Raisin Cake

So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God.  And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord.  Then he distributed to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins – 1 Chronicles 16:1-3

The other day, my son and I read this scripture, which is almost identical to 2 Samuel 6:18, 19,  and when I came to the part about the raisin cakes, my culinary interest was peaked.  My family and I love raisins.  Everything (well, almost everything) we bake has raisins in them.  So, a raisin cake would definitely be a treat.

The raisin cake is typically prepared using standard cake ingredients and raisins as a primary ingredient. Whole or chopped raisins can be used. Additional various ingredients are also sometimes used, such as rum, chocolate, and others. The use of rum can serve to plump-up the raisins via the added moisture, and the raisins can be marinated in rum before the cake is prepared.  Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and pumpkin spice are sometimes used – Wikipedia

This reminds me of the fruit cake we bake at Christmas time.  The different fruits are soaked in non-alcoholic Jewish wine to marinate them for weeks, sometimes longer.  It gives the cake a nice flavor.  We are more partial to nutmeg because we think that  cinnamon is too strong.  Cloves and pumpkin spice would definitely give bit to the cake.  The jury is out on that one, though, because I’m not sure if my husband and son would like those ingredients to be included.  And I have always associated cloves with meat.  In the past when I used to eat ham, we used to put cloves in it, to give it a nice flavor.

By the sound of it, the raisin cakes were used to celebrate the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and placing it in the Tabernacle.  The people went home and enjoyed the cakes with thanksgiving.   The city of Jerusalem had much to celebrate.  The Ark of the Covenant which had been captured by the Philistines after defeating the Israelites.  Besieged by tumors or hemorrhoids and plagues, the Philistines were desperate to get rid of the Ark.  They put it on a cart drawn by two milch cows, who headed straight and without wavering for Israel.  The cart stopped at Beth Shemesh before finding a more permanent home at Kiriath-Jearim.  The Philistines were happy to be rid of the Ark which had been with them for seven months but the Israelites were rejoicing because it was in their midst again.

From the looks of the image below, the cake can be baked in a loaf pan and cut into slices.  I wonder how a slice would taste with a bit of margarine or a slice or two of cheese.  My mouth is watering just a the mere thought.  It it’s anything like raisin bread, then adding margarine or cheese would taste just as tasty.

Interested in baking a raisin cake?  Here’s a simple recipe from All Recipes.  One of these days I will try to make it and do a follow up post.

Ingredients

• 1 cup raisins
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• Add all ingredients to list

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease one 10 x 10 inch baking pan.
2. In a large saucepan boil the raising with the water for 10 minutes. Add the butter or margarine and let cool.
3. In the same pan add the flour, soda, salt, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and chopped nuts (optional), mix well and pour batter into a lightly greased 10×10 inch baking pan
4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 minutes. Serves 8 to 12.

 

Sources:  Wikipedia; Bible Gateway;  Wikipedia

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Being a Neighbor

Only Jesus could simplify spiritual matters in a way that anyone can understand.  He summed up the Ten Commandments into two–love God and love your neighbor (Mark 12:30, 31).  When a lawyer asked Jesus the question, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus answered by telling a parable about the man who was attacked on his way to Jericho by robbers and left for dead on the road.   Two men passed by, first a priest who passed by on the other side and then a Levite who looked and passed by the other side.   It’s interesting that both of these men who were associated with the priesthood did not minister to the injured man but left him there until a kind stranger stopped to help him.

Through this wonderful illustration of love and compassion, we learn that our neighbor is not only the person who lives next door or opposite but any person in need.  To be a neighbor is to care for others–show kindness and to help them in whatever way we can.  After Jesus finished telling the story, He asked the question, “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”  The lawyer replied, “He who showed mercy on him.”  Jesus told him to go and do likewise (Luke 10:36, 37).

A neighbor is not necessarily someone of our race, culture, background or religion.  It was a Samaritan, not a Jew who stopped to help the man.  In those times, Jews didn’t associate with Samaritans (John 4:9).  To be a neighbor is not to allow our prejudices to prevent us from helping those who are different from us.

When it comes to loving your neighbor there partiality isn’t a factor.  The Samaritan didn’t see an enemy lying at the side of the road but a person who was badly in need of help.  He felt compassion for him and getting off his donkey, he went over to him and bandaged his wounds before taking him to an inn where he could recuperate.  Being a neighbor means setting aside our differences and demonstrating the love of God to others.

If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right – James 2:8

Women’s Fellowship

Years ago, I was part of the Women’s Ministry at my church and one of the things I really liked about it was the fellowship.  We would hold programs like “Lunch and Learn” where women would come together at someone’s home and a pastor or a speaker is invited to share a profound message with us.  Then afterwards, we would enjoy a potluck while uplifting Gospel music played in the background.  I have enjoyed the Women’s Ministries’ yearly three day retreats where I was blessed with Friday night vespers, a Sabbath school program and worship on Saturday morning and workshops in the afternoon.  On Sunday we had breakfast and more workshops before we closed the wonderful three day event with prayer.  Women’s Ministries also offer seminars where women come together and share their testimonies.  It’s during these times when women dig into God’s Word, encourage, pray for and fellowship with each other.  Women’s Ministries have truly been a blessing for me and countless of women.

Can you imagine not having a Women’s Ministry or not being able to fellowship with other women?  Nor can I.  It would be hard for the thousands of women all across South Asia not to be able to attend a weekly Women’s Fellowship group.   Through this group, they learn God’s Word, memorize Scripture, pray, reach out and worship the God who reached out to them–Asia’s most unreached group.  God is working to change thousands of lives.

Many of us know what it’s like to fellowship with other believers and how being a part of a prayer group or Bible Study class has helped us in our spiritual growth.  Women in Asia need the same close fellowship as many of them come from families who don’t know Christ.  Wouldn’t it be great if they could find a fellowship group where they can pray and study God’s Word?  Well, you can help to make this possible.  How?  Through prayer.  Gospel for Asia has put together this list of prayer requests:

• Pray for Women’s Fellowship so that more women can be reached
• Pray for women to understand Christ’s love and acceptance
• Pray for more leaders
• Pray for transformation of lives and families
• Pray for God to empower women as they share
• Pray for the Women’s Health Project and the Women’s Literacy Program

Women’s Fellowships are usually led by a woman missionary, a pastor’s wife or a godly believer in the church.  A growing congregation needs someone to lead and mature women are best suited to teach the other women.    Their experience and wisdom will help to guide the younger women.

Likewise, older women should be reverent in behavior, and not be false accusers, not be enslaved to much wine, but teachers of good things, that they may teach the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,  and to be self-controlled, pure, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be dishonored – Titus 2:3-5.

As Christian women, we have duties towards each other.  So, let us encourage one another through prayers, ministries, Bible studies, fellowships and worship.

 

Source:  Gospel for Asia

Words of Life

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path – Psalm 119:105

Right now I can walk into any bookstore and buy a Bible.  There are so many to choose from.  There are Bibles for men, women, teens, children and couples.  They are in different languages.  And there are different versions.  You have Study Bibles, Devotional Bibles, Life Application Bibles and even Spiritual Warfare Bibles.  Then we have audio Bibles, online Bibles.  The list goes on and on.  Some of us have more than one Bible.  Some churches give out free Bibles.

Bibles are available in most countries but not to new believers in Asia.  Many of them don’t own a Bible.  It’s hard for us to imagine not being able to read our Bibles everyday.  It’s where we go when we want to know more about Jesus or to grow spiritually and deepen our walk with Him.  We can use our Bibles for personal or group studies, witnessing and worship.  Believers in Asia aren’t able to do any of these things.  Can you imagine going to church and no one has a Bible, not even the pastor?

Try to imagine how different life would be for you if you didn’t have a Bible.  Now think of the believers in Asia who don’t have God’s Word to guide them daily in their spiritual lives.  Imagine not being able to share the Word with others.

The Bible is more than a book.  It is the living Word of God.  It brings hope, encouragement, light and joy to those who read it.  It is the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17).  It protects us from the attacks of the Devil.  It was the Word of God that Jesus used three times to defeat Satan in the wilderness.  It reveals who God is to us.  We learn about His will for our lives.  We have the Gospels which tell us about Jesus and His ministry.  It is from the Bible that we learn that, “…God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16).

The Word of God teaches us what our responsibilities are to God, society, authorities and our neighbors (Romans 12).  It gives us instructions on how to keep ourselves from conforming to the world (Philippians 4:8; Galatians 5:15).  It shows us how we can follow Jesus’ example when it comes to prayer, our relationship with God and how we treat others.  The Bible is our guide to right living and right thinking.  God speaks to us through the Word.

We go to the Bible when we have questions and doubts.  It addresses our fears and encourages us.  Paul explained why the Scriptures are so important in the believer’s life.  “All Scripture is God-breathed and is valuable for teaching the truth, convicting of sin, correcting faults and training in right living;  thus anyone who belongs to God may be fully equipped for every good work“ (2 Timothy 3:16, 17 Complete Jewish Bible).  The Bible is a must have for every believer.

Sing them over again to me, wonderful words of life,
Let me more of their beauty see, wonderful words of life;
Words of life and beauty teach me faith and duty.

Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life,
Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life.

Help to bring the wonderful words of life to South Asia.  Find out how here.

Source:  Gospel for Asia

She Saw Her Risen Lord!

After He rose early Sunday morning, Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene.  Earlier that morning, when it was still dark, Mary went to the tomb and found the stone which had covered the entrance rolled away.

Distressed, she ran and told Simon Peter, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”  Peter and John ran back to the tomb.  John stayed outside and looked in and saw the linen cloths lying there, but Peter ran inside.  He saw the linen cloths too and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself.  John saw and believed–not that Jesus had risen but that His body was not there, for as yet they knew not the Scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.   He and Peter returned to their homes but Mary stayed.

She stood by the tomb weeping.  She had gone with sweet spices so that she could anoint him.  Where had they taken His body?  She stooped and looked inside it and was startled when she saw two angels there.  They asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She told them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” After she said this, she turned and saw Jesus standing but she didn’t know that it was Him.

Jesus asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”
And she, thinking that He was the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Then the stranger called her name, “Mary!”  Her heart leapt with joy as she recognized that voice and she turned around, crying, “Rabboni!” which means “Teacher”.  The tears of sorrow turned to tears of joy.

Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’”

Mary hurried off to tell the disciples that she had seen their Lord and gave them His message.  Mark wrote in his Gospel that when she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.  She brought good news to the disciples and all who followed Him so that they too would stop mourning and weeping and rejoice like she was.  Unfortunately they didn’t believe her.

Mary Magdalene was the first person to see Jesus alive.   “It was she out of whom he had cast seven devils; much was forgiven her, and much was given her, and done for her, and she loved much; and this honour Christ did her, that she was the first that saw him after his resurrection. The closer we cleave to Christ, the sooner we may expect to see him, and the more to see of him” (Matthew Henry, Commentary on Mark 16).

Mary was not satisfied that her Lord was not there and she wanted answers.  She didn’t leave like Peter and John.  She stayed there.  And she was rewarded for her trouble.  She learned that His body was not taken away as she had feared but that He had risen.  She saw proof that He was indeed alive.

God Always Comes Through

One day I learned that a co-worker was going through a hard time.  She was overwhelmed with family problems and stressed out at work.  So overwhelmed was she that she had a headache and tears came to her eyes.  My heart went out to her and as soon as I went back to my desk, I asked God to show me the scripture He wanted me to send her—the scripture He knew would help her.  He did and I sent it off. 

It was Psalm 46:1.  “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.”  It was for her and her husband.  There was a reflection under the scripture which said, “Be assured, O believer, that the Lord your God is with you.  He shall shelter your spirit in His mighty house forever.  Never need you fear, for He is even now your aid against all manner of trouble.  Rejoice, therefore, in His love and power.”  My co-worker emailed me, thanking me and saying that she really needed that. 

The following morning she called me and told me that the night after reading the scripture and reflection she felt better, calm and at peace.  She had faith that God would work things out.  She also told me that she got an email from her father-in-law and he had good news.  God had come through for them, as I knew He would.  All He wanted was for us to have enough faith and trust to ask Him for His help.  As I spoke to her my hope was that this would draw her closer to God.

As I thanked God I got emotional because of what He had done.  It is wonderful to see Him work in the lives of others.  It strengthens our faith and deepens our love.  I also want to thank Him for allowing me to be a part of it.  Now I can relate to what the writer said in Hebrews 11:6.  “…for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” 

When we pray and ask God to do something we must believe in what we are asking—we must believe in His power.  Perhaps when we pray we should thank Him for already doing it instead of asking.  We claim His promises and then thank Him for keeping them in accordance to His will.  Everything must be done according to His will and in His time.

My co-worker didn’t tell anyone else about the amazing effect the words of encouragement and hope had on her because she felt that they wouldn’t believe her or understand.  Only believers would understand because they know God and what He is capable of.  They can relate to Paul when he said, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” And “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.