Author: The WheatandTares

Friday’s Friends #8

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It’s Friday, which means it’s time for another Friday’s Friends! I am so blessed to be able to share with you these new blogs each week. I do hope you are enjoying them and are able to find new “friends” within our blogging community.

Today, I’d like to share with you a very special blogger who touches my heart each time I read her posts. Coffee Cup Mama writes as if she’s talking to me at the kitchen table, sitting with a warm cup of coffee, just chatting for a spell. I have so enjoyed reading her story, and I believe you will, too. This story, in particular, really hits home with me, and I am blessed that she chose to share it. I hope it will minister to many more with whom find a common bond of heartache and strength in faith.

I do hope you will head on over to Coffee Cup Mama and enjoy a little time with her. I believe you will leave feeling a little lighter. 😉

Trite Answers for the Broken 

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Sending out a word of encouragement to so many who are struggling through some of the toughest seasons in life… 💗

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Yesterday, we went to visit someone whose spouse is dying of cancer and then prayed with a lady whose mom is in the final hours of her life. A few moments later, we spoke with a set of parents whose 30-something daughter was admitted into the hospital with an aneurysm one month ago and who is, currently, knocking at death’s door.

Today, I read of a husband who is living in the house with his wife who desires a divorce, and I thought of a wife who faced the choice to stay and ignore, attempt to pick up the shards, or simply walk away from years of holy matrimony. Tonight, I read stories of children with leukemia struggling to thrive and more who deliberately survive day to day with debilitating diseases and conditions. There’s so many who need to be reached.

I read my Bible. I pray, and I…

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Heart Questions

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Sometimes, we just don’t have the answers; however, I know a God who does, and sometimes, He just holds me through all the questions, doubts and pain. He reminds me that I am His, and He is still God. ❤

The WheatandTares's avatarthe grizzle grist mill

Why do babies die too soon?Questions-of-the-Heart-300x259

Why do mothers get cancer?

Why do fathers die tragically?

Why do friends hate and kill?

Why do the innocent suffer?

Sometimes, my heart asks the hard questions, the kind of questions that don’t have easy answers to find. Sometimes, my mind scrambles to understand why evil can be so prevalent in a world in which God made and in people whom God created. Sometimes, life just seems unfair, unruly and undesirable.

Often, I wonder why innocent children are taught to carry guns and strap bombs on themselves to kill people of another religion and race. Often, I wonder why this one is healed of sickness and disease and another says goodbye. Often, I wonder why one family can be so blessed and another can be left so desolate.

In all of this questioning, I have found some answers to be true…

We live…

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Tuesday’s Treats #60

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Southern Charm

Location: Blue Ridge, Georgia

If you’re looking for a great Southern style cuisine, this is the place to be! I haven’t had country cooking like this, at a restaurant, in Y-E-A-R-S! Most places who claim to have “home-style” or “Southern style” cooking, have food that tastes more like it was dumped out of a can and overcooked with too much sugar and butter. However, these guys know how to do it right.

The atmosphere starts on the outside, as it looks like an old Antebellum home, and the inside is just as quaint, as if you just stepped into grandma’s house. The wait staff is friendly, and the food is even better. They bring homemade biscuits and apple butter to the table first. Listen, I’m not a crazy huge fan of apple butter, but I like it; however, this is the real deal! This stuff is delicious, and it’s available for sale, too! 

We ordered the appetizer combo of fried pickles and fried green tomatoes. Oh. My. Goodness. These were incredible! The pickles got a little too greasy on the bottom, but they had just the right amount of breading and that irresistible yumminess that makes you want to finish it all, despite the grease! Lol. The fried green tomatoes had a breading just like a skillet pan-fried chicken, and each one was of the perfect firmness and thickness. 

Our son ordered the chicken tenders, and these were big chunks of white meat, fried with the same goodness as the fried green tomatoes. My husband got the chopped steak, complete with mushrooms and gravy, with sides of red skinned mashed potatoes and green beans. I ordered the veggie plate, complete with green beans, fried okra, hash brown casserole and spiced apples. Oh. My! Everything was just scrumptious!! The green beans were the perfect Southern style with not too much bacon or ham flavor, and the hash brown casserole was made with sour cream (or cream cheese?) and all this Cheesy goodness. It was the perfect mixture of awesomeness.

I cannot rave at how wonderful this whole meal was. I only wish we had had room for dessert, but we were so full from the food, we couldn’t even eat it all. We have been to Blue Ridge many times, but we had never eaten here before; however, we now have a new favorite! Here is the website for you to find their location and menu.

 

Live For The Eternal

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As I visited with my ailing relative today, I was reminded again of how sweet heaven will be when we are all there together. There will be no more sickness and no more pain. Our loved ones will never die, and we will never worry about crises, heartaches, destruction or even the threats of such. We will say no more goodbyes, and the trivial things of this world will have all been lost.

If I had but one piece of advice to give, it would be this: No matter what you seek in this life, all things will eventually fade away, only those things which are eternal will remain. Never allow the temporary pleasures to blind you from the eternal treasures. Live for those who matter, and let all the rest simply fade with the time of life’s journey. Recognize and acknowledge your reality. Cherish the ins of value, and make sure you are both ready for the other side; so together, you might worship your King in eternity…

Friday’s Friends #7

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Today is Friday, and that means it’s time for another New Friend to share! I just love doing these new weekly events on Fridays, and I hope you will join with me every Friday and maybe even share with me a new blog you’ve found, too. 🙂

My “friend” this week has been such an inspiration to me, and I do hope she will be the same for you. Heart and Soul is exactly that. I so enjoy popping over to her blog from time to time to read of her daily happenings or a new challenge she is conquering.

I do hope you will stop by over there and let her share with you a little Heart and Soul.

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My Rock

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He is my Rock when the waves of life crash in. He is my Fortress when the enemy of my soul threatens to consume. He is my Deliverer of the temptation for my own demise. He is my God, in whom I trust and take refuge from every storm. He is my Shield who protects me when I refuse to protect myself, and He is the Horn of my Salvation when I have found trouble and cannot escape. He is my Stronghold of strength that never lets go, no matter how far I try to run and no matter how deep the muck and mire becomes…Thank you for who You are and who I am not. ❤

Listen Up and Receive

/ The WheatandTares

Proverbs 15:31-33
“The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence. The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.”

Have you ever met anyone who just wouldn’t listen to wisdom? You know, that one to whom you could talk till you’re “blue in the face;” yet, he or she just simply refuses to open his or her ears to hear. To be honest, when this happens, I have to fight genuine anger within my heart and then I have to fight pure pity.

To watch someone who is so stubborn in their own will to refuse God time and time again infuriates me on the onset, because it is as if I am standing at the top of a waterfall screaming out to her of the coming danger. I am jumping up and down, waving my arms, yelling at the top of my lungs, desperately trying to make her see that if she continues to travel in her canoe, ignoring the rushing rapids, she will find herself busted and destroyed in just a short time, maybe even beyond repair. It is as if I am furiously throwing all lifelines out to help him get to safety, and yet, despite all my efforts, he shoves the ropes off the boat and scoffs at my concern.

Then, the undesirable but inevitable happens. She finally realizes the error of her ways, but it is now too late. She violently attempts to turn around, only to find the craft is teetering over the edge and racing toward the rocks below. There is nothing more you can do, except wait until he steps out of the destruction and finds himself again. You can pray, and you can cry, and rightly you should; yet, until he decides to remove himself from the debris, you will be struggling in vain.

That is when the pity and the sorrow settles into my view. To see her fighting against the hope which remains breaks my heart. To see her waring against her Maker draws tears to my eyes. To see him clawing and assaulting his Savior, refusing the grace and mercy right within his grasp, shatters my serenity and peace.

There is hope for all who are lost. There is redemption for all those broken and shattered by their own muck and mire. He loves you. He will redeem you. He is waiting there for you to see. Just call on His name. You will never be the same.

Tuesday’s Treats #59

/ The WheatandTares

Th Donut Hole

Location: Destin, FL

This is an all time favorite when we’re in town. This local donought shop usually doesn’t disappoint…however, our last visit wasn’t as good as usual…but we’re convincing ourselves it was just the staffing that day. So, I am writing this review on the previous visits, because they were always so delicious, and I believe it will be great the next time we visit!

They have just about every kind of doughnut from which to choose: sour cream, glazed, chocolate, strawberry, blueberry, red velvet, etc. Everything is made fresh daily, and they also have a firm assortment of cakes and pies. 

As you see on the sign above, their key lime pies are made daily, and I have to say they’re good but a little more on the sweet side and not enough of the tart key lime for my taste. The coffee is good, no frills and thrills, just a good strong, “donut shop” kind of coffee. They have milk and juice, too, I think, but I always get coffee with my sweets. 

Apparently, after perusing their FB page, I realize they do serve breakfast and lunch, too. We’ve always just stopped by for dessert on our way to or from the hub of Destin; so, I can’t speak to the goodness of those meals. However, if it’s made anything like their sweets, it’s sure to be good! If you’re ever in the Destin area, drop by and check them out. 


Oh, and so sorry for the half eaten pie here, but I had to share this bit of yumminess my son got the least time we went. He almost didn’t let me get a pic before he devoured it! Lol. It was some type of “brownie explosion” with cheesecake, brownie, graham crust, and it was delicious!

Decrease Me. Increase You. 

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You teach me through Your Word that I need a reformation. I need reproofing, and I need transforming to be more of who You desire me to be. Yet, I find myself, time and again, pushing against Your sovereignty. I find myself entangled in my own desires, my own selfish perspective.

I wish that You would decrease me that I might increase You.

You draw out of my soul the ugly, the begrimed and the despised things. You point to the waywardness of my heart and challenge it to change. You mark those fleshly wanderings and call them to a duel. You refine and chastise to remove that wretched sin.

I wish that You would decrease me that I might increase You.

You extract the waste that Your purity might flow. You entrap the filth that Your Spirit might invade. You ensnare all that is lost that Your anointing might abide. As the mire is expelled, Your holiness can thrive.

I wish that You would decrease me that I might increase You.

I find that as I yield my heart and surrender my will, You are enabled to dig deep within my soul. You eliminate all that is not like You. The fire refines me. Your love renews me.

I step back from the pruning to see there is so much less of me, and then I realize there’s so much more of You. ❤