The Door in the Wall

What a sweet, little book I last read from my nephew’s collection!

How often do we feel like we have just hit a wall? The way we thought we were supposed to go is blocked. Our hopes are dashed. We can’t go forward, so what can we do?!

In the imagery of this book… keep walking along the wall until you find a door.

"'Each of us has his place in the world,’ he said. ‘If we cannot serve in one way, there is always another. If we do what we are able, a door always opens to something else.'"

The Door in the Wall by Marguerite De Angeli

Or, as Elisabeth Elliot put it: 

"Do the next thing."

And one more quote that I shared two years ago:

"And when she could no longer hope, she did not stand still but walked on in the dark. I think when the sun rises upon them, some people will be astonished to find how far they have got on in the dark."

Paul Faber by George MacDonald

[P.S. - Paul Faber is in the process of being recorded by a group of volunteers over at LibriVox.org. Want to join us?!]

Apples Again

The Red Baron tree is empty, but we keep using these delicious, early apples in several ways.



I've set up the apple peeler/corer/slicer three times now to fill the dehydrator, which produces about a gallon of dried apples each time.



Watch my process in 30 seconds by clicking here!

A dash of cinnamon makes this treat extra-special.

The dried apple slices last all year in a glass jar (if we don't eat them up first!)

Baked apples taste like autumn!

I made so many last time that we have another dessert ready in the freezer.

And don't forget Apple Crisp! Or, in our case, a grain-free crumble added the last 20 minutes of baking.

"Come, Sheep!"

That is how Dad called his little flock of Lincoln-Finn sheep (who were our lawn-mowers when we moved out into the country 35 years ago). Some of my earliest memories involve our huge ewes and bouncy lambs.

I would love to have a recording of my girl-voice trying to mimic Dad's sheep-call when I was feeding them or just wanted to gather my wooly friends for a visit. No wonder I turned out to sing alto - as I did always did my best to mimic Dad's baritone call with extra stress on the second word:

"Come, SHEEP!"

For some reason, the sheep weren't fooled. I had to shake a bucket of corn if I really wanted them to come running. Why? They didn't know or trust my voice in the same way as that of their main shepherd.

This came to mind again when reading John 10:

"He who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep... The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."

Jesus goes on to say, " I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me... and I lay down my life for the sheep."

How can we know His voice and not be fooled by counterfeits or dangerous enemies?

His words are in the Bible. Let's learn to know His voice better each day so we can follow the Good Shepherd!

What it Costs

"'Mr. St. John, I'd give the world to know the Bible as you do,' said a lady to him at the close of a meeting.

"'Madam,' he replied, 'that's just what it costs.'

"But he always stressed that the Bible is never an end in itself. It is the path by which you reach Christ, and he never considered any study really worthwhile unless it affected one's daily conduct in a practical way."

- From the autobiography of Patricia St. John: An Ordinary Woman's Extraordinary Faith

No wonder this ordinary woman lived an extraordinary life! She learned to follow in the deep faith of her parents, making it her own more and more as she grew from a wild and spunky child to a determined and courageous, yet compassionate, woman. 

Having read several of her children's books years ago (and re-read a couple while on the couch with chronic illness), I was still surprised and challenged by this widely varied life-story. As we hear, the best fiction comes from an author's life experience... and Patricia's life was full of experience! 

From Brazil to England to Switzerland to Morocco (with visits to more of Africa, Palestine, America...) Patricia lived out Elisabeth Elliot's motto: "Do the Next Thing." She followed God's leading wherever she was needed - whether that meant years of caring for elderly family members or feeding street-boys in a mountain village.

Her books came now and then when she wanted to touch the lives of hurting and lonely children with the Truth.

And while I have not read any of them yet, she also wrote biographies and records of God at work through specific ministries around the world.

Apples, Chocolate Mint, and Tomatoes

Apple season has begun!

I froze 15 quarts of sliced Red Baron apples (for crisps/crumbles/pies) from just half the windfalls on September 9th.

That was also the day to get to a bit of (late!) herb harvesting.

Chocolate Mint is our favorite mint variety for herbal tea. 

Meanwhile, Mom and Elsa were prepping salsa from the tomato harvest.

Mom has already canned quarts of whole tomatoes and spaghetti sauce.

We are grateful for all of this food even when the processing wears us out!

A Different Solution

Enjoy these thought-provoking bits from a wonderful autobiography I recently finished:

“As the days passed in the ward, I began to realize what a tragedy it would be if Christians were all healed and never went to the hospital. People are so vulnerable in hospitals and willing to talk. And how good if there were a sick Christian in every ward.”

[This from the author of several beloved children's books, such as Treasures of the Snow.]

"We would have changed their circumstances, but we would not have changed them. God's solution is sometimes different. He does not always lift people out of the situation. He himself comes into the situation, as Christ the eternal man once entered this world and in a sense came to stay. He does not pluck them out of the darkness. He becomes the light in the darkness, the peace in the midst of the conflict, the spirit's riches in the midst of poverty and loss and physical degradation. Right there in the desert, he gives beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness."



"When he [Jesus] purposes to build, he seeks for a ruin. When he plans to plant a garden, he starts in the desert."

– Patricia St. John in her autobiography, "An Ordinary Woman's Extraordinary Faith"

Elsa's Stuffed Zucchini Recipe

It is still zucchini season!

This ubiquitous garden produce often gets a bad rap. Maybe because if you grow any, you get more than you can use!

But our family has several ways to enjoy this summer staple. Most commonly, we slice it thinly and stir-fry in a little sesame oil - sometimes with sliced onions. [We used to love the moisture it gave to chocolate cake when shredded.] And last year Elsa developed her own delicious version of stuffed zucchini, which I made again last week. [Read on for her recipe.]

Having used up last year's crop of garlic last month, I had the new experience of working with moist garlic, fresh from Dad's garden.

▪︎ Stuffed Zucchini

Brown on stove:

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 tsp. salt

1 medium-large zucchini:

Discard seeds; scoop out flesh and save, leaving only 1/4 inch thick shell; chop saved zucchini, add to burger, and cook a couple minutes

Add:

1 T. oregano

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. salt

1 large garlic clove, minced

1/2 cup tomato sauce

Place mixture in zucchini shell. 

Bake at 375° for 45 minutes in 9"x13" pan with 1/8" water

Spread Your Sails

"I am seeing more and more that we begin to learn what it is to walk by faith when we learn to spread out all that is against us: all our physical weakness, loss of mental power, spiritual inability - all that is against us inwardly and outwardly - as sails to the wind and expect them to be vehicles for the power of Christ to rest upon us. It is so simple and self-evident - but so long in the learning!"

Lilias Trotter (22 August 1902)

Isabella Lilias Trotter (1853-1928) was poised to be the top artist of her time when she left it all to follow God to the mission field of Algeria. To see samples of her work and read or watch some of her story, visit:

https://liliastrotter.com/

Instagram: @liliastrotterlegacy
https://www.instagram.com/liliastrotterlegacy/

And, yes, we did get sailing once more this summer! Elsa was my "first mate" for a relaxing cruise last week.