C. S. Lewis

Allow me to introduce you to my absolute favorite writer! (Alongside Chuck Black.)
Clive Staples Lewis was born in 1898, and was called Jack by his friends. I just call him Lewis. I always thought it ironic that in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader he write, "There was a boy named Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it." When Lewis' own name wasn't exactly catchy.

Here I want to share you some super interesting facts I've learned about Lewis. Along with my favorite quotes from his book and from the man himself. Because not only did Lewis write the fictional Narnia - he wrote Screwtape Letters, the Great Divorce, Mere Christianity and others.

Facts about the book!

• At 15 Lewis was sent to England to study with a private tutor named W. T. Kirkpatrick. Lewis honored his tutor by naming a character Professor Kirk.
• Lewis formed a club with a group of his friends, who all shared an interest in writing, called The Inklings. It was in this group that he met J. R.R. Tolkien.
• Lewis got some of his inspiration for Aslan from his favorite book The Place of the Lion by Charles Williams.
•  In 1939 Lewis began writing The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. But ideas had been forming in his mind long before then. He was inspired by the myths his Irish nurse told him when he was little. The idea of a fawn carrying parcels was first concocted at the age of 16, and during World War II he had four children stay with him at his country house - stirring his imagination even more.
• The Pevensies original names were to be Ann, Martin, Rose, and Peter. Instead of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. (That seems to hard to imagine) 
• 10 years later, in 1949, Lewis completes The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. 
• In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The island where nightmares come true was based off of Lewis' lifelong struggle against nightmares. 
• Lewis did all his writing with a pen because he never learned to type. One reason was because of the clumsiness caused by Lewis’s only having one joint in his thumbs’ preventing him from using a typewriter properly. Yet, it wasn’t just his thumbs keeping him from the typewriter, he chose not to type. “This mechanical mode of writing”, he believed, “interfered with the creative process in that the incessant clacking of the typewriter keys dulled the writer’s appreciation of the rhythms and cadences of the English language.”
• Aslan is Turkish for Lion

 Now, I'm hoping I'm not alone in saying I LOVED the Narnia movies as well as the books. So there are a few funny facts about the movies I thought I'd share.

•   During the production on the LtWatW, Edmund's voice was cracking. His older sister actually had to do some voice over work to make up for her brother's puberty troubles.
• The older version of Queen Lucy is actually played by Georgie's (Lucy) older sister.
•   Peter completes a perfect Vaulting mount. (Not something to take lightly.) Caspian later says in the behind the scenes, "I tried to do it and....I just can't." Peter insisted on doing all his own stunt work.
• Warwick (Nickabrick) Would continually get lost because he was so short. So Ben (Caspian) took it upon himself to watch over his little buddy.
• When Caspian goes through his wardrobe, following his tutor, he stops and peeks back out to watch what happens. This is the exact same thing Lucy does as she's watching the door to see if Peter comes in. Peter also does it when all four of the Pevensies go into the wardrobe.
• In the scenes where Lucy his hugging/petting Aslan, she was fondling either a stuffed animal of the directors elbow.
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• When Lucy is exploring the lamppost Tumnus comes upon her. This was the first time Lucy had seen him in costume so she actually shrieked in terror.
•   Lucy was brought onto the set of the lamppost blindfolded. So the wonder on her face as she looks around is completely genuine. She is exploring Narnia here for the first time.
• Around this time and when they are all talking at the edge of the River Rush, Edmund turns a corner and runs into a metal pole. He get's a good fat lip from it, which you can see him trying to suck in whenever they are doing a close up.

•   The scowl on Trumpkin's face was prosthetic. But because it looked so real it would trip the director out. "I couldn't understand why he was frowning at me." The director said. "Finally I asked him if something was wrong. He just waves his hand over his face and says, 'it's not real.' "

Favorite Quotes!!

      

         

        

           
      
 
       

             

          

        

Biblical burger

Sorry for the picture. But I need it to illustrate my point. :) This is a topic that has held me captive and attentive in all my bible reading.
Have you ever heard of the word Chiasm? Yeah, I hadn't either.

A Chiastic structure is something that can be found throughout the bible, spanning through just one verse or all the way through several chapters!
Chiasm: A Chaism is a repetition of similar ideas in a reverse sequence.
Sooo, why the burger? Think about it this way. There are two verses on the top and bottom that correspond with each other. Those are the buns of the burger. Now lets say two more verses in the center correspond with each other. They are the Cheese. Finally you get to the meat. This is the part that the other verses are leading up to. It is the main point that the bible is trying to get at.
Let me give you an example.
In Matthew 23:12


Parts A are the bun and parts B are the meat. The main point is that we must humble ourselves. Pride never got anybody anywhere good. Matthew 20:16.
"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

But that would be a small burger. Here's one I found during my bible reading. In John 20:19-21 it says,
19:Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you."
20: When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
21:So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." 

Think you can find the Chiasm? I'll give you a little tip. Look for things that are the same....The point that caught my eye was the two times Jesus says, "Peace." Suddenly is popped out.

19:Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, A:"Peace be with you."
   B: When He had said this, 
      C: He showed them His hands and His side.
          D: Then the disciples were glad
      C: When they saw the Lord. 
    B: Then Jesus said to them again,
A: Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."
       
Do you see the build up here. The main point is the joy the disciples felt when they saw that this really was their Master, Teacher and Lord before them! Imagine somebody you love, who has died, coming back from the dead. I would be overjoyed if my grandpa came back. These Chiasm things can be found almost anywhere in the bible. Once you are familiar with them, they will pop out at you! 
Here are a few places where you can test your skills.
Col 3:3-4
Luke 16:13
 Gen 11:1-9
1 Peter 3:16 - 4:5
Gen 24: 46-54


Good luck!!

Peanut Butter Cups!!

Who doesn't love an amazing Peanut Butter Cup? Ff you said "me" then you can stop reading now...
Ok so here is another great recipe to get off the sweet craving. I make a big batch of these, pop them in freezer, and eat one whenever I get the pull for something sugary. Plus this is ridiculously easy and fast.

Skinny Chocolate.
The first part of the recipe is making some skinny chocolate.
1/4 c cocoa powder.
1/2 c coconut oil, melted.
sweeten with honey, maple syrup, or stevia if you have it. I prefer Honey of Maple syrup because stevia tends to give it a weird twang. But if you are used to that then by all means use it.
Now mix all the ingredients together and you have skinny chocolate.

Peanut Butter filling.
1/2 c peanut butter. (Try to get a kind that doesn't have sugar already in it.)
1/2 c coconut oil.
1/2 tsp vanilla.
Now a little honey to taste.
Throw the ingredients in a bowl and mix.

Directions.
Using an ice cube tray, pour in a 1/2 inch layer of skinny chocolate into all the containers. Freeze until solid. While it's freezing you can prepare the Peanut Butter filling.
Once the chocolate is frozen, pour in the Peanut Butter filling. Depending on your taste, I love TONS of peanut butter in mine,but some may not like that. Add as much as you want or as little was you want. Place the tray in the freezer and freeze until the Peanut Butter is hard.
Add another layer of chocolate on top, freeze till hard, and eat!

Lazy Day Way.
There will be a day when you just want to make these and eat them. I totally get it. For that, you just freeze a good layer of chocolate in the bottom of your ice cube tray. Once that's hard you add the Peanut Butter and freeze. Aaaannnnddd.....Done!
 
 

Thin Mints

I promised I would post some of my favorite recipes. This is my top favorite!!!!
Who can resist the amazing Girl Scout cookies? Let's be honest. Nothing beats a good Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie. In fact....Nothing beats a good BOX of Girl Scout Thin Mint CookieS. (Add that S there.)
Now, don't let the word Paleo scare you off. Because without the grain in these you wont have gut wrench laying on the couch for the rest of the day. And it has the fabulous Coconut Oil! (Two thumbs up!)
P.S Some of the ingredients may sound weird, but you can find them at any grocery store.

Yeilds: 60 cookies.
Dry Ingredients
 1 1/4 c almond flour.
1/2 c coconut flour, sifted. (It's easier if you just whisk it to remove any lumps.)
2 TBSP arrowroot starch.
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder. (Who decided there would be an A at the end of that word?)
1/4 tsp salt.

Wet Ingredients
1/2 c maple syrup.
1 large egg
1/2 tsp peppermint extract.
1/4 c coconut oil, melted.

Coating
1 c dark chocolate chips.
1/2 tsp peppermint extract.

Ingredients

1. Place the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.
2. Add the wet ingredients, except the coconut oil, to the dry. Blend with a hand mixer.
3. With the mixer on low, slowly pour in the coconut oil. Mix well.
4. Place the dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Using the plastic wrap as a guide, shape the dough into a 1¾-inch diameter log. (You can divide the dough into thirds to make it easier.) Wrap tightly and freeze until very firm, about 2 hours.
5. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
6. Remove dough from the freezer and slice into ¼-inch-thick rounds.
7. Place the rounds on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake 12-14 minutes, rotating trays part way, or until centers are firm to the touch and the edges start to brown slightly.
8. Remove trays from oven. Remove cookies from trays and cool completely on wire racks.
9. Meanwhile, melt the coating ingredients in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring until smooth.
10. Using 2 forks, dip each cookie in the chocolate coating, scraping off any excess along the edge of the bowl. (If there is such a thing as excess chocolate!)
11. Return cookies to the parchment-lined baking sheets. Refrigerate until chocolate sets, about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Store cookies in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days, or in the freezer up to 3 months.

 Now cram as many cookies in your mouth and say Delicious!

Wow is too long. Beautiful is too short.

What's the first thing you say when you see something like this? "Wow"? "Beautiful"? "Amazing"?
Honestly I just stand there with my mouth open like a silly doofes. Because words simply can't express how outstanding this is to me. It's just stunning! (nope doesn't cut it.) Check this video out.

Now how do you feel? For me I felt pretty.....small......just tiny. I suddenly realized just how small I was in this huge universe. And God is bigger than all of this! Why would such a magnificent God be concerned about such a insignificant person such as I?
But that's not the case. God created me. He created everything about me. He decided my dark, thick brown hair, nearly black eyes, pixie nose, and even the birthmark on my shoulder. He decided my talents for music, drawing, crafts and animals. And He chose everything about you. He decided what kinds of foods you would like, the way you laugh, what skin color you have, all the way down to how many hairs you have on your head. He took the time and love to make a unique person called, you.
What he can't decide, is what you do with your life. 
God didn't create us to be puppets on a string. He made us with freewill. We need to choose what to do with our life. 
I try to stay connected to God by praying and reading my bible. Some days I'm more into it than others. Some days I don't even want to read my bible at all. I have other things I need to do. God will understand right? But what does God say?
Matthew 6:33 
Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
No matter what God must come first. He created us and gave us everything we have. The very least we can do is spend time learning about him.  Check this out. It sent me spinning.

 
 
I love this guy! He makes it so clear. If you haven't read his book Crazy Love, than you should. I love it!!!!
Your relationship with God depends on your attitude towards Him. And....for the longest time I didn't get that. Yes I prayed, sure I read my bible, and yes I love God with my heart.
                                                                       That changed.
I've read through the bible 8 times in the last 4 years. I never thought I would be able to do that. What changed? How did I get into this? Well....it's partially because I got challenged by my mom to do a 90 day bible challenge. My mom didn't think I could do it and I was out to prove her wrong. What started as a pride issue, ended with something totally different. When I finished the bible I thought, "Wow. That was cool. But reading through that fast, I'm sure I missed some stuff. I'll read it again slower so I can glean out as much as I can." That's when I did a Chronological plan over the next 6 months. After that it was a part of me. I was used to waking up and reading my bible first thing. It became a habit, setting my mood for the rest of the day. And you know what. I find something new ever single time I read the bible. I find myself realizing how important God treats His Word. He wants us to live by it. But we can only live by it if we know it.
Reading the bible so many times also gave me a new perspective on prayer. For me prayer used to be that little way to ask God for the things I needed. And throw in a few "thank you's" so make Him happy.
Have you ever read the prayers in the bible? Just check out Psalms. The very last Psalm, Psalm 150 goes,
 Praise the Lord.^[a]

Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heavens.
² Praise him for his acts of power;
    praise him for his surpassing greatness.
³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
    praise him with the harp and lyre,
⁴ praise him with timbrel and dancing,
    praise him with the strings and pipe,
⁵ praise him with the clash of cymbals,
    praise him with resounding cymbals.

⁶ Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

It's like poetry. When David composes those Psalms, he's trying his best to express his wonder and joy at the Creator. His relationship is so intimate, that he praises God with everything he has. His soul is singing out. That's why the angels sang, "Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God Almighty." Because just one Holy isn't enough. If you were to say Holy 100,000,000 times it wouldn't be enough! God's magnificence can't be exaggerated. That's when I got it. Suddenly I wanted to sing out praises to God. The feeling was so overwhelming that simply saying, "You are wonderful God." didn't do a thing. I wanted to praise God like David did. After reading the Psalms so many times I knew how he did that. So I started praising God like David did. And it felt so good. I praised God until I couldn't find anymore words. I was left with a feeling of love and felt truly close to God. After that I wanted more. I wanted more of God.
 I'll never be perfect. Only Jesus can be that. But I wanted to please God. If I died right now I want to hear God say, "Well done."
                   And I'm going to live my life for those two words.
What are you going to live for?

"I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts, dedili dedili."

Please tell me you know that song!!!!! :)
What do you imagine when you hear Coconut? Probably a sunny Hawaiian beach with crystal blue waters and tall palm trees. (OK time to exit happy place.)

Coconut has more than one way to be eaten.
#1You can eat it just as it is.
#2 Just drinking the milk.
#3 The cream.
#4 using the oil. And that is what I want to talk about.

Coconut oil is 90% saturated fat. Now, that would be enough to make nearly any teen start screaming. But these aren't the same fats that you mostly consume from other foods. Those are long chain fatty acids that must be broken down before they can be absorbed. Coconut oil is high in short and medium chain fatty acids(MCFA's), which are easily digested and sent right to the liver for energy production. No fat added to the body!

 MCFAs can help increase metabolism since they are sent directly to the liver and give the body an instant source of energy. Most of the MCFAs  in coconut oil are the highly beneficial Lauric Acid.

Lauric Acid is extremely helpful in fighting viruses and disease. It has also been shown to to be preventative against some cancers. Because what you eat now affects what happens down the road. It's better to eat healthy now, before the trouble starts. Rather than after and then have the problem. 
 
Saturated fats in foods such as butter, meats, avocados, and coconut oil are absolutely needed to help your body function. Combine this with a low grain diet and you will find that your skin will tan better, acne will get better, Sugar cravings will go down, and you will sleep much better!
Coconut oil can be used in many recipes. And because it's so nutrient dense it will fill you up super fast! Be really sure you don't eat too much because you will regret it later.

Now, most recipes you find with coconut oil won't be the sugery cookies that you might be used to eating. But because it has all the nutrients your body needs, it will help stop that craving for cookies. It takes several days to ease off the sweet tooth and get used to natural candy like fruit and honey.
It's really good to have at least a tablespoon of coconut oil a day. Now, I don't like eating coconut oil by itself. So I usually make something that has coconut oil in it. I'll follow this post up with some of my favorite recipes!
And don't forget. The coconut oil needs to be organic!

Negative x Negative = Posative?

Uh oh. I think we all know what this is. Depending on how good you are with numbers, Algebra can be a thorn in the side. The thing that always threw me off the map was when it came to Negatives and Positives. Why would a Negative X a Negative = a Positive!?
One thing I know, that sure doesn't happen in real life. It's a lot easier to find negative things to say when you're feeling grumpy. And when one person starts ringing the Sour Alarm, more people get sucked down. Hence the saying, "One bad apple spoils the whole barrel."
Have you ever had somebody come up to you and show something they worked on and asked for your opinion? Let's say you had a frustrating time with Algebra today.(Perfectly realistic thing.) There was just that one problem that you could not figure out and it just made you mad. What do you think your response is going to be to anybody? You'll probably say something negative, or you may not reply at all - because those frustrating numbers are still taunting you in your mind. You'll just shrug and pretend to be busy with something else. What will that do to the sibling? It will put them down.  A Negative X a Positive = a Negative. Algebra got it there.
Now you've just infected that person with the Negative bug. So now that crushed sibling goes off and the pain festers. Sibling #1 is now walking around with the Negative bug. But here comes skipping little sibling #2. She's just seen the coolest butterfly and she can't wait to tell sibling #1 about it. When sibling #2 excitedly tells Sibling #1 about the butterfly, he's not really in the mood to talk about that. So he brushes her off, leaving a heavy does of Negative behind, infecting sibling #2. What's started now? A massive Negative break out!!
But it doesn't have to be this way. There is a way to stop this. That's where Ephesians 4:29 comes in.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
It's important to realize that everything we say has an affect upon the person we say it too.Your words can be a huge game changer for the whole day. It takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile. :)
So what about that argument you have with your sibling? How do you go about solving that? Your sibling is just driving you crazy! Pushing every one of your buttons and you are standing toe to toe with them, eyes blazing and words flying.
What if Jesus was standing right behind you sibling, listening to everything you said? His eyes are filled with tears and their pleading with you to be kind. Do you think that might change something?  Why? 
Sometimes it's easy to think, "Jesus you don't understand! He's driving my crazy! There's no other way to deal with him." What do you think Jesus would say? 
Proverbs 15:1 would probably be the first thing that He would bring up.
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
I challenge you to try this. It takes a two people to start an argument. You can't argue with yourself. And when you get to a point where you don't know what to do....Just don't sin.
Jesus wants us to be like Him in all that we do. So the next time you get in an argument, it might help to think of Jesus standing behind your sibling. He wants us to build each other up, not tear each other down.
This wont help you with Algebra. (I suggest a calculator for that.) But it can help change the flow of an argument.

P.S Here's a cool fact. Anger and stress can majorly affect your sleep. (And for a teenager, that affects a lot.)
Cool fact #2. Laughing releases toxins that build up in your body. This helps boost your immune system and health! 
Go figure right? The very thing Jesus wants us to do is beneficial, not only to our relationship with Him and our family, but also for our own health!