The day before Christmas is when these bunches were picked. There was a huge winter storm coming the day after Christmas and I wanted to make sure the last of the kale was picked before it was buried under snow and I couldn't get to it or, worse yet, couldn't find it.
The collards were getting a bit weary of being frosted on a regular basis so the were all picked. Yes, all. I spend a couple of days getting them into the freezer. There was quite a harvest.
The kale was left in the garden to use as we wanted. When the kids were here from Minnesota, I cooked a batch for them. My son-in-law was impressed with the flavor. The cold and snow seem to give kale a very nice taste; not bitter or harsh.
It is wonderful to have garden successes. Especially ones that last until Christmas!
Diet Update:
It is hard to admit that the diet for my MS has not yielded the results that I had hoped. There has been slight improvement, but not in the major ways that I had hoped. The diet continues (well, I did cheat over Christmas...a few--just a few cookies and some ham--wonderful, delicious ham) and there are other areas to explore. I like goat cheese. Yep, I really like it.
Blessed Lord Jesus,
No human mind could have invented the gospel. Acting in eternal grace, you are both its messenger and its message, coming to earth as a tiny child, giving yourself over to insult, injury, poverty and death, so that we might be ransomed, redeemed, and freed from sin. We bless you, Eternal Father, for ordaining this way of salvation. We thank you, Lamb of God, for opening this way, and we praise you, Holy Spirit, for applying this great salvation to our hearts.
Lord, forgive us for our obsession with our own righteousness. WE spend many hours thinking about how we are doing spiritually, agonizing over our failures and glorying in our successes. We spend very little time thinking about your righteousness, and about the truth that even on our very best days, our goodness is tainted with our sin and still looks like filthy rags to you. It is hard for us to accept that in our strongest moments, we cannot escape our great need for your obedience to cover ours and take its place. Open our eyes to see our own fascination with our reputations and the many ways in which we use our strengths to belittle others.
Forgive us for delighting so much in our own gifts and our own obedience, and for trusting in the good things that we are able to do. Forgive us for our endless desire to steal your glory and take credit for your good work in us, and for insisting that others see our glory and fall down in worship before us. Forgive us for using the strengths you have given us as weapons against others, to cover our inferiority and make ourselves feel superior to them. Forgive us for wallowing in our failures, rehearsing them over and over again, and defining ourselves by them. Lord, have mercy on us! Thank you for loving us too much to give us what we crave, and for humbling us and choosing to leave us weak so that we could learn to love the strength and goodness of Christ in our place.
Holy Spirit, show us the bankruptcy and brokenness of even our very best works. Help us to see the sinful motives we often have for our best acts, like Bible study, prayer, fasting, and service of others. Teach us instead to delight in all of the spiritual treasure you have lavished on us so richly in Christ; the wealth of his righteousness, given to us; the riches of his grace and kindness poured out on us; the glorious inheritance he has earned for us by his perfect obedience and death. Remind us often of who we are in Christ as we walk through a world of temptation which dazzles and beckons us, and navigate the sinfulness of our own self exalting hearts. Draw our minds to the cross often to marvel at your purposeful and determined love for poor beggars like us, who continue to have nothing to give to you but our sin. There let your transforming love do its powerful work of pulling our eyes away from ourselves to rest on Christ, to see him, to ponder him and to rest and dance in the hilarious nature of his unshakable love for us.
~Adapted from the Valley of Vision by B. Duguid
5 comments:
I'm glad you got your Kale picked.. We had to pick ours earlier on.. Love your Blog.. I'm your new follower.
Susie~ So glad you stopped by! I'm glad you were able to get some kale, even though it was earlier than you hoped. Thanks so much for following!
Oh Linda, I have fallen behind in my blog reading, as we were sick with the flu for so long. I'm just catching up with you now!
Kale is certainly one of the most cold-hardy vegetables. I am still picking Brussels sprouts from my garden, as well as collards. It's such a treat to gather home-grown veggies in the winter!
Brenda~ So glad you are feeling better. The flue is certainly making the rounds this season.
I was a bit worried that my collards were getting overly frosted so I harvested them all...what a haul! It is a bit sad that my trips to the garden have ended for now. But it won't be long until spring!
How are your plans coming for your new property in the spring?
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