Spiritual : The Holy Alphabet

Thanks to Hana for sending us the Holy Alphabet

A lthough things are not perfect,
B ecause of trial or pain,
C ontinu in thanksgiving,
D on't even think to blame.
E ven when times are hard,
F ierce winds are bound to blow,
G od is forever able,
H old on to what you know.
I magine life without His love,
J oy would cease to be,
K eep thanking Him for all the things,
L ove imparts thee to see.
M ove out "Camp Complaining",
N o weapon that is known
O n earth can yield the power
P raise can do alone.
Q uit worrying about the future,
R edeem the time at hand,
S tart every day with prayer
T o "thank" is God's command.
U ntil we see Him coming,
V ictorious in the sky,
W e'll run the race with gratitude,
X alting God most high.
Y es, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but ...
Z ion waits in glory ... where none are ever sad!


"I am too blessed to be stressed!"
The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.


The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything ...
Love and peace be with you forever, Amen.

Food : Rice, nuts & raisins (Roz bel khalta) رز بالخلطه

This is a traditional dish served on Coptic Christmas day on the 7th of January and/or parties, making the best use of the turkey or chicken liver & gizzards after long fast.

Rice Ingredients:

2 ½ - 3 cups water
2 cups rice
1 large onion finely chopped/grated
½ tsp treacle

1 tbsp butter

½ tsp Salt

¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp allspice

¼ tsp black pepper

1 cardamom pod

Mixture (khalta) Ingredients:

¼ kilo chicken liver and gizzards, cut in small cubes

1 large onion finely chopped/grated

½ cup nuts (Almond + hazelnut + raisins + pine nuts) all in your preferred quantity 

½ cup raisins

2 tbsp butter / ghee / olive oil /or mix

2 tbsp vinegar (red, wine vinegar, balsamic or your favorite)
1 cardamom pods

¼ 

tsp salt     

¼ tsp cinnamon

¼ black pepper   

Mixture (khalta) Directions:

1.     cut the chicken liver & gizzards into small cubs, cover with vinegar and set aside

2.     soak the nuts in boiling water for 2-3 minutes for the almonds slightly more and for the hazelnuts slightly more until you can rub off their sheath
3.   drain the cubed chicken liver & gizzards from vinegar

4.    heat the butter and add chicken liver, gizzards stir till all brown on the outside

5.   add nuts and stir (if you prefer some crunch, you can toast all nuts in a hot oven for 5 minutes)

6.   add raisins and stir
7.   add cardamom, salt, cinnamon & pepper and stir then cover till done 

8.   remove from heat and leave aside while preparing the rice

Rice Directions:

1.     wash & drain the rice

2.    add about tbsp butter / ghee /olive oil /or mix and fry the onion till dark gold, add the rice & the cardamom keep stirring till the rice is dark gold

3.     then add the fried water, cinnamon, treacle, allspice, salt & pepper and bring to a rolling boil

4.     as soon as it boils turn the heat down to minimum to cook

Serving:

1.     you may mix the rice + mixture all together

or

2.     in the serving plate , first serve rice,then add on the top the liver and top it up with the nuts & raisins mixture

or

       3. in a mold put the liver and the mixture at the bottom then put the rice mixture over it. Flip the mold over on a large serving plate

or
     4. as photo below put the rice in a mold with a cavity in the middle and after you flip the mold over, put the   mixture in the center cavity

Culture: قد لا تكون المشكلة عند الآخرين بل عندنا نحن The fault could be in us and not in others as we may think!

Negative beliefs and their impact on personal decisions

Rumored that a man was afraid that his wife does not hear well and may lose one day her ability to hear. That he decided to take her to hearing specialist .. due to his difficulty in communicating with her.

Before referring his wife to the hearing specialist, he thought to consult and take the opinion of the family doctor. He met the family doctor and explained to him the problem, the doctor told him that there is a conventional way to examine the degree of his wife hearing, which is that the husband to stand at a distance of 40 feet from the wife ... and speak to her in a normal tone ...

If she hears you then speak to her from 30 feet distance,

If she hears you then speak to her from 20 feet distance,

If she hears you  then speak to her from 10 feet distance,

carry on this way until she can hear you.

In the evening he entered the house and found his wife very busy in preparing the dinner in the kitchen,

He thought this is the best opportunity to apply the doctor test.

So, he went to the dining room which is approximately 40 feet away from her, then he asked her in a normal speaking tone

"My love .. what kind of food have you prepared for us?" .. she did not reply ..!!

Then approached  her 30 feet from the kitchen and repeated the same question:

"My love .. what kind of food have you prepared for us?" .. she did not reply..!!

Then approached her 20 feet from the kitchen and repeated the same question:

"My love .. what kind of food have you prepared for us?" .. she did not reply..!!

Then approached her 10 feet from the kitchen and repeated the same question:

"My love .. what kind of food have you prepared for us?" .. she did not reply..!!

Then he entered the kitchen and stood behind her and repeated the same question:

"My love .. what kind of food have you prepared for us?"

She said to him ... .... "My darling for the fifth time I told you ... baked chicken."

Sometimes the fault may not be in others, as we may think ... But the fault may be in us!

  القناعات السلبية وتأثيرها علي القرارات الشخصية

قد لا تكون المشكلة عند الآخرين بل عندنا نحن 
يحكى بأن رجلاً كان خائفاً على زوجته بأنها لا تسمع جيداً وقد تفقد سمعها يوماًما.
فقرر بأن يعرضها على طبيب أخصائي للأذن.. لما يعانيه من صعوبة القدرة على
الاتصال معها.
وقبل ذلك فكر بأن يستشير ويأخذ رأي طبيب الأسرة قبل عرضها على أخصائي.
قابل دكتور الأسرة وشرح له المشكلة، فأخبره الدكتور بأن هناك طريقة تقليديةلفحص درجة السمع عند الزوجة وهي بأن يقف الزوج على بعد 40 قدماً من الزوجة
ويتحدث معها بنبرة صوت طبيعية..
إذا استجابت لك وإلا أقترب 30 قدماً،
إذا استجابت لك وإلا أقترب 20 قدماً،
إذا استجابت لك وإلا أقترب 10 أقدام وهكذا حتى تسمعك.

وفي المساء دخل البيت ووجد الزوجة منهمكة في إعداد طعام العشاء في المطبخ،
فقال الآن فرصة سأعمل على تطبيق وصية الدكتور.
فذهب إلى صالة الطعام وهي تبتعد تقريباً 40 قدماً، ثم أخذ يتحدث بنبرة عادية
وسألها :
"يا حبيبتي..ماذا أعددت لنا من الطعام".. ولم تجبه..!!
ثم أقترب 30 قدماً من المطبخ وكرر نفس السؤال:
"يا حبيبتي..ماذا أعددت لنا من الطعام".. ولم تجبه..!!
ثم أقترب 20 قدماً من المطبخ وكرر نفس السؤال:
"يا حبيبتي..ماذا أعددت لنا من الطعام".. ولم تجبه..!!
ثم أقترب 10 أقدام من المطبخ وكرر نفس السؤال:
"يا حبيبتي..ماذا أعددت لنا من الطعام".. ولم تجبه..!!

ثم دخل المطبخ ووقف خلفها وكرر نفس السؤال:
"يا حبيبتي..ماذا أعددت لنا من الطعام".

فقالت له ……."يا حبيبي للمرة الخامسة أُجيبك… دجاج بالفرن"

 

إن المشكلة ليست مع الآخرين أحياناً كما نظن.. ولكن قد تكون المشكلة معنا نحن

SPIRITUAL : The Brick

Read this today and
don't delete it even if
you are too busy!!

A young and successful
executive was traveling down a neighborhood street,

going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was
watching for kids darting out from between parked
cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. 


As his car passed, no children appeared.

Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door!
He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. 


The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, 'What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? 


That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?' The young boy was apologetic. 'Please, mister...please, I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do,' He pleaded. 'I threw the brick because no one else would stop...' With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. 'It's my brother, 'he said 'He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up.'

Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, 'Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me.'

Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. 


A quick look told him everything was going to be okay. 'Thank you and may God bless you,' the grateful child told the stranger. Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy! push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. 


He kept the dent there to remind him of this message:
'Don't go through life so fast that someone has to
 throw a brick at you to get your attention!' 


God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. 


Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us. 


It's our choice to listen or not.

Thought for the
Day:

If God had a refrigerator, 
your picture would be on it.

If He had a wallet,
your photo would be in
it.

He sends you flowers
every spring.

He sends you a sunrise
every morning Face it, friend - He is crazy about
you!

Send this to every
'beautiful person' you wish to
bless.

God didn't promise
days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun
without rain, but He did promise strength for the
day, comfort for the tears, and light for the
way.

Read this line very
slowly and let it sink
in...

If God brings you to
it, He will bring you through
it.

Spiritual : Does God exist?