, chemical-like odor coming from the pool, then the pool is super clean.
Fiction! If you can smell the chemicals coming from the pool, it’s not because the pool was recently disinfected. The smell is a product of a mixture of chlorine and other containments that form from unhealthy chloramines growing in the water. In short, a well-maintained pool has little-to-no odor.
It takes time for chlorine to kill all of the germs that may reside in a pool.
Fact! Even though most germs are killed within minutes, germs, such as Cryptosporidium, can live in a pool days after the pool is treated.
All in all, if it smells bad or looks bad, then 9/10 it’s probably bad. Keep safe as you have a fun summer.
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