Resurrection Cookies

I was given this recipe many years ago, and people often ask me for it because it doesn't have a ready source. I don't know why I never thought of posting it until now! My children love to make these cookies the night before Easter, and oftentimes the cookies are shared at our Easter meal. And the best part is that as I've had more children, the younger ones just join in and take part in our tradition!

*This recipe requires a lot of mixing. It is best if you have a standing mixer. The result is a meringue-type cookie.

Resurrection Cookies

1 cup whole pecans or walnuts

1 teaspoon vinegar
3 egg whites

a pinch salt 
1 cup sugar

a zipper baggy

1 wooden spoon

scotch tape

Bible

Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. (This is very important --- don't wait until you are half done with the recipe.)

Place pecans in zipper baggy (or baggies, one per child) and let children beat them with the wooden spoon (or spoons) to break into small pieces.  Explain that after Jesus was arrested.  He was beaten by the Roman soldiers.  Read: John 19:1-3

Let each child smell the vinegar.  Put 1 teaspoon vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross He was given vinegar to drink. Read: John 19:28-30

Add egg whites to vinegar.  Eggs represent life.  Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life. Read: John 10:10-11

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand.  Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read: Luke 23:27

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing.  Add 1 cup sugar to ingredients in bowl (you can let children taste a bit first). Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read: Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read: Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoon onto waxed paper-covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus's body was laid. Read: Matthew 27:57-60

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus tomb was sealed. Read: Matthew 27:65-66

GO TO BED!

Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus's followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read: John 16:20 and 22

On Resurrection Sunday (Easter) morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite.  The cookies are hollow!  On the first Easter Jesus's followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read: Matthew 28:1-9


I wish you ad your family a wonderful Easter! He is risen!

White as Snow

My missionary friends spend part of the year in Israel and this past winter, they sent me pictures of their family playing in the snow, making snowmen and having snow ball fights. 

Snow! In Israel! I never knew that it snowed in that region! And when I saw the photos of white covering the ground, I was able to imagine Jesus, a young boy, watching the gentle flakes drift from the sky. He saw the landscape of his home change. The dirty ground became sparkling white. Stains were covered.

And that boy grew to be a man, the man who was God, yet died in our place. He alone changed our fates, erased our sins, and covered our stains. As the prophet Isaiah wrote, 

Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall like wool. ~Isaiah 1:18

Happy Palm Sunday to you! And as Good Friday and Easter Sunday approach, may the truth of Jesus's sacrifice become more tangible and more beautiful to you with each passing moment!

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

(words by Elvina Hall)

Hiding His Word in My Heart (Part 1)

I've always lamented that I'm not great at Scripture memorization. Over the years, I've tried again and again to memorize favorite passages, but after a few days, I'd lose heart. Even the most familiar phrases were like strangers to me when I tried to recall them from memory.

Until now!

I have found two wonderful ways to hide God's word in my heart. Being an artistic, musical, and visual person, my old method of reading the words from the Bible and reciting them over and over again was not working. Now, I try to put a verse to a melody or a rhythm. For example, Colossians 3:17 can be said like this:

And what-EV-er you DO in WORD or DEED do EV-verything (pause) 

in the NAME of the LORD JE-sus, (pause)

giving THANKS to GOD the FA-ther THROUGH HIM.

I taught this verse to the children's choir and they learned it so fast! And when I took Proverbs 6:6 and made it into a little song, my five-year=old son (who is an auditory learner) loved it! He still goes around singing, "Take a lesson from the ants, you lazy bones, lazy bones!" (Homeschooling parents, singing is a tried-and-true method of learning almost anything!)

For longer passages and verses that are hard to set to rhythm or music, I combined two things that I observed my friends doing. One friend wrote out the verses using lettering techniques, and another painted, doodled, and drew directly in her journaling Bible. This by far has been the best discovery for me in years! Being a do-er, I get to "get my hands dirty" by writing, drawing, and coloring. Being a visual learner, I can more readily picture the words as I try to recall them. I started memorizing Colossians 3:12 on Monday, and already I'm moving onto the next verse with eagerness. Here is a photo of how I wrote out verses 12-13 for myself:

As you can see from the somewhat blurry photo, it's nothing fancy. My lettering was done in ball-point pen and the coloring in pencil and I taped the index cards onto my bathroom mirror so I can glance at them throughout the day and cement them in my mind. Something so simple, yet so effective!

I encourage you to also pick a favorite passage of Scripture and memorize it. Try one of these methods, or share with me your favorite way!

Bless you!

I hear this a lot. And it's not because I suffer from hay fever and sneeze often.

While I was grocery shopping with my six children, a man stopped his cart next to mine, put his palms together, gave me a little bow, and said, "Bless you!"

I smiled but did not comment. He was acknowledging that what I do is not easy, but his smile conveyed this underlying message: "Better you than me!"

Which is the overall consensus in our culture today. Children are pint-sized energy-drainers, money-suckers, party-poopers, and trouble-makers. Someone needs to train and teach them (at least for our future's sake), but who has the patience and energy?

I don't consider myself to be anyone special. I don't have multiple degrees in teaching or child development. I am not skilled in housekeeping or management. I wouldn't even say that I am a patient person. People call me 'Super Mom' when I am no more qualified for motherhood than they are, with the exception of this one thing:

I make it my duty– my honor– my calling– to be the one to train and teach my children. Not a pastor, not a teacher, not a relative, friend, or neighbor, and certainly not a piece of technology can take my place as Mom and primary role model in my children's lives.

And if I am to be blessed for what I do, I ask this: 

Bless me with wisdom to guide and teach these children of Yours.

Bless me with the understanding of the gravity of my responsibilities as a parent.

Bless me with faithfulness, so that my words and actions with point them to You.

Every time I go to the store, I'm surrounded by a small crowd of people I love. If that's not a blessing, I don't know what is!

Come to Me

February ended and March began, and I barely noticed. Besides being covered in hives for half of February, I had sick children to care for, an uncle who passed away after a long fight with cancer, an aunt and two cousins to comfort, and my dear husband's birthday to celebrate. I was so preoccupied that I was putting milk in the pantry instead of the refrigerator. At least, I think I put the milk in the pantry. I don't remember.

Most days I wake up feeling tired. Then I tackle the day and go until I've finished everything on my list and go back to bed, feeling more tired. After a while, the fatigue compounds, and when I am feeling really, really tired, the headaches and self-pity start. That's when Grumpy Mama Baird emerges. And the guilt begins. I tell myself, "This is nothing compared to what Jesus went through!" I feel like a failure for yelling at my children and for being short with my husband and I feel completely undeserving of love or grace. Then, when I have a few days to rest and catch up, I'm back to my normal self, until the next time. It's been like this since October, and it's a cycle I want to break.

This morning I did NOT want to go to church. I was running on little sleep. I drove to Sacramento and back yesterday. And on top of that, we lost an hour due to Daylight Savings. I wanted to give in to my fatigue and moan and gripe and hole up in my house. 

But He said to me, "Come. Come to me." So I set my mind on Jesus– not his death and suffering on the cross, but his life and care for people who suffered. When Jesus met a suffering person, He never belittled him or her. And though my suffering will never be as great as what He endured on the cross, or even close to what some people endure right now in their lifetime, I feel His love for me as I struggle even with the little things. I hear His voice saying, "Rita, it's okay. I will help you through this. I love you."

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest." ~Matthew 11:28

More on Learning, Life, and Intentionality

I was lying on my bed next to my five-month-old while chatting with my husband about a conversation he had had with the older children. The conversation had been on cell-phone usage, and I immediately recalled my list from twelve days ago. I had thought at the time that the list was thorough, but I had forgotten one thing. What else does a child learn while waiting for dinner at a restaurant? Contentment.

Contentment is listening to my husband's voice without being interrupted by a text message alert. It is watching my son's expressive face and hands without wondering, "Who's Twittering now?" But contentment is a stranger to the child with an endless source of entertainment at his/her fingertips. It is a foreign concept to the teenager who can surf the Internet and text with friends in the midst of a class, a car ride, or 'family time'. There is more, always MORE, on those little gadgets to seduce a person away from what is happening in his/her immediate surroundings. 

It's sad that people don't realize that what they are looking for on their smart phones is contentment. And of course, they will never find it there.