Daily Archives: July 8, 2012
Mac & Cheese Bake
Whats more soulful than a heaping of mac & cheese. Old school baked that is and here in the Porter House it’s a tried and true staple. Anytime we can have it. We make it. It’s just that popular. I believe it’s one of the most requested. It’s a great accompliment to the main course but good enough to stand alone. Behold the POWER of cheese.
Ingredients
- Cooking spray or butter
- 16 oz cooked elbow macaroni or shells
- One 12-oz can evaporated milk
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick ) of butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon of pepper
- 1 teaspoon of dry mustard
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 10-oz Cabot Seriously Sharp Yellow Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 10-oz Cabot Seriously Sharp White Cheddar Cheese, grated
Instructions
Cook macaroni or shells according to the directions on the box. Drain and set aside.
Butter or spray a 13 x 9 casserole dish. Next mix the cooked macaroni or shells, evaporated milk, whole milk, butter, salt, pepper, and dry mustard together. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs and slowly add 1/4 cup of the macaroni mixture (this is to temper the eggs). Now combine the egg mixture to the macaroni mixture. Next add all of the grated white cheddar cheese and mix. Pour macaroni and cheese mixture in the greased casserole dish and evenly sprinkle all of the yellow cheddar cheese over the top. Place in oven and bake for 50 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
*Chef’s Note: BYOC (Be Your Own Chef) and use what ever cheese you like. If you don’t like Sharp Cheddar use Mild Cheddar. Or Provolone. Or Gruyere. Or whatever floats your boat. The options are endless.
Jail Time for Phoenix Man Who Hosted Bible Study at His Home
By Graham Wood Posted July 7th, 2012 6:30PM
Click link to view story: Jail Time for Phoenix Man Who Hosted Bible Study at His Home
A Phoenix man who held weekly Bible studies at his home has had the book thrown at him over the religious gatherings. Michael Salman (pictured above) has been sentenced to two months in jail and more than $12,000 in fines because the group sessions at his home were against the city’s building code, Fox News Radio reported.
“They’re cracking down on religious activities and religious use,” Salman told Fox News Radio. “They’re attacking what I as a Christian do in the privacy of my home.”
Vicki Hill, Phoenix’s chief assistant city prosecutor, said religious freedom had nothing to do with it and that it was a matter of public safety.
“Any time you are holding a gathering of people continuously, as he does – we have concerns about people being able to exit the facility properly in case there is a fire,” Hill told Fox News Radio. “It came down to zoning and proper permitting.”
The battle between Salman and the city of Phoenix is a long standing fued. Hill said that Salman’s neighbors complained of the gatherings back in 2007 because they were causing too much traffic congestion. Originally, about 15 people would attent the Bible studies, Fox News Radio reported.
But that number began to grow, and that’s when Phoenix officials sent Salman a letter saying that his living room gatherings were in violation of the city’s building codes.
When he didn’t stop hosting the groups, the Phoenix Fire Department broke up a Good Friday gathering Salman was hosting at his home in 2008 in which there were as many as 20 people in the backyard.
Salman then decided to construct a 2,000-square-foot building in his backyard and move the gatherings there. He said that he applied for and was granted the appropriate permits for the building.
Hill, however, said that the permits Salman received were for converting his garage into a game room.
Finally, in 2009, a dozen cops raided Salman’s home and charged him with 67 code violations for hosting the gatherings.
Since then, the courts have sided with the city, saying that Salman was using the building as a church and, therefore, was subject to city zoning laws.
“He built a structure that he said wasn’t a church that is, in fact, a church,” Hill told Fox News Radio.
“The state is not saying that the Salmans can’t run a church or have worship services at the location,” read a Jan. 4, 2010, Arizona court ruling. “But the state is saying that if they do so, they must do it properly and in accord with fire and zoning laws.”
Salman doesn’t buy the court’s argument and has claimed that Phoenix officials are discriminating against him for his religious beliefs.
“If I had people coming to my home on a regular basis for poker night or Monday Night Football, it would be permitted,” he told Fox News Radio. “But when someone says to us we are not allowed to gather because of religious purposes – that is when you have discrimination.”
Salman’s attorney is appealing the ruling and Salman’s sentencing, but unless a federal court intervenes, Salman will begin serving his sentence on July 9
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Our Daily Bread – The Viral Gospel
READ: Acts 7:59–8:8
Those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the Word. —Acts 8:4
The term “viral video” refers to a short clip posted on the Internet that spreads rapidly as the link is sent from one person to another. The video may be funny, inspiring, or thought provoking, and it can quickly spread around the world and be seen by millions of people. It’s an advertiser’s dream, but few marketing experts are able to exploit it. Lacy Kemp wrote: “How do you make something spread like wildfire? The answer is that you can’t. It’s not something to plan for or else everyone would be doing it. It has to be awesome enough on its own to get there.”
The gospel of Jesus Christ is “viral” in the way it spreads from one person to another. After Stephen, a leader in the early church, was stoned for his faith, the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem were persecuted and forced to leave their homes (Acts 8:1-3). Instead of fearfully holding back, these Christians told people about Him wherever they went. “Those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the Word” (v.4).
When we truly know Christ we cannot keep the good news about Him to ourselves. Even in the most challenging circumstances, we want to keep on telling others about our Savior and Lord. —David McCasland
Lord, You have been so gracious to save us
and give us eternal life. We love You and want
to tell everyone we can
about Your amazing grace. Lead us, we pray.
Spread the gospel; it’s contagious!
Copyright © 2012, RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA
The Room
Brian’s parents had forgotten all about the essay until a cousin found it while cleaning out the teenager’s locker at Teays Valley High School in Pickaway County. You see Brian had been dead only a few hours, but his parents desperately wanted every piece of his life near them. Notes from classmates and teachers, his homework. Everything.
The Moore’s were so proud of their son that they framed a copy of the essay and hung it among the family portraits in the living room.
A file named ” Friends” was next to one marked ” Friends I Have Betrayed.” The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird. ” Books I Have Read,” ” Lies I Have Told,” ” Comfort I have Given,” ” Jokes I Have Laughed At.” Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: ” Things I’ve Yelled at My Brothers.” Others I couldn’t laugh at: ” Things I Have Done in My Anger”, “Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents.” I never ceased to be surprised by the contents. Often there were many more cards than expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped. I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived.
Could it be possible that I had the time in my years to fill each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth. Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature.
When I pulled out the file marked ” TV Shows I Have Watched,” I realized the files grew to contain their contents.. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn’t found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of shows but more by the vast time I knew that file represented. When I came to a file marked ” LustfulThoughts,” I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size, and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content. I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded. An almost animal rage broke on me.
One thought dominated my mind: No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!” In insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn’t matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it. Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot. Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh.
And then I saw it. The title bore ” People I Have Shared the Gospel With.” The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand. And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so deep that they hurt. They started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees and cried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key.
Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card.
I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.
” For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16
If you feel the same way share this story with as many people as you can so the love of Jesus will touch their lives also. My ” People I Shared the Gospel With” file just got bigger, how about yours?
I Am Lady Fab 