coconut cravings

I don't know why, but this past year my world has been taken over by the coconut.  I can't get enough of it!  I think it all started when my dear sister Alissa started baking chocolate-dipped macaroons.  (Is your mouth watering yet?)

There is just something so beautiful to me about the coconut itself.  When I went to Mexico my sophomore year at ASU, my friend Katy ordered a coconut to drink.  The man picked one from his cart, sliced the top with a machete, and proceeded to hand it to her with a straw.  That was it!  Pure coconut!

It seems strange to me that such a sweet and pure white substance can come from the inside of such a hard shell!  In considering Psalm 119:11 today, I thought of a coconut. "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."  If the Word protects us and keeps us from taunting as we keep reading, what would it look like to hide it in our hearts?  Hidden: kept in a safe place within us where no one can take it away.  I want the Word of the Lord to be at the center.  A delicious feast I can keep coming back to that is protected from the lies of the world and the bugs of the enemy.  I want its flavor to permeate into new tastes and show up in new and unexpected ways.

I want my mouth to water for the Word of God the way it does when I think of those macaroons!  Oh Father, your Word is like honey on my lips!  Too wonderful to describe.  Invade my heart with your presence and truth.  Remind me I am not alone.  Protect me from Satan.  Let your goodness and truth be the center of my life.   

Skilled Hands

My grandmother is a master quilter.  For years she used to say the only computer she'd ever need was her sewing machine.  Unlike most quilters today, she still makes every quilt stitch by hand!  Every stitch!

The idea of "all in" has been rolling around in my head the past few weeks.  Like how we are told to love the Lord our God will all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength!  Wow...what a task to be called to!  Col. 3:23 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."

When I think of how every stitch is planned and purposed and meaningful, it adds beauty to the finished product as you can reflect on how much work and effort went into it.  But the end result is beautiful.

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."