Friday Foodie

A few months ago, Les and I went out for pizza.  Afterwards we wanted something sweet.  In the same strip mall is a Smart and Final.  We walked in and browsed their bakery section.  It was surprisingly good!  There was a quite a variety of cakes, cookies, and pies.  What caught both of our eyes was what they called Seven Layer Bars.  I remember my Mom making this and calling them Magic Cookie Bars.  We bought a small pack and they were just as good as I remembered.

This weekend we are celebrating the pastoral anniversary of the DeAros in Santa Clarita.  The service will be at our church tomorrow with a meal to follow.  I was asked to bring a dessert and decided I needed to make these bars.  My Google search found "Seven Layer Magic Cookie Bars" on the Eagle Brand website.  I feel sure this is the recipe Mom used!

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (12 graham crackers)

1/2 cup butter, melted
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 cup (6 oz.) butterscotch-flavored chips
1 cup (6 oz. pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/3 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped nuts

Instructions 

HEAT oven to 350°F. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan with no-stick cooking spray.

GRIND graham crackers using a food processor or blender (or place in a zip lock bag and crush with a rolling pin.)   In the blender it took about 60 seconds.

COMBINE graham cracker crumbs and butter; mix well. Press crumb mixture firmly into bottom of prepared pan. 

 

POUR sweetened condensed milk evenly over crumb mixture. 

 

LAYER evenly with remaining ingredients; press down firmly with fork.  (I mixed the dry ingredients together, then scooped out a cup at a time to pour on top of the sweet condensed milk.)

 

 

BAKE 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Loosen from sides of pan while still warm; cool on wire rack. Cut into bars or diamonds.

For perfectly cut cookie bars, line entire pan with foil, extending foil over edge of pan. Coat lightly with no-stick cooking spray. After bars have baked and cooled, lift up by edges of foil to remove from pan. Cut into individual bars.  This made about two dozen bars.  I'm suppose to take a dozen to church, so we get to enjoy some here at home, too!

 

These are very easy to make and SO good!

Friday Trail Adventure

 

It was a beautiful morning for a trail run!  We've received quite a bit of rain and more is coming this weekend. so the trail is a bit muddy.

Trail humor... This did make me wonder who carried this paper and fork 3.5 miles so they could attach it to this sign....

 

A little over 7.5 miles and I had the trail entirely to myself until I was about a half a mile from the trail head.

Repost: Abide, Then Ask

My Bible reading includes a single verse to read for a week.  This week's verse is John 15:7, "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you."  I wrote about this on March 10, 2010.  The story that I didn't share was that Les had lost his job on March 1, 2010.  We were in the midst of asking, but God reminded me to abide.

My devotional for March 8th was this:

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you (John 15:7).

Ask what we will? And it will be done unto us? What a wonder! We can write the check, and God will sign it. We cleave to the promise, for we all want our wishes granted.
Thumbing madly through life's catalog, we find a bevy of items that suit our fancy, fill in the order blank, and - But, God, where is Your signature? You said...
Did we forget something? Oh, yes - the first part of the verse. "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you..." He'll provide if I'll abide.

Another translation of that verse says, "If you live in me and what I say lives in you, then ask for anything you want, and it will be yours." Oh... what He says, His words. And not just hearing, but living what He says.

We're all quick to line up for the blessings, but where are we when it's time to live what He says? God is merciful to the sinner who cries, "Lord, if you'll get me out of this jam, I'll serve you." But He certainly doesn't have to be. That's the cart before the horse.

We are the creation, the inferior one. We can't make demands, we can't even ask for anything without first being in obedience to His word. Our provision is predicated upon our abiding.

The Greek definition of abide is - to stay (in a given place, state, relation or expectancy): - abide, continue, dwell, endure, be present, remain, stand, tarry (for).

Need healing? Abide.
Need a job? Abide.
Looking for direction? Abide.
Need deliverance? Abide.
Been living without joy lately? Abide.
Guilt holding you back? Abide.
Worry keeping you up at night? Abide.

Psalm 91:1 "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."

Repost: The Ear, The Thumb, and the Big Toe

My Bible reading this morning included Exodus chapter 29.  Verses 19 and 20 reminded me of a lesson that Pastor McGriffin taught in Hawaii a few years ago.  I remembered that it was good, but after re-reading my original post, it was excellent!  Here is it again:

This is a post I've been wanting to write for a month!  On our last trip to Hawaii we were able to attend two Tuesday night Bible studies at First Church.  Pastor McGriffin did a two part series called, "The Ear, the Thumb, and the Big Toe."  The key verses were Exodus 29:19-20, "And thou shalt take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram. Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about." I had never heard a lesson or message on these verses, so I was curious to see where he would take us. 

Throughout the Bible, being covered by blood is essential.  When Adam and Eve first sinned, God slew an animal to make coats for them.  Repeatedly we see the blood being used as a covering, until the ultimate blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  Our lives need to be covered by His blood and these three areas are key:

The Ear

Hebrews 2:1 says, "Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip."  Our hearing needs a blood covering.  There are many voices in the world that can lead us astray.  What we hear affects our actions.  Hearing God's Word will bring our thinking back in line.

The Thumb

Psalm 18:34 says, "He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms."  Most animals were not created with opposable thumbs. Mankind and the great apes are rare in this ability.  The thumb allows our hands to do three things: grasp, push, and pull.  When our thumb is covered by the Blood, we have a better grasp on the issues of life, we can push away those things that are harmful to us, and we can pull towards us the things that are beneficial.  2 Corinthians 10:4 says, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;"

The Big Toe

Proverbs 2:20 says, "That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous." When someone loses their big toe they have a difficult time walking.  Our big toe helps us balance and walk in the right path.  When our balance is off, we stumble and veer from the path of righteousness.

I thought this was such a thought provoking lesson!  Leviticus 17:11 says, "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."  The things God put into place in the Bible were never "just because."  He always had a reason for what He did.