This recipe was submitted by a member of our Youth Group. She entered it into our North Carolina State Fair and won 2nd Place! Enjoy 🙂
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, beaten
1 ¼ cups canola oil
2 cups strawberries, chopped (thawed if using frozen)
1 cup chocolate chips
¾ cup shredded coconut
Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour 2 bread pans. Mix dry ingredients. Add eggs and oil until moist. Do not over mix. Fold in strawberries, chocolate chips and coconut. Pour evenly into prepared pans. Bake for 1 hour. Makes 2 loaves.
Ladies Retreats with my sisters in Christ have become my personal healing moments. My escape in life where I spend time with God and my sisters – walking with Him along the shore, talking with Him and listening for His whispered answers, breathing in the fresh air as I breath in His spirit into my body.
I have been blessed to have two planning partners over the years. As we plan our retreats, we have witnessed God using us as vessels to provide a true retreat that allows our sisters to come together for healing, having some “God” time and spending a relaxing Sister Weekend filled with lots of
laughter, fun and chocolate.
Planning for each retreat begins at the retreat itself. It is amazing how God shows us the direction we should move in order to provide a wonderful experience for all who attend.
God shows us the theme for each coming year while we are at the retreat. This allows us to pray, meditate, plan and wonder what He has in store for us all through the year.
At one of our past retreats, we kept seeing shrimp boats.
“That’s not unusual”, you may think, “after all you are at the beach!” But this particular year we would see them continueously all through the day, every day, from sunrise to sunset.
The shrimp boats moved slowly and majestically along the shore. At times they would be in groups, at other there would be just one. Sometimes they would be trolling with their nets in the water and sometimes their nets would be drawn to their sides. Sometimes they would have many, many seagulls swirling ’round and ’round them. We witnessed them in all stages as they did their work fishing for the delectable gifts from the sea.
As I watched this one shrimp boat move slowly across the water, rocking side to side, arms extended with its nets blowing in the wind it reminded of an angel walking on water.
It came to me how ironic it was that such a small unattractive boat could be so beautiful as it moved through the water.
While I was caught up in the beautiful sight, my sister in Christ nudged me and said that she believed God was telling her that our next theme should be something about shrimp boats. It amazed her that we were seeing so many over the weekend that it must be a sign. I agreed and just then the little shrimp boat made a circle as to say, “You Got It, You Got It!” We both laughed with hearts full of joy.
“Thank you for your guidance, Dear Father!”
And as the boat turned toward the shore there at the top of its rigging, was a cross!
Coincidence?…I think not!
You may think that it was just a coincidence but we have learned that there are no coincidences in this life when it comes to God. We have also learned to give God the glory in all things, no matter how big or small.
You may think that the pain of childbirth is in the actual birth itself. I beg to differ. I believe the pain of childbirth comes much later.
I will admit that when my children were much younger there were times when I couldn’t wait until they turned 18 and my job as parent would be over. There would be no more lunches to make, no more battles to fight, no more laundry to fold, no more worrying and…no more “Calgon, Take Me Away” moments! Peace and Quiet would reign once more!And then, around their senior year of high school, this attitude appears.
You thought middle school drama was bad? Dealing with sagging jeans, short skirts, bare bellies, underwear hanging out and what type of bathing suit they were going to wear that summer, was bad? How about dealing with the negotiations over curfews, driving and dating? Oh yeah, even the “Why do I have to go to church? No one in the youth group likes me anyway!” attitude.
No, the attitude I am speaking of is the one that starts with “I can’t wait until I turn 18” and ends with “I AM 18 years old AND I can do whatever I WANT because I AM AN ADULT!!!!”
Thisisthebeginningoftruelaborpains!
Next, comes the pushing…breathe, count, exhale…PUSH! Whether your child leaves home to go to college or whether they move out because they know they have all the answers to life, you will at some moment feel this urge to PUSH! PUSH THEM RIGHT OUT THAT DOOR!
And you do…
You have prepared them the best you know how with the knowledge that you have obtained over the past 3…ok…4, 5 decades of your life! You have tried to teach them not to talk to strangers, how to manage money, drive a vehicle, and how to wash clothes. You have discussed how they should protect themselves against thieves, bullies and even sexually. You have instilled in them moral and Godly values and have been the best Christian example that you can possibly be.
And then the day comes when you have to let them go. And you do…
Now, for some, this can be a good experience or a bad experience. It can be planned or unplanned and it can be loads of fun or a load of ….well, you get my drift. No matter how it begins you will find yourself feeling hurt, sad, wondering what happened to my baby AND will even cry. Yes, Daddies, even you!
No matter how much you hurt or your heart breaks…You let them go! You do it because you know in your heart your child will grow and be better for it.
And life for them as an adult begins…
Did you know that God experienced labor pains? Oh yeah! It began with Adam and Eve…no joke! It actually began before he bestowed the “pain” of childbirth to Eve. God experienced labor pains before Eve did!
In Genesis 2, God gave the nicest, prettiest home to Adam and Eve – The Garden of Eden. He provided for all their needs, gave them companionship, love and gave them food. He even prepared them with warnings and told them not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
And then in Chapter 3, they get the attitude. They think they are wiser and smarter than God. God now feels the first labor pains. I can imagine the frustration he felt, wondering why they would do such a thing? Why would they listen to a snake instead of believing Him? Why would they question his word and disobey Him? How disappointed he must have felt. God hadn’t neglected Adam and Eve. He spent time with them, and gave them responsibilities. God had worked so hard to prepare the garden with beautiful things, trees and animals, rivers with gold and onyx…why, with all he had given, would they think they knew better than He did?
In Genesis 3:21, God does something remarkable. He makes them clothes. What a loving Father our God is! He makes His children clothes to prepare them for leaving home. After all the disrespect Adam and Eve had shown, God makes them clothes! What an awesome and humbing token of love.
God then does as any good parent does, He lets them go…
P-U-S-H, PUSH! He sends them out of the Garden of Eden. Now, they must care for themselves. They will suffer pain and loss and will have to work hard to provide for themselves. They will have challenges and struggles. This wouldn’t be easy for God. But He does.
He doesn’t desert them though. He is still present. In Genesis 4:1, God is even with Eve as she gives birth to her son.
AndtheystillloveHim. God sent them out of the garden and didn’t let them back in AND they know that He still loves them AND they return that love. They even teach their children to love God!
Yes, childbirth is painful but just like the first moment when you fell in love with your child that God-given love will be returned to you.Now, inhale…exhale…Ah-h-h!!!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease Bundt Pan. Mix together all above ingredients until thoroughly blended. Pour in Bundt and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Check by inserting cake tester. Turn upside down on plate or cooling rack.
It’s such a pleasure to introduce you, maybe a little more “up close,” to our sister, Ellie Cooke. She has been so gracious in answering my questions, and I just can’t wait to tell you about her!
So first, the important stuff: She can’t decide (not that I would ever ask her to:)) between Pinterest (about which she says, “I think I love Pinterest more than any other 21st century invention.”) and chocolate, which she says is her weakness, especially “when it is combined with some form of flour, butter and sugar and put in the oven.” So yea, she’ll fit right in here.:)
Ellie loves to take long walks, mentioning that this is one of her favorite things to do with sister friends. A long walk with her family is also part of her “ideal” Saturday, in addition to a strong cup of coffee in the early morning, maybe some window shopping or time tucked away in a quiet room doing something she enjoys, a healthy dinner, and a movie with Jon after James is fast asleep. And as any mom would, she notes that this should all happen “with no whining in the background!”
Ellie, who describes herself as “tenacious, creative, and light-hearted,” fell in love with Jon when they were in college (both graduated from NC State, where they were introduced to each other by a mutual friend) “because he doesn’t take life too seriously and he knows his way around the kitchen.” The two dated all through college. Jon proposed to Ellie beside the NC State Bell Tower in April of 2007, and they were married on October 13th of the same year. Jon and Ellie both grew up in Raleigh, but they left Raleigh for a while—walking by faith—so that Jon could pursue his M.Div at HST in Memphis.
James was born June 17, 2012, and is “your typical busy two-year-old.” Ellie admits that she had a “difficult transition into motherhood,” with the first year bringing a huge adjustment (every mother reading this nods), but says that if she had to describe the journey to someone who doesn’t know what it’s like, she would say that, “Every experience/feeling is magnified. The hard times are more difficult but the happy times are that much more joyful.” Yes. I get all teary sometimes just pulling into carpool.
Ellie enjoys sharing laughter with sister friends, and writes that we might not guess, upon first meeting her, that she’s terrible at answering the telephone, loves super sharp cheddar cheese, and will do “whatever possible” to get a solid night’s sleep. Ellie and Jon “love to try new places to eat, watch PBS mysteries (me too! Father Brown, anyone?) and experience life through James’ eyes.”
When I asked Ellie what intentional things she does to keep her eyes focused on Jesus, she said, “Pray, pray and pray more! Recently I’ve done some fasting (from social media specifically) and may like to explore that a little bit more in the future.” She says that God speaks to her most often through “prayer, advice from others and hindsight,” explaining that, “In order for me to listen, my first step has to be prayfully asking Him to help me listen for His guidance. It doesn’t hurt to have a trusted friend/advisor/mentor to help discern a path. I am always encouraged by where He leads me after looking back and reflecting on how things in my life have unfolded. It serves a reinforcement to keep going back to Him!” Ellie has been given gifts of administration, hospitality and service and says that she has been able to use all of those to serve in the congregational setting, “serving on committees, hosting small group each week in our home and jumping in to serve where there is a need.”
Ellie admits that most recently, “God has shown me how much I am capable of. For whatever reason, I used to have a very narrow view of how I could serve God and in the past couple of years I’ve had a renewal. Much of my identity was tied up in my success at work. Once I stopped working I had to reroute my own personal value and worth. It was such a great thing to have that identity crisis! God reminded me the multitude of blessings He can give. I don’t need to prove to myself that I am worth something, I need to remember that I am worthy of God. I know this will continue to evolve in ways that I am incapable of imagining, with some roadblocks along the way too.”
Three of Ellie’s favorite scriptures are 2 Corinthians 5:7 (“For we live by faith, not by sight.”), Psalm 46:10 (“Be still and know that I am God.”), and 1 Peter 4:8 (“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”).
Ellie explains that for the last few years, she and Jon have been on a journey of faith. When Jon felt called to pursue his MDiv in Memphis, they sold their possessions, quit their jobs, “had a baby and left our comfortable life in Raleigh.” She writes that, “This was a huge leap to take and during the struggles of making this change we had to lean heavily on God and our faith to leave our safety zone and follow Him.” Still, she admits that the thing that challenges her most about living by faith is giving up control. She writes, “I constantly have to remind myself that I am not experiencing life alone. It is so easy to get wrapped up in and distracted by…anything. I constantly have to step back, pray and remind myself that God is in control and because of that everything will work out better than I could have even done it myself. No matter how often I realize I need to surrender, I’m always surprised about how freeing it is!”
Psalm 46:10 is a favorite for Ellie because it reminds her to be still and listen for God’s leading when she feels overwhelmed by transitions in her life. She explains that, “During any transition in my life I tend to want to get wrapped up in the little bits and pieces, worrying about money, how James will transition and how this will affect my interests/identity. If I don’t surrender control, the weight of my own worry will quickly crush me and render me unable to make any decision, let alone the one God intends for me.” So, Psalm 46:10 is also a tremendous encouragement to Ellie as she tries to walk by faith.
Ellie recognizes that she has been well equipped by God for serving, but admits that she still often finds it difficult to take the first step. Sometimes the sheer magnitude of need in the world stops her because, she says, “I often wonder if I am qualified to help in certain ways or just don’t put the energy forth to try something outside of my comfort zone.” But God reminds her that He “has made us all different so that as a collective unit we can fully serve Him.” 1 Peter 4:8 helps Ellie put her service into perspective. She recognizes that, “the ways in which I serve will probably not change the world,” but she is able to rest in knowing that, “I can, however, approach each day with a good attitude and put my default mode on ‘love.’ By doing that, I am already showing how Christ lives in me.”
As a part of our Family, Ellie hopes to offer and share her home, her gifts and her experiences, adding one more, precious thing: “my weaknesses so you all can help strengthen them!” Oh, that we may strengthen her as God uses her to strengthen all of us!
Welcome, Ellie! Feel embraced. We’re so excited to wrap arms around you and yours, and we want to encourage and support you as you continue to surrender to Christ and walk in faith! And, in the very near future, perhaps some of us can get together to take a long walk, and laugh, and eat some chocolate.:)
gifts: good food; sweet fellowship; splashes from the pool on a hot day; watching our children race through the water; those clouds…wow; watching Chris Abernathy be a scoreboard; laughter; shared sighs; rows and groups and knots of Family #1000gifts
We had such a marvelous time of fellowship last Sunday evening! What a joy to be together. Each one of you is a stunning gift, and our shared laughter and love is such Light. Thanks to each one who offered their time and presence. Jannie, we love you and we’re here for you!
Early morning, and I carry my coffee to my computer, feeling the warmth of it in my hands, absorbing the new light, giving thanks. I sit down to retrieve an image to share with all of you, because I am gripped to do it, and I have learned not to ignore the Spirit. A few clicks, and I am there, and this is what I find on the screen:
And this is the image I came to retrieve:
For maybe a month, every time I grab my water bottle and head out the door, God settles this in my soul, this truth that I absolutely cannot live without the living water that wells up within me unto eternal life.
As women in pursuit of good physical health (and maybe also, dare we admit it, in pursuit of some glossy ideal), we read articles and gather in quick headlines and even pin reminders like this one:
I even found an entire Pinterest board (which I followed:)) called Drink Your Water, It’s Important. By now, most of us know we should drink at least 6 glasses of water a day, and we either admit that we don’t drink enough or we do something to try to remember to do what we understand that we should do for better health. Most of us now know that if we start to feel thirsty, we’re already…that’s right, getting dehydrated. We know how essential water is to our bodies…that we’re at least 65% water, that we can live without food for several days but not without water. We feel compassion for women who still, in this modern age, have to walk miles to get clean water for their families because they live in an impoverished country. We donate money to build wells. And sometimes, when we’re seeing rightly, we give thanks that we can turn on a faucet and so easily have water in plentiful supply.
I am so aware of the importance of hydration that over time I developed a habit to always have a filled water bottle with me (mine was carefully selected, even—aluminum, so as not to leach harmful toxins; double-walled so that the water stays cold for hours). I even carry my water upstairs with me when I go up to fold laundry or do other housework. On top of that, we installed a filter at the tap to be sure that our water was as pure of harmful chemicals as possible. For us, as athletes, preparing an adequate water supply has become an essential part of training, endurance, and good health. When I was marathon training, I used to leave extra water bottles along the greenway miles so that I could retrieve them on my way back. Good hydration is an important part of physical health, and it’s not good to take it for granted that we can be well-hydrated.After all, there are women in other places who spend whole days just retrieving, storing, carrying water.
What’s worse—far, far worse–is that we as Christian women live with springs of living water welling up within us (John 7: 38,39) and still often allow ourselves to become spiritually dehydrated.
Remember that Jesus met a woman with tired hands and sore feet, a woman probably weary with life, one of those women who spent huge chunks of time just filling water jars at the well, just at the time she went to draw water. He was there, at the well. He’s there, when we lift our water bottles and pin those wellness pins. Remember that Jesus spoke right into this woman’s daily, right into her sin, and He said, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water (John 4: 10).” She doesn’t get it right away, but what he’s actually telling her is that she’s missing a whole deeper level of living, a whole different kind of water, one that’s ultimately far more important because it’s far more lasting. But He meets her where she is, struggling to meet her own physical needs and the physical needs of her family. He meets us in exactly the same place.
For weeks, the Spirit has been pressing me to share the reminder He’s using to hydrate me, that Jesus clearly says to that woman at the well and to all of us in our thirst, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4: 13,14). Just three chapters later, Word clarifies this way, “‘Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified (John 7: 38,39).” I’m reminded of the keystone verse for our current Bible study, ALIVE:
Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers (Psalm 1:1-3).
Do you know that trees stay alive, thrive, and bear fruit because they have “streams of water” stored and running through their trunks? Scientists call it a “continuous column” of water. Truly, soul-sisters, all creation testifies (Romans 1:20). As followers of Christ, we draw spiritual life and nourishment from living streams of water, namely the Holy Spirit, a tremendously powerful continuous column within each one of us. But notice what the Psalmist writes about the person who will be the tree, what she doesn’t do, what she does. The old adage, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink,” applies even to this spiritual concept. We have been given streams of living water, but we have to choose to drink from them. We have to choose to live by the Spirit , which is the point of Paul’s exposition in Romans 8. “Therefore, brothers and sisters,” Paul writes, “we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it.For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live (v.12, 13).” Christ, who is the living water, is our lives (Colossians 3:4). He literally does—and must—flow through the center of those who accept Him as Lord and follow after Him. As I come to understand this truth, it feels more and more ridiculous to me to think that I can ever really experience life by placing self at the center instead. Truly, if I live according to the flesh, I will die.
Like the woman at the well, we are all—at some times more than others—captivated by the needs of our flesh. We have solid ideas about what we need, and how much of it. Like Esau, we can even be quite dramatic about it, elevating our desperate temporary hungers to the level of survival (Genesis 25:32). We are sometimes so busy seeking after our physical protection and well-being that we justify not taking the time or making the effort to intentionally drink deep of the Holy Spirit. And just as He always has, Jesus appears in the middle of our physical, temporary, earthly needs to remind us: You know that thing you need again and again—water, bread, breath, rest, whatever it is? Yea. Spiritually, I’m that. Except that I satisfy forever.
Jesus calls us by the Spirit to true life, to life eternal. Let’s not allow our souls to become spiritually dehydrated when the water is right there for us, a continuous column, welling up within us unto eternal life. Drink your water. Drink deep. And if it helps, carry some reminder in your hands—even, maybe, the Word—everywhere you go, if only to walk upstairs and fold the clothes.
North Raleigh Church of Christ Ladies' Ministry 