Forgiveness

Last Thursday, as I was shoveling wet, heavy snow because Grandpa didn't plow the driveway, I found myself getting so angry and frustrated! In my head, I started running through his whole list of offenses over the past year. God spoke His truth to me in the middle of my internal rant and told me I need to forgive AND forget. It's not for me to hold Grandpa accountable for his actions (or lack thereof) and this anger I was feeling was a barrier in my relationship with God. Matthew 6:15 says "But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." I had been telling myself all this time that God wanted me to develop patience and show kindness, but I was withholding forgiveness. I was keeping SCORE! I justified my attitude and behavior based on my scorekeeping and let that bitterness and resentment build up inside until it overflowed and poisoned all my other relationships. I had become a person that no one wanted to be around! By God's grace and mercy, I let go of it all and was liberated by His forgiveness. I feel happy, positive, optimistic, refreshed, cleansed, relieved! The burden has been lifted and I'm FREE!!!

It isn't always easy, and I sometimes fall back into the old thought pattern, but with His help, I'm learning to embrace the freedom that comes with receiving God's forgiveness and passing that forgiveness along to those who hurt me. I'm trying to live out Matthew 6:14 and 7:1-2 on a daily basis, all for the Glory of God.

Ladies Tea Party

Michelle hosted the loveliest Ladies Valentines Tea Party today. We had a slumber party last night: ate Garlic Ginger Chicken Stir Fry, watched a chick flick, and prepped food stuffs for the party. This morning we continued prep work and had so much fun bonding in the kitchen. It reminded me a lot of the parties Heather and I hosted. The finished products were amazing (Michelle is such a fabulous master planner/cook) and we had a great time chatting and eating the delicious food!

Raspberry-filled scones with a rose-water glaze

Ham, asparagus, & Gruyère quiche

Smoked Salmon tea sandwiches

(I had fun with the cookie cutters!)

See the photo album for the full menu and presentation. It was quite fabulously wonderful.