Hebrews 12:14 "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord."
WOW! What a great night if you left empty in anyway then you weren't there! It was a great time of food, fellowship, & Freshwater! A very special thank you to Issa, Mary, Heidi, & Hannah for opening their home, fixing great food, and cleaning up the huge mess we left you. It was a wonderful time!
The evening started with an ice breaker led by Mary H. She quickly discovered that we know very little (ok really nothing) about Herbs let alone cooking with them. She had 12 different herbs for us to smell and touch to try to figure out what they were. There were 16 of us there and Felicia scored the highest with FOUR CORRECT! We have A LOT to learn!
Heidi and Mary realizing that we know nothing.
Abbie trying to determine what the Herb is.
Juanita "tasting" ginger.
Gail and Amy using their sense of smell.
Our winner, Felicia trying to figure this one out...I think she put down the same herb 3 or 4 times:)
We were then led in a devotional by Tina on Holiness. She began by asking us wedding preparation questions. As women, we all know how important the BIG DAY is and there is a lot of planning that goes into it. Well, as Christians we have a wedding day approaching...we are the BRIDE OF CHRIST...shouldn't there be a lot more preparation that goes into that day than anything else we do? She asked three questions in regard to "getting ready for the Wedding"...
1. Are you preoccupied with life here and and not spending time becoming holy or getting ready to meet Christ?
2. Do you give it some thought and effort, but often find yourself distracted and consumed with things on earth?
3. Do you love Jesus and are excited about His return and are actively seeking to "get ready for the Wedding"?
Ask yourself those questions...where do you fit?
Tina also challenged us to not only "put off" anything and everything that is part of our old, corrupt flesh, but to "put on" those qualities of the Life of Christ. Don't live like the pharisees...live like Christ.
Since this was Tina's last PEARLS with us before she moves, we were led in a time of prayer and blessing for her as she begins a new chapter in her life. Thanks Tina for leading one more time. Your wisdom and encouragement will be missed.
Next, we headed upstairs to Issa's kitchen (at least for the night). Pastor Jeff had come along for some manly encouragement for Issa...I guess there were too many women:) I am in no way going to be able to fully share what we were taught, but I will do my best. Here are some of the highlights/tips that I remember.
1. Only keep spices in your cupboard for 6 months and then THROW THEM OUT!
2. When cooking with herbs, add them to your food in the last few minutes of cooking to keep their flavor.
3. At the end of summer, cut up any remaining herbs, put them in ice cube trays, add some water and freeze. Pull out and use when needed.
4. Find the right combination of herbs...sometimes combinations make a bad flavor.
5. Crushed pepper and "store bought" pepper do not have the same smell or flavor.
It has been too long since Tuesday night and I am not doing this justice. If anyone remembers anything else, please comment at the bottom of this post or email me and I will add the comments. There was so much information to take in for a non-herb cook like myself, that I didn't retain it all. So, please help me out!
Our herb guide for the night who made us excellent chicken, shrimp, dip, and tea all with herbs! The food was delicious! I think Pastor Jeff really just came along to eat:)
This is Saffron (I'm clueless about this one). I guess it is a really, really expensive herb that Issa bought especially just for us to see. If I remember correctly it costs about $3000 a pound!
Here Issa is explaining all the herbs that he uses and grows.
Stephanie, Felica, and Heather are discussing....what are they discussing?
Gail and Lori smelling crushed pepper...I think.
Issa then took us out to see all the different herbs he grows. He has an herb garden, but a lot of his herbs are part of his landscaping. He grows sage, oregano. rosemary, basil, spearmint, chives, and many more. It was extremely interesting to see and to hear how easy it is to grow herbs. Once again, a big thank you to Issa and Mary for the wonderful evening.
I'm sure I left a lot out...to truly experience it you needed to be there. So, don't miss out! Join us for the next PEARLS on Tuesday, July 7 at 6:30PM! Our theme is Packaging Freshwater and we will be making up care packages for our troops. A list of items should come via email shortly.
