Very much a classic...

A tribute to the late Isreal Kamakawiwoole..."IZ"

Take This Cup

I discovered something rather amazing recently. I learned that the human embryo contains only the blood of the father. What a fitting example given during a sermon about the blood of Jesus. Communion day... Remembering the blood that Jesus shed on the Cross for you and me...

We don't realize or forget just how powerful the blood of Christ is. His blood, which was the only blood that could save us from death. A blood so pure, so Holy and so full of life that only God's blood atone for our sins. That is why Jesus could not be born from the seed of man. Jesus could not be conceived by man's blood but by the blood of the Holy Spirit...God Himself. As an embryo, He had the Father's blood. He was pure from the very beginning. That is so amazing!

We know this but yet we need to be reminded. Jesus said to drink from this cup to remember Him. Everytime we sin we forget. We sin, feel guilty about it and try to make up for it by doing a good deed. We try to make up for it by trying to do good. But there is absolutely NOTHING we can do to make up for any sin. And the wonderful and most comforting thing is that we don't have to! Christ's blood was enough to wash away all of our past and future sins. He took care of it for us. His blood, the one shed for us has cleansed us.

Take this cup and drink in rememberance of Me!

That Thing He Showed Me

If you read the three part testimony on John and I, you will recall that in the first post (part 1), I had mentioned that God showed me something at the beginning of the year that was just too good to be true. So much so I thought that it didn't come from God. First off, I had never experienced or thought that God would reveal something like that. It wasn't anything very specific but specific enough to cause me to question if it truly came from God or if it was just me. So I brushed it aside. Then March came along and the same thing came to me. I was thinking, "Come on now Trisha. Stop that." But as I thought about it, I began to wonder if it truly came from God. For one thing, as much as I have a desire for it, I didn't really feel that it had to happen to me this year. So perhaps it did come from God? So I just prayed and told the Lord that if it from you then it will happen. If not, then I was wrong. I knew that if it came from God, confirmation would surely occur. I have to admit that it kept me on my toes just a little bit...waiting and wondering...wondering and waiting... The supposed message from God left my mind again and I didn't think about it too much. I didn't allow myself to get entrenched with the whole idea.

So what did the Lord show me at the beginning of the year that was so questionable?"This year you are going to meet your husband." Now the funny thing is that when John asked me to marry him, I did not recall the above statement at all while this was happening. Then, 2 days after he asked me to marry him, God refreshed my memory. My reaction? "Oh...my...word...!"

Tis better to love...

Loving one another...

That is how they will know...

There are times when God teaches you something so wonderful that your heart just warms up. There is just something so grand about love that it just mesmerizes you. God makes is very clear how powerful love is and without it, our lives are meaningless.

This day I found myself blessed after my heart revealed something so amazing. I said to myself, "Gosh, it feels better to love than to be loved!" Feeling loved from others is great, no doubt about that. But that pales in comparison to how it feels to LOVE. I have always understood that loving others and giving to others is the key to our faith...just how God loves us. But on this day, I did more than just understand what it means to love. I experienced it in my heart. I experienced it in soul. I experienced it in my spirit. It was a wake up call for me. When the Word says that by loving others they will know that you are His child, it's more than just letting people see the nice things you do for others. The kind of love that mesmerizes people is the kind of love that only God can create. His supernatural, agape love is what amazes people.

How excited do you get when you love one another? Does it feel better to love for you than to receive love? I ask myself this question and tell myself, "Not enough." But what a wonderful thing to pray for each and everyday!

Lord, help me to get excited about loving others. Help me to love and may that be more important to me than needing to feel loved by others.

The Earth Is Filled With His Glory!

I haven't been to the beach to watch the sunset in ages so I decided to go this week on my day off. I lie down and boy, God sure knows how to mesmerize me and make me melt!

I lay there, looking at the clouds and when the sun finally hits the water I push myself up and continue to just melt. Sigh...

Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty! The earth is filled with His Glory!

Just The Icing On The Cake

Read an exerpt from Shannon Ethridge, author of the best selling book "Every Woman's Battle" and was inspired to write this entry. I don't think it really matters whether you are single or married. This applies to all of us and should be of an encouragement to all.

We often hear about the importance of having space in a relationship. Open any book on relationships, whether Christian or non-Christian and it is not surprizing to see this topic. Space, the thing important for every couple to have. But why? I could think of several answers including 1) We are individuals and time away sometimes helps you keep your own identity, 2) It can help you to reflect on your relationship, 3) Having a "me" time is just important sometimes. While I don't disagree with those reasons, there has got to be a better reason that those to justify just why space in important in a relationship.

Our relationship with God is THE most important part of our lives. Hands down, nothing, not even your spouse or SO is more important than God. Personal and intimate time with the Lord is vital. But why is it vital? If you are praying and praising God together as a couple then isn't that enough? Certainly not! And the reason for this is because it is God who fills our cups so to speak. The Holy Spirit lives in each and everyone of us and only God alone can make us happy. Only God can make us feel fulfilled. Your husband/wife is just the icing on the cake. The love a spouse brings is just the finishing touches on feeling fulfilled. The cake does not NEED the icing but when the icing is there, it sure is a blessing isn't it? Only God can fill our cup. Your relationship just allows the cup to overflow.

So in regards to space. It is important to have space because if our cups are not filled daily, it cannot overflow. If the cake (our foundation) is not there, there can be no icing. Space allows us to refresh and refocus on the One that gives us true life and true fulfillment. So take that personal time off to pray, relax and rest in the Lord as often as it is needed. THEN and only then can the love from your SO satisfy you. Let him/her be your icing. Let him/her overflow your cup!

Your SO... just the icing on the cake.

Hawaiian Eats Pt. 1

Mostly Traditional

Lau Lau (pictured below) is a very traditional Hawaiian dish and at Ono's Hawaiian Food, they go all out. This steamed bed of taro leaves is stuffed with pork and butterfish. A good amount of pork fat is placed into the lau lau to prevent it from drying out and on top of that, it gives it much flavor. Taro leaves cook like spinach, only tastes much better than spinach when cooked. If Spinach is cooked too long, it has a muddy taste. But not taro leaves. The flavor in the leaves are much better. Chicken can be ordered if you are not a fan of pork. But if you wanna eat traditional, pork all the way...


The lau lau combination comes with a variety of traditional sides. From the bottom left:

Pipikaula (Pee-pee-kauh-lah): A Hawaiian-style beef jerky. Very good.

Lomi Salmon (Low-mee): Tomatoes, Maui onion, smoked salmon, green onions and Hawaiian salt. Lomi means massage in Hawaiian.

Rice: Not traditional but the most common starch staple in Hawaii. Poi, which is traditional will be talked about on another post.
Maui Onions: Raw, sweet, eaten with Hawaiian salt.
Haupia (Ha-oo-pee-ah): For you coconut lovers. This is not traditional (I think) but coconut is. Commonly eaten today and seen in all luaus.



Suffice to say I was very full after this meal. lol.