Wordless Wednesday ~ Sunrise Edition

Mirror, Mirror

 

My YouVersion Bible study last week was called, "Daily Jewels- Aligning Your Crown As A Daughter Of The King."  The description for the plan said, "Look around. In the midst of chaos, there is always a jewel to be found. Daily Jewels is a 7-day devotion that calls you to boldly align your crown as a daughter of the King. Join me on a treasure hunt to discover the extraordinary jewels hidden in the ordinary places."

 

I thought Saturday morning's was outstanding.  It was called, "The Dreaded Mirror."   The author wrote, "I have made a habit of using the words “fat, ugly, plain, old, and gross” when I see what is reflected back and there are just some nights I don’t want to face it. You can basically say, “I beat myself up.” "  She continued, "The feeling of wanting to be invisible consumed me, until God showed me in Genesis that “We were created in His image.” I read that scripture one day and the Lord gently said, “Stop bashing me.”"

 

This reminded me of a Bible Study Les taught more than a decade ago.  I blogged about it and decided to re-post the entire thing:

 

Les taught a really good Bible study last Wednesday night. "God's Image versus Self Image." He brought out so many points about how our self image is based on family or friends or Hollywood instead of remembering that we are made in God's image.

He challenged us to look in the mirror first thing each morning and say to ourselves, "YOU are made in the image of God." I've been trying to remember to do that each morning. If I remember I am made in God's image I'm going to do a better job taking care of myself. Les and I had a really funny exchange as we were getting ready for church Sunday morning:

Les: What do you see in the mirror?
Me: Bushy eyebrows...
Les: Uh!! (with much eye rolling and shaking of head)
Me: Well, that's what I was looking at! I know, I'm made in the image of God. I guess God has bushy eyebrows...

What a difference it makes when we aren't trying to look like the latest rising star or the thinnest runway model or the tallest basketball player! We all have days when we would rather not even look in the mirror. On those days when you're looking at eyebrows that are bushy, or hair that is flat, or a figure that isn't what it use to be, remember:

You are:

• Made in the Image of God
• Chosen by God
  
• A Child of God
• An Heir of God
• A Joint-Heir with Christ
• A King and Priest Unto God
• The Apple of His Eye

Feeling better, now?

Wordless Wednesday ~ Sunset Edition

 There was a pink glow coming in our window a little while ago.  I stepped out and captured this:

I miss the beautiful sunsets in Hawaii, but this was spectacular!

30 Days of Thanks, Day 4: Textured

This prompt was a little puzzling at first.  What is textured that I am thankful for?  Then I thought about Genesis chapter 1, the creation story.  God created a world that is full of variety.  Take a look at the animal kingdom:  

When I think of texture, a porcupine quickly comes to mind:

 

Or a cuddly puppy pile:

 

Look at the difference between a kitten and a fish!

God created a variety on the earth.  Trees to reach to the sky:

 

 

Mountains and rocks:

 

The oceans and sand:

Then there's the texture in the foods we eat.  Chewy brownies...  You might say, "God didn't create brownies!"  I beg to differ.  He created the cacao tree from which we get chocolate.  Man just got a little creative...

Crunchy carrots:

Creamy ice cream and crunchy candy canes:

When the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness, they ate manna.  Every single day they ate manna.  For forty years they ate manna!  I am so thankful that we don't have to eat manna everyday. I'm thankful for a variety of textures in our world that makes it beautiful and tasty.

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday

We arrived home from Georgia on Monday, July 29th.  We were home long enough to catch our breath, do laundry and pack again!  We headed back to Hawaii on Sunday, August 4th.  This was another extended trip - we came home last Thursday, August 29th.  This was an unusual trip for us.  After one week on the island, Les headed back to California.  He had a conference in San Diego so he was gone for most of the second week.  I stayed in Hawaii the entire time.

People often ask if we get tired of traveling to Hawaii. The actual travel part gets tiring, but once we're there the beauty of the island and the many friends we have make Hawaii feel like home.

Sunrises...

 Moonsets...

And sunsets are a few of my favorite things!

The colors always amaze me!

 

Good eats at fun places...

 

More than one trip to Cinnamon's...

Some new variations on acai bowls...

Tropical beauty...

It never gets old!

Princeville Botanical Gardens - Walking and Chocolate Tasting Tour

This was our fourth trip to Kauai - we honeymooned there in 1991, went back for our 10th anniversary and again for our 18th.  We've hiked and kayaked and spent time at the beach.  This time we did none of those!  I'm still limping around on my sprained ankle (more than 2 months now!) so it was tough to be as active as we usually are.

About a week before we went to Kauai, Oceanfront Realty sent us a link to an app called Hospitality.  It had directions to our condo, the WiFi password, and lock box code.  It also had restaurant and activity suggestions.  One day while I was looking at the app, "Chocolate Tour" popped up.  Did somebody say chocolate?!?

There were a number of  locations that offered chocolate tours.  They all seemed to have similar descriptions at a similar cost.  The Princeville Botanical Garden was conveniently located about five miles from the Cliffs.  We arrived just as one tour group was heading out.  Our tour leader was Harold, and he was very interesting!

These orchids were transplanted on trees. Orchids don't like too much water so they don't do well on the ground in Kauai, but planted on tree trunks they flourish!  I thought this was so cool.

 I'll let the pictures do some talking...

So much beauty and color!

We sampled mango, papaya, fresh honey, and lychee.  Have you ever tried lychee?  It is very strange looking but tastes amazing!  I didn't get pictures of any of the fruit we ate - I kept my phone in my pocket so I wouldn't get juice on it.

I want all these for our yard!

Our chocolate tasting took place halfway through our three hour tour.  Both groups met together and had a very interesting lesson about the growth of the cacao plant.  While we sampled a variety of chocolates our guide explained the process of harvesting the pod all the way to creating a chocolate bar. 

The health benefits of cacao and dark chocolate are many.  Raw cacao has more than 40 times the antioxidants of blueberries.  Now before you go stock up on Hershey bars you need to know that milk chocolate does not have the same effect.  When dairy is added to cacao, the benefits are neutralized.  The greatest benefit comes from the cacao nibs (you can buy them raw.)  Dark chocolate is healthy-ish because it doesn't have any milk added.

We continued our tour after our tasty break. 

If you ever make it to Kauai, add this to your must see list!