Good Ole Mountain Dew? 1/31/2021

 Good Morning,

This Sunday morning arrived with a large snow storm. It started last night and it is still coming down. I will treat this day like any other Sunday. The radio is playing softly and the fireplace is heating us up nicely.

Back and I mean way back, I became interested in making moonshine. A friend of mine and I built a small still and could turn out a quart of "Marty's Mountain Dew" every day. It was a novelty that lasted about a year. I am not really proud of that accomplishment and the still is long gone. That white lightning could set you on your backside and it never took prisoners. 

You are wondering where this is headed and what on Earth this has to do with a daily blog of inspiration? Hang with me as I get to the point. 

This world is filled with a million ways that a man or woman can find to screw up. Most people can't say that their downfall was from making moonshine. That stuff almost killed me one night after I finished off a jar with a few buddies. I had no business driving a vehicle while all "moonshined up" and I damaged my car bad enough that it wasn't able to be fixed. Worse yet, I somehow drove it home. I woke up the next morning and saw a wrecked car and I didn't remember a thing. I could have killed someone on the way home. The still was gone the next day. 

Friends, it just goes to show that things you shouldn't do, or shouldn't possess will always seek to ruin you. I thank God for preserving this idiot that night. I learned my lesson the hard way. It could have been worse. The Good Ole Mountain Dew wasn't so good. 

Isaiah 30:21 Your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, "This is the way, walk in it." Whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.

Proverbs 3:12 The Lord disciplines those He loves, as the father who loves his son. 

While building that still, there were several times that my conscience ( The Holy Spirit) warned me that this was not a good idea. I did not listen and I could have saved myself from suffering the consequences of my sin.

I believe God speaks to us and we have some choices when He does. Stop or keep going. Correction or not needing to be corrected. Avoid suffering or suffer needlessly . God corrects those He loves and sometimes it is just a scolding or it's out to the woodshed for a whooping. Most of my corrections have been the latter. 

Today if you are going to step across a line that you already know is not right. Listen to that small voice directing you in the right direction. My mason jars now hold coffee, or vegetables. 

Marty

Fighting Your Way Back 1/30/2021

 Good Morning,

Our home is very quiet this morning as I write today. I was up early with our two dogs Gibbs and Leo. They are nestled on their beds right now after after running around outside. I just poured a very hot cup of Door County Churro Coffee and now it is time to get serious.

Romans 12:9 Let love be genuine, abhor evil and cling to what is good. 

I used to take a turn at bringing an elderly man to church on Sundays. We had a pool of people that would take turns driving this nice man to church. He was a pleasure to have as a friend and a passenger.  This fella was a World War Two veteran and served in the United States Army. He was in several large war battles and would tell you about it if you asked. He was in some pretty tough spots during the war. I asked him one Sunday morning what kept him going during one particular battle. He said this. "It was simple. The enemy was shooting at me to end my life. I either fought back or died or became a prisoner. Neither one of those seemed like a good option. And all I wanted to do was fight harder to end the war so I could go back home to my family. That's what kept me going every day, every hour." He passed away a few years ago and I still miss him. 

I admired his honest answer and think about it often. He wanted to be with his family and had to fight his way back home. That war was ugly like all wars and the battles were fierce. My friend made it back home, and raised his family. He was a loving man. 

I think about what it took to fight like that with one goal in mind, and it was family.

Let me ask you this today. Are you a family person? Do you work hard all day and then dawdle on the way home, claiming for yourself some "Me Time". Or do you fight your way home to let those gathered there know how important they are to you? Do they know that after God, they are your top priority and all you want to do is get right back home to them? Do you fight off the enemy that tempts you to stop for a beer first? Do you fight off the temptation to work longer just so you might get a promotion? We have come up with so many reasons why we need to not go straight home that it isn't funny. 

So how about letting our family know that they are worth fighting for, by showing them they are a priority for you. 

God bless,

Marty

Cleaning Up A Spill. 1/29/2021

 Good Morning,

Not much time is left until I leave for work so my Door County Turtles In A Cup Coffee is going to travel with me. But for mow it is time to write.

Proverbs 28:13 Whoever conceals his transgressions, will not prosper. But he who forsakes them will prosper.

Have you ever watched a glass of sweet iced tea get bumped and then proceed to spill out all over the table. It then finds the edge of the table, which leads to the floor, splashes a wall, and then runs under the refrigerator. In order to properly clean up the mess, you might need to move the refrigerator, wipe down the legs of the chair, and look closely to see where else the messy, sticky liquid has hidden itself. If not cleaned up properly the sweet liquid might eventually attract ants. Let's change liquids and make it a big glass of cold milk. Spilled milk that doesn't get mopped up might begin to smell and leaves the kitchen with a foul odor. 

Point for the day. When we hold back on removing the sins in our lives that we like to keep, we leave the stain of sin hidden, most likely to show itself sooner or later leaving an attractant to other sin, or just puts a foul smell into our lives. 

I know this was a poor analogy. Friends when we clean up the sin in our life, there is no reason to hang on to some of it. We need to ask ourselves, do we keep that sin in our lives because we like it?

Time to clean up the spills! And look under the frig and the table.  

Marty

Keeping Your Drawers To Yourself 1/28/2021

 Good Morning,

This week reached Thursday and what a day it will be. Busy, busy, busy. I needed to warm up fast this morning and my cup of Door County Turtles In A Cup is doing a great job and bringing the dead back to life.

Proverbs 20:19 Whoever goes about slandering, reveals secrets, therefore do not associate with a simple babbler. 

My mother used an expression now and then usually when she was addressing me. "Keep your dirty laundry to yourself. Or no need to air your laundry in public" 

I have included a definition on this quote. If you say that someone airs their dirty laundry in public, you disapprove of their discussing or arguing about unpleasant or private things in front of other people.

Mom always objected to public arguments and often said that to do so brings shame on the family or yourself. She said "most arguments should be kept private". 

I tend to agree with her. All too often there is the temptation to take a private argument and make it public just to gain support for a personal opinion or to gain folks on one side of the argument or the other. Others might choose to bad mouth a spouse out of anger. The listener then forms an opinion of the dis-functional spouse which probably is only a snapshot of the life of the accused sluggard. It really isn't a fait portrayal of the whole person. So when we air our laundry in public, opinions are formed on a moment in time , not on the lifetime the accused person. 

So friends, we all have disagreements that are personal. Do they belong on social media or at the office water cooler as fodder for donut time? Think before you speak. Is this private? In my sharing, am I hurting anyone? If the answer is yes. Best to leave it private.

Have a blessed day.

Marty

Driving In The Snow Storm 1/27/2021

 Good Morning,

Another morning arrived and I am glad to be here. I just poured a hot cup of Door County Mistletoe Mocha and soon I will be heading out of the door.

Proverbs 21:5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to ruin.

Yesterday morning my commute to a clinic where I was working took me 23 miles from home in a rough snow storm. There was on vehicle spin out that started when the person behind me pulled into the next lane to pass me. I guess I wasn't traveling fast enough for his taste. His lane change took him into the freeway wall on the right and then his little sports car came back across the lanes. His path was headed at me and one other vehicle. We missed a crash y just a foot or two. It was very close. 

I chalked the incident up to a few things. 1 the roads were really bad. they were slippery beyond slippery. The snow hadn't been plowed yet. The driver was definitely traveling too fast for conditions, It could be possible that he was new to the area and did not know how to drive in snow. Anyway two of us were spared any damage or dirty underwear. The hasty traveler did not do so well. His car bounced off the wall and actually spun to the backside to match the front and then rested on a guard rail that bent pretty well,

I can't judge if his rush was so legitimate that he needed to drive like he was on a dry track at Daytona or not. All I know is this. The high speed for the conditions, the wrong car for the conditions were too much for his day to survive a hurried drive. 

The point of the day is to take the storm and the driving into consideration. When we hurry through anything we are likely to make a careless mistake. We need to plan ahead if possible and give what needs to be done the proper time and attention it requires.

Rushing only adds to the frustration of an already rough day.

Marty 

Oops You Did It Again 1/26/2021

 Good Morning,

My cup of Door County Vanilla Creme Coffee is cutting right through the fog of my brain and has awakened this bear from a good night of hibernation. It is now time to write.

Proverbs 10:8 The wise of heart will receive commandments and knowledge, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

My dad always used to tell us kids that talking to us was like talking to the wall. He felt that he could instruct us, guide us and preach to us and we still didn't hear or were just plain stupid at times when we refused to follow good guidance.  Funny thing about that. I found out that most of the time good old dad was right on. And out of my own foolishness I not only screwed up once but would often do it again expecting different outcomes. Albert Einstein is credited with this quote. "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." Go back over your recent choices and see if you haven't made that choice before, which didn't work and acknowledge that you did an "OOPS I Did It Again".  This often can be seen in spending habits and relationships. You rushed to make a purchase of a car just to regret it, but OOPS You Did It Again". You rushed into a relationship before and it was disastrous. But you are ready to jump in again with all guns blazing.  Our you take a job that looks good yet you know you aren't qualified for it and Oops You did it again. Your resume now just added your 45th job. 

We pray and God sends His advice, but since we all know better that God, we don't listen. I was being factious here friends. That's really when we become our own idol. We think we know better. Usually convincing ourselves that God would never deny us happiness. 

Enough said. I think we should all examine the patterns of our lives and review the mistakes we made. I bet there was someone telling you "Not A Good Idea". See if you aren't at the altar of "Oops I am going to do it again.!

Have a great day.

Marty

Time For Soup For The Soul 1/25/2021

 Good Morning,

The day is going to be the start of a busy week. Snow is in the forecast this week and that always makes life interesting. I am looking forward to the challenge. Game on! I will be filling a traveling cup with very hot Door County Autumn Spice Coffee to keep me company while I am on the road.

There have been books out on the shelves for sometime called "Chicken Soup For The Soul". I found them to be a good read and inspiring. Many of the stories inside are ones that touch the heart and generate a smile on the reader. We own a couple and from time to time I look them up.

I am also a fan of chicken soup. I like the way it hits the spot on a cold day or seems to make me feel better when a virus or cold attacks me. To tell you the truth I am a loyal fan to most soups. Tonight we will be dining on some soup I made the other day and saved for tonight. The soup I chose to make was split pea with bacon. Pea soup would be my wife's choice of a comfort soup. I do most of the cooking and can read my wife pretty well also. This covid thing has her blue and stressed out. The vaccination roll out which is best called a circus is also adding to her down turn in emotions. I tried some flowers and that really didn't help. I know the pea soup will be only a few moments of comfort and peace. 

I decided that what was needed was something that would last and could not be killed off. There is only one thing I know of that is able to be permanent. I left some scripture verses on her pillow. 

( Food For The Soul) I typed them out for her to have. They are personal so I won't be sharing what I left her. But I will post two that are reminders  of the power in the Word of God. 

Isaiah 55:11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to me void, but shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. 

Friends, you know the signs of family stress or fatigue, especially your own families. You know them and could send them a Scripture verse of encouragement. It lasts forever and goes out to do what God wants.

God bless, 

Marty

Split Pea and bacon soup recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound slab bacon in 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1 medium potato chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 head garlic, cloves peeled and sliced thin or mince garlic
•  Salt and black pepper
• 1 pound dried green split peas, rinsed and picked over
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 to 3 quarts chicken stock  or ham bone stock
• ½ bunch fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stems or powdered thyme
•         I add a cup of sour cream
• before serving. Wisk well.

PREPARATION

1. Dice bacon into 1/4-inch cubes. Place in a heavy 6-quart pot over medium-low heat. Cook until fat is rendered and translucent. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook until onion and garlic are soft and translucent. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add split peas, stir to coat with fat, and add bay leaves and 2 quarts stock. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat so soup simmers. Skim foam that rises to the surface for about 10 minutes, until no more appears. Add thyme leaves. Simmer uncovered about 1 hour or longer, until peas are soft and starting to fall apart. Add more stock, as needed.
3. Remove soup from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Purée soup in a food processor in several batches, short of perfect smoothness; you should be able to spoon up some texture. Reheat soup, skimming off any foam. Stir from the bottom to mix well, then ladle into bowls and serve.