Hello All! I hope your summer has been as productive and sunny as ours!

Today I get to share with you my Aunt Cate’s pie Crust recipe and my Mama’s Sour Cream Lemon Pie! So it’s a double treat for you! This pie recipe is SO refreshing and a delightful summer treat! Perfectly tart with just the right amount of sweet!

Cate’s Pie Crust

5 cups of flour

2 Tbsp Brown Sugar

1 tsp Baking powder

1 tsp Salt

1 lb Shorting (apex 2 1/4 cups)

Mix:

1 egg, 1 Tbsp Vinegar, and enough ice water to make 3/4 cup

Add: The rest of the ingredients into bowl and mix dough

makes 4 pie crusts

Mama’s Sour Cream Lemon Pie

1 (9 inch) baked pie shell

2 pkgs. Lemon pie filling

3/4 cups sugar (Do not add any sugar if the pkgs. of lemon pie filling that you are using have any sugar in them. Some pie fillings have sugar in them and some don’t)

1/2 cup cold water

4 egg yolks

2 3/4 cups boiling water

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 1/4 cup sour cream

Beat egg yolks. Add sugar, cold water, lemon juice, and pie filling mix. Beat until smooth. Add boiling water and whisk. In a large pot cook until bubbling, stirring continually. Cool and then beat in the sour cream. Pour into baked pie shell. Chill. Garnish with homemade whipping cream and lemon slices.

Once your pie is chilled and garnished, gather around the table and enjoy!

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do!!!!

From my Mama’s table to yours!

Love, Rachel

Friends!

Let me (Rachel) introduce you to my mama!

This is Marilou Nightingale. She is the most amazing baker I have ever known. This summer, I get to share 3 of my all time favorite childhood recipes from her kitchen. You are in for a treat!

My Mom grew up a Baptist Pastor’s Kid and then Married a Mennonite Missionary… Her life story is incredible, and the recipes that come from her kitchen are the essence of comfort food; perfected and passed down – full of heritage and made with nurturing love.

Mama Lou currently makes specialty pies and baked goods, which she serves in her Cafe with a cup of her own roasted coffee from Nightingale Coffee Company. Dreamy & absolutely delicious.

Mama’s Sticky Buns

Mix and set aside:

1 cup warm water

3 TBSP yeast

In a large bowl:

3 cups warm milk (scalded and cooled)

1 cup sugar

4 tsp salt

4 eggs

1 cup shortening

5 lbs of flour

Mix and add yeast to mixture. Mix well and knead. Let rise to double (1 1/2 hours). Punch down and let rise again for 1/2 of an hour. Divide dough into fourths.

Filling and Glass pan sauce:

1 1/2 lbs butter

1 1/2 lbs brown sugar

1 bottle dark Karo Syrup

1 package of raisins (optional)

1 package of pecans chopped (optional)

Cinnamon

Roll each 1/4 dough into oblong, spread with 1/4 cup melted butter, cinnamon and 1/2 cup brown sugar and nuts or/and raisins if   that is your preference.

Mix together remaining butter and brown sugar with the Karo syrup and pour directly into the 9×13 glass pans.

Roll up from long side. Slice into 18 buns and place into prepared pans.

Let buns raise for 30 minutes.

Bake at 325 for 25-30 minutes (Rotate pans half way through).

Remove from the oven, as the buns cool flip pans over onto cookie sheets covered in parchment paper, so that all the delicious gooey sauce can saturate the buns.

Serve warm with a cup of coffee… and try not to eat them all in one sitting.

Love from my Mama’s Kitchen to yours,

Rachel Anne

Steadfast. I have always loved this word that describes God’s character. He is firm and unwavering, dependable, solid, constant. He is my refuge, my rock. He does not change. I love that I serve an unshakable God.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4 (ESV)

Here, the word steadfast is used to describe the believer’s character. If you were asked to describe yourself, is steadfast a word you would choose?

This is a game changer. God uses our trials to create steadfastness, perseverance, if you prefer, but perseverance by definition according to Google, is steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success. God tests our faith to create a faith so strong that does not move, so that, in spite of difficulty, in spite of not being able to see, in spite of having to wait, we do not give up. I think this is the faith the Disciples had. Their faith did not move, in the waiting, in their disappointment, even as they faced death, because they were steadfast.  

I want to be steadfast. But it sounds hard. It sounds painful.

I don’t know that I’ll be facing the threat of death, like the Disciples, because of my faith any time soon, but I do know that I face trials daily. Some small, seemingly insignificant, others seem insurmountable at times. But, according to James, I am to count them as joy, because God is creating in me a faith that will not move. How does God do this?

For me, it feels like a dance. I go through a trial, feeling like I’m alone, like my prayers just don’t make it to God’s ears. We’ve all been there, and we have a choice, keep praying, keep seeking God, or give up, stop believing. There’s nothing romantic or magical about making a choice. We make choices all day long; why would it be any different with God? So, I choose to press in; I persevere. I choose to trust that God’s Word is true. I believe that when I cry out, he hears me and when I look to him; I will not be disappointed (Ps 34:5-6). And I find God there. He rewards my choice to trust with stronger faith; he has created expectancy in my heart.  Through the trial, He creates belief in me that he will meet me again and again. And then we start the dance all over again. But this time, it may be faster; I might remember right away that he is with me. Other times, it is slow, I forget. Or, I try to muster strength on my own. But he is good; he is patient and he waits for me to recognize my need. All the while, he is refining; he is testing. He is proving my faith. He is making me steadfast.

My question is, do you trust God? Do you believe that God is working in your trial, even if it is taking longer than you would like? I believe God uses what we would deem a delay to make us that much stronger. It is in the delay, in the waiting he whispers, press in, choose to trust me. We find him in the waiting because he is creating something in us that we cannot create for ourselves. He is making us like Jesus. We don’t have to fake strength with God. He sees our weakness before we do; he is not worried. Where we are weak, when we invite God in, he showcases his magnificent perfect strength. Let your weaknesses be areas of encouragement to press in, let them be ear markers of your need for God, areas to rejoice because he will meet you, he is waiting. And, if God is waiting for you, to meet your need, to wrap his steadfastness around your weakness, that is worth rejoicing over. That is worth a celebration.

About Sarah Glassett: 

I am a wife. Mother of two beautiful girls, inside and out. I am passionate about loyalty and authenticity. I love quiet moments, gardening, good books, and the beach. Laughter is of the utmost importance. I am always learning.

I love to share how the love of Jesus has made me brave.

One of the most significant gifts that my husband has ever given me is a black and white, wool, Pendleton blanket. The blanket itself is absolutely stunning, but what makes it deeply meaningful to me is the reason behind the purchase.

It was a season in my life where every single thing seemed quite desperately uncertain.

Being in full time ministry means that we move when God asks, and where He calls us to.

I never wanted to move as a grown up.

I was a missionary kid that moved almost every two years. I didn’t mind it so much then, but there is nothing I wanted more as an adult then security – to be planted, to grow some roots, to have stability.

That is not how life goes when you are in ministry.

I’ve made peace with the rhythm of our life and unpredictability of the future. Now, I wouldn’t have it any other way. If we had not obeyed God’s leading we would have missed out on glorious souls and beautiful places that have shaped, grown, inspired and changed David and I forever. Each and every ministry that we have been a part of has been orchestrated in a sovereign and purposeful way, for our eternal best. I wouldn’t change a thing, or miss a single season – even the darkest ones. Moving has become a part of our lives, because, we trust that God’s plan for our lives is far superior to ours.

There was one time in particular that obeying God felt like it was costing us everything. I felt like I was dying to self, in every single way, to say yes to what He was asking us to do. As I said above, everything felt desperately uncertain. That is the best way I can describe it.

David bought me that blanket so that every night, as we pulled that beautiful blanket up over us, we would be reminded – over and over again – that His presence covers us. A tangible reminder of an essential truth.

That perfectly woven aztec design was the last thing I would see at night and the first thing I would see in the morning. God’s presence covering me, was something I would cling to – over and over again – until my heart and head believed it, and trusted Him with our future.

It was during this time that I experienced deep and significant truths about God.

“O Lord, you have searched me and known me!

You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.

You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.

Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.

You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.

Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?

If I ascend to heaven, you are there!

If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.”

Psalms 139:1-18 ESV

God is present. He is here – in this very moment.

There is no where you can go that is out of his reach, or too far from His presence. There is no such place.

There is no circumstance or season that His perfect presence and peace can’t meet you in- and cover you COMPLETELY.

Wherever you find yourself today, you are enveloped in the presence of the Almighty King. Hemmed in – behind and before. Fully known and fully loved.

I have learned, in every season, to ask these questions:

What is true about God?

What does God’s Word say about Him?

What does His Word say about me?

What does He require of me? (What can I learn? How can I grow? How can I make the most of this trial?)

How can I walk through this season and come out of it looking more like Him?

Do I really, truly trust Him? (Even when life doesn’t make any sense?)

After considering these things, I tend to walk forward in new confidence – covered in the presence of an Almighty King, equipped with truth that I can cling to, and stand firmly on through every season.

Tonight when you pull up your covers remember this…

His presence is your covering.

You have been tenderly, meticulously, perfectly hemmed in behind and before.

You are fully known and unconditionally loved.

Join me in confidence & peace under His covering,

Rachel Anne

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2

We all want roots. Someplace we can turn to in times of both joy and crisis. The world strives for identity and belonging. Already, over seven million people worldwide have taken the Ancestry DNA test. This is just one of the many DNA tests helping users discover their ethnic history. Ancestry (the company) interviewed a portion of the seven million people who took their test, asking them how they felt when they received their test results. Their answers looked something like this: “When I received my results I felt like I was meeting myself for the first time,” or, “Thank you for helping me fill in the blanks in my life.” The company advertised using phrases like, “Many people are getting to know themselves better through Ancestry’s DNA test, and it’s making them feel good.”

The world wants identity. It wants roots. It thinks, if I just knew where I came from I’d know myself. As Christians, we know where we’ve come from, and we know what we’re here to do. We know our roots – We come from God and we serve the world as His children. We are here to further His kingdom. To do this we are asked to let go of ourselves and fully devote our lives to His mission. Knowing these things prepares us to step out away from the “norm” of searching for identity and realize we have already found it.

The people we try so hard to please, the groups we strive to belong to, and even the families we feel secure in – They will all pass. Our biological and social roots can’t compare to the roots we have in Christ.

In Philippians 3:20, the apostle Paul paints an image of who we are as followers of God living in the world.  He says, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” We are citizens of heaven – Not of a club, a small group, a school, a church, or a country, but of God’s Kingdom! We are waiting for Jesus to return and complete what He started when He came to this earth to die for us and welcome us into His family.

Our job as followers of the Lord is not to simply find the kingdom of God but to forward it. We are the Lord’s Kingdom. That is our Identity! Although we need faith to see it, it is never changing – Forever constant. Our Identity is found in our Kingdom purpose – To love God and make Him known.

About the author:

Maya is a 14-year old trying her best to remember that her roots are planted in God alone as she moves from middle school to high-school and continues to grow in her faith. She loves adventure, trying new things, deep conversation, living in the moment, dreaming big, and working hard.