Fall Recipe #1

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread



   This is my custom banana bread recipe :) Originally, it was a chocolate chip banana muffin recipe, but I altered the baking time so my family and I could enjoy some delicious bread!! This recipe is great with coffee and hot tea, making it a very simple yet delicious breakfast. Feel free to print out this recipe and add it to your cookbook. Enjoy!

Ingredients:                                                                                

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

A couple handfulls of chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease two loaf pans.
3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. In another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt and vanilla.
5. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
6. Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.
7. Pour batter evenly into the two loaf pans
8. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is risen and nicely browned.
9. Cover with tinfoil and bake for another 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
10. Cool for 15 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
11. Serve with hot coffee or hot tea! Enjoy!

Fall is Here!!

    My favorite time of year is when the leaves turn a burnt orange hue, when I can see my breath in the cold air, when Starbucks releases their Pumpkin Spice Latte, when Thanksgiving Day arrives, when I dust off my winter wear, and when the aroma of home-baked goods fills the air. As fall arrives, it brings promises of cozy evenings near the fire, and hot soup for dinner. It is also a glorious time to begin planning for Thanksgiving.

   Ever since our family started pastoring Calvary Chapel Turlock, we have held Thanksgiving there. It is a neat time of fellowship where we can enjoy a delicious meal with the company of our beloved church friends. This year, we intend on making the festives extra special :) What do you all do to celebrate Thanksgiving?

    As the chilly rain showers beckon us indoors, it becomes time to open up the recipe books and start the baking routine. Soon, I will be posting a few autumn recipes that our family likes eating so that you can enjoy some as well!!

   Aren't the changing seasons glorious? When God created the world, I love how He implemented variety. We do not have the same weather every day of the year, but we have four different revolving seasons. I went to a Christian women's conference a few years ago, and the theme was "Seasons". Each one of these seasons is a small picture of Christ.

   We have winter - a time to celebrate the birth of Christ. During this snowy period, everything around us seems dead. No leaves on the trees, no rosebuds on the bushes. However, I think this is a good symbol that we need to die to ourselves, so that we may have new life in Christ (spring!).

   Spring - a new beginning. A time where we clean out our homes after being cooped up from the winter. The blossoms pop out on the Almond trees, and the farmers begin to plant their spring crops. 

   We have summer - the delightful period of vacation from school! The weather is hot, and we spend most of our day outdoors. To me, this season represents laboring through the heat. The heat symbolizes the trials in our lives, and we must continue to "run with endurance, the race that is set before us".

    Then, there is fall. The fruits of our toil in summer are finally harvested. A true representation of Heaven, when our good works on Earth (coupled with our faith in Jesus Christ) will be rewarded. A time where we glean our crops and store them up for the winter months. Then, the glorious cycle begins all over again. "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." - Matt. 6:20

    Enjoy this beautiful fall weather that is already in full swing. Please comment below stating your favorite thing about fall! God bless you, my dear readers!!

A Simple Gospel

"It is a masterpiece of the devil to make us believe that children cannot understand religion. Would Christ have made a child the standard of faith if He had known that it was not capable of understanding His words?"

- D.L. Moody

   The gospel of Jesus Christ is truly amazing. Certain facets of this faith leave the greatest of theologians puzzled, but other aspects are easy for a very small child to understand! The Gospel of Grace is not only for adults, or for those who are "ready to understand" the truth. No, even little children are capable of understanding the message of the cross. Throughout Jesus' earthly ministry, He constantly called the little ones to him and even compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a child.

   The message of Christ is so simple which enables both the most learned scholar and the  mind to receive salvation. Praise the Lord for such a simple gospel, with an incredibly profound message. God bless you, my dear readers!!

Trust and Love

"A tried saint brings more glory to God than an untried one. Faith, like light, should always be simple and unbending; while love, like warmth, should beam forth on every side and bend to every necessity of our brethren".

- Martin Luther

    A small thought for the day...

   Do not despise the trials that God takes you through. Even though they may be difficult, frustrating or hurtful, God is using them to grow us. View your trials as an opportunity to deepen your faith in the Lord and grow ever closer to Him. If we never went through seasons of hardship, how would we ever know what it is to truly trust God?

    Let our love for others never be held back. Because Christ so abundantly showers us with love, let us demonstrate those same actions to others. Something as simple as a pleasant smile or an affectionate hug could bless someone far beyond our realization.

   Trust in the Lord today and let the love of Christ radiate forth!!

"Gone Fishing"

Dear Readers,

I apologize for not posting lately; church activities along with orchestra and school engagements have prohibited me from blogging as often as I would wish. Know that I have not disappeared; I have merely "gone fishing" :) I will hopefully start my regular blogging routine within the next week or so. Please keep checking regularly for new posts!!

God bless you, my dear readers.

God is Our Rock - Part II

“My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” –Psalm 62:5-7

   In my last post, I talked about how rocks were used as weapons. In this post, I will discuss another aspect of stones; they were used to bring forth water.

  The place where Moses and the children of Israel were encamped was called “Horeb” which means the “desolate place”. Here in the “desolate place”, the children of Israel are desperate for water. In fact, the children of Israel desire this water so much, that they are almost driven to the point of killing Moses. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Moses immediately cries out to the Lord in Exodus 17:4 saying:

"What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!” The Lord says to Moses: “’Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it that the people may drink.’ And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.” – Exodus 17:6.

   God is our rock, and through Him, flows the water of life. Only He can quench the Spiritual thirst that we have in our hearts. Every longing that we've experienced can be supernaturally fulfilled through Jesus Christ. Only He can give us life and completely satisfy us. God bless you, my dear readers!!

My New Violin

Here are a few pictures of my new violin:

   It was made in Beijing, China last year. Many of its parts are solid wood which causes the sound to resonate beautifully. It has a deep, warm tone that gives it a more classical sound. I decided to name him: "Zhufu", because that means "blessing" in Chinese :) I will be performing with him in orchestra this season, and will be playing in church often. I thank the Lord for this lovely instrument!!

God is Our Rock Part I

“My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” –Psalm 62:5-7

     King David wrote this Psalm praising God. In this particular Psalm, God is referred to as our rock, our defense, our salvation, our glory, and our refuge. As I studied this Psalm, I decided to see what purpose rocks served in the Bible. This way, I could attempt to get inside King David's mind and try to understand why He chose to call God His rock insread of "a mighty javelin" persay. In the Bible, people used rocks for weaponry, building, and in one instance, to bring forth water. In this post, I will focus on how stones were used as weapons.

   Before King David became King, he was a simple shepherd boy. When the Philistines were encamped around the Israelites, not one man was brave enough to go and fight the giant Goliath. Men, much older, wiser, and stronger than David cowered at the sight of the great giant. Quoting from 1 Samuel 17:11, The Bible says that Saul and all Israel were dismayed and greatly afraid.

   However, the Lord called this young boy David to slay Goliath. The Lord commanded Him to gather five smooth stones from the river and put them in his slingshot. Although He was young, David had full assurance that God would deliver the Israelites from the Philistines. 1 Samuel 17:48-50 says:

   "So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him."

    Because of young David’s complete faith in the Lord, God guided the small rock in David’s sling to bring down a mighty, conquering giant. God is our rock. Even though some situations in our may seem so bizarre, like a young boy challenging a champion of war, through Jesus, we are more than conquerors. With His help, we can overcome the giant problems in our lives.

The Best Birthday Ever

   On September 7th, I turned another year older. I am officially sixteen years old!! Ever since that day, so many exciting things have happened. When my Mom asked me how I wanted to celebrate, I requested that she and my sisters plan a surprise something. 

   On Labor Day, we held a very relaxing, intimate party with my family and very close friends. There, my parents revealed that I would be getting a brand new violin!! What present could be better? As you can imagine, I was elated and extremely blessed!! :) That next Thursday morning, my parents, violin teacher, and I all drove up to Sacramento to select my preferred instrument. After deep consideration and receiving advice from my parents, I selected a Chinese violin that had a very warm tone. Getting a new instrument was such a blessing, and I am eternally grateful to my wonderful parents. I will post a pictures of it soon!!

   The next evening on Friday, one of my Mom's dearest friends (and one of my favorite people) decided to come over since she missed my party. We spent the evening having our make-up done, eating pizza, and watching the new version of Jane Eyre. Special girl times are always very enjoyable :) I concluded that night content; naturally delighted with all these special birthday events. However, I did not realize that my sisters had one more birthday surprise awaiting me...

   After church last Sunday, my sisters, mom, and grandmother all decided to go to Lulu's. Lulu's is an ice cream parlor near my grandparent's house that serves delicious sundaes, different candies, and tasty little lunch items. This restaurant has a darling atmosphere; it is decorated in a classy 1950's style which draws in a variety of different customers. As we neared the building, I noticed a bunch of balloons were gathered inside.  

   Not suspecting a single thing, my family walked up in the building, hoping not to disturb someone's birthday celebration. Once I stepped through the door, a chorus of "Happy Birthday" quickly filled the small room. Instantly, I noticed all my adult friends from church, almost all of my students from my Sunday School class, and a few of my close girlfriends whom I hardly ever see gathered around. Secretly, my sisters had planned a surprise birthday party for me.

   This glorious day continued on with all of us ordering ice cream and fellowshipping with one another. My only regret was that it ended all too soon. In my heart, I declared this my best birthday ever. I could not have imagined a better surprise.

   I am so blessed; God has given the two greatest sisters anyone could ever hope for. Although I asked them to surprise me, I never imagined an event as sweet as that!! I love them immensely and thank the Lord that I get to be with them every day. They are just the greatest!! Also, none of this would have been possible if it weren't for my mother. Even though she prefers to stay behind the scenes, I am going to bring her out to center stage and say "thank you!" She is my best friend and the most beautiful woman ever. Family, thank you so much for putting this together; I love you guys so much ;)

"Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever." -Psalm 107:1

Getting to Know You :)

   Throughout the past few months, I have noticed that my blog has been attracting almost 1,600 viewers from all over the world. The overwhelming majority of pageviews are readers in America, but I also have pretty faithful readers from certain parts of Asia. I only have seven official followers, but I can adamantly declare that just seven readers did not rack up 1,600 hundred pageviews in only five-and-a-half months!

   I am really excited and greatly encouraged to be reaching so many people across the United States and to different parts of the planet. About a month ago, I began to pray that God would use my blog to reach and encourage someone that I did not know. Now that these pageview statistics have been rapidly rising each day, I am wondering if the Lord has caused some people I have not met to stumble across my blog.

   If you are one of these readers who are not official followers, I humbly request that you fill out this "Getting to Know You" questionnaire and submit it in comment form. However, if you feel uncomfortable with sharing this information, I completely understand :) I just thought that this would be a neat way to connect with more of my readers. Even if I only get one response back, I consider this endeavor a great success!

Getting to Know: Olivia (If you would rather not leave your name you can leave this blank :))

Some of my favorite pastimes are: Writing about political/spiritual topics, playing my fiddle, and traveling around the globe.

My favorite season is: Winter, because Thanksgiving and Christmas both take place during this season. Also, it is fun to cuddle up on the couch in front of a fire with a good book while hearing the rain pour down.

I am terrified of: Spiders! Large or small, I avoid them at all costs.
I am currently reading: "Rise to Rebellion" by Jeff Shaara. It is about the political and social events leading up to the Revolutionary War.
Favorite Thing to Study: History. I love learning about the past and drawing parallels to the present.
My favorite sport is: Tennis!
God is currently teaching me: His faithfulness. Lately, He has shown me time and time again that He will never give up on me, and that He is faithful and just to forgive me.

If you are a veteran reader, please feel free to comment as well :) I can't wait to hear from you!!

"And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." - Hebrews 10:24-25