"Quiet Time"

Daily I struggle with how to wisely use "my" time.  I fight my own desire with setting my own schedule, and not turning to someone wiser, who created time and has my days numbered.  I struggle with discerning how God wants me to use it, who does He want me to encourage or support, what does He want me to accomplish, the list goes on....

I try to pray for wisdom and discernment in how to best use my time and for God to help me to know "my time" is not just my time... but His.

I long for time alone. I rarely dislike being alone. I've always been that way. I am most "still" when I am alone and my soul craves that.

So when I get alone time, I tend to feel an internal struggle with how to use it and how to protect it. Sometimes, I don't want to "share" it and sadly, sometimes that means I neglect to set aside some of that time to spend with the Lord. I want to spend time in His word, growing, learning and drawing closer to Him through that time.

I struggle with just "sitting down" and reading His word.  I know it can be a challenge to do when you’re a mom of little ones. I usually have time in the afternoon when my son is napping and my daughter is in quiet time playing. But I still feel the lure of that perpetual "to-do" list.

While I am not striving for perfection, I do feel I can improve in my being intentional about time reading God's Word... His instructions for my life...His way of being in relationship with me and me with Him.

I am not proud of my struggle, but I recognize it for what it is. Sometimes I have even noticed, that when I spend time reading the Word, I can't get enough of it, and I don't want to stop.  Also, I find myself feeling irritated if I get interrupted while I am spending time with the Lord.  So the pendulum swings the other way.

So where's my balance?

I've prayed a lot about this and part of me feels like God is trying to tell me to do as Christ did.

Mark 1:35 "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went to a solitary place, where he prayed."

Ideally, I could do this at this point in my life- the kids all sleep through the night. I'd have time to myself with the Lord, then be prepared and armed with the Word of God to start my day as opposed to later in the afternoon where I've already been through most of my day. Then when nap/quiet time rolls around in the afternoon I could use that time to accomplish some of the other things of the day and not allow my time with God to be pushed aside.

I've always been a "Night Owl." So I don't know how this will look for me, but I can't help but feel like this is what He is guiding me to do. It's been on my heart for quite some time. And this is how He speaks to us... to me. He is a gentleman, gently and patiently putting things on our hearts and shaping us to follow His Will.

And the other thing...

Simon and his companions sought out Jesus and perhaps interrupted the Lord's prayer time with the Heavenly Father. But Jesus didn't act selfishly, he didn't get angry and he didn't refuse them and tell them to go away. He simply joined them and went on about his day’s journey and quite literally fought demons.

So now the question is... "Am I prepared to do the same... how about you?"

4th of July Potato Salad

Happy 4th of July!  I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes.  It is the best potato salad ever and one of my favorite side dishes to bring to a BBQ.  So if your heading to a BBQ this weekend and you need a recipe, this one will deliver!  Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Ingredients
• 2 pounds red new potatoes, quartered and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1-2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar (add each tbsp. per taste preference)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions, plus more for garnish
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled, for garnish
Directions
1. In a large pot, cover potatoes with salted water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer until potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp paring knife, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain well.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together sour cream and mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar; add warm potatoes, and gently fold to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cover; refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.
3. To serve, season salad again with salt and pepper, if needed; fold in scallions. Garnish with bacon and more scallions, if desired.

Just a few side notes:  If you don’t want to bother with frying your bacon, cook it in the microwave, oven or you can buy it already cooked. This recipe was adapted from a Martha Stewart’s recipe; I changed the sour cream and mayo to regular from light and added the apple cider vinegar. I have made it in the past with light mayo and light sour cream… still good but not as rich in flavor. I’ve also made it with half- light sour cream and regular mayo, still great. All depends on your dietary preferences.  Lastly, this recipe makes a small serving, I always double or triple this recipe so there is plenty to share.  It never goes to waste.