May 1, 2026

Brave

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The gate is wide
The road is paved in moderation
The crowd is kind and quick to pull you in
Welcome to the middle ground
You’re safe and sound and
Until now it’s where I’ve been

‘Cause it’s been fear that ties me down to everything
But it’s been love, Your love, that cuts the strings

So long, status quo
I think I just let go
You make me want to be brave
The way it always was
Is no longer good enough
You make me want to be brave
Brave, brave

I am small
And I speak when I’m spoken to
But I am willing to risk it all
I say Your Name
Just Your Name and I’m ready to jump
Even ready to fall

Why did I take this vow of compromise
Why did I try to keep it all inside

I’ve never known a fire that didn’t begin with a flame
Every storm will start with just a drop of rain
But if you believe in me
That changes everything
So long, I’m gone

Singer/Songwriter Nichole Nordeman with Jay Joyce

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I had the gift of seeing Nichole Nordeman at the Women of Faith conference this past weekend in Denver, Colorado.  This song got me to thinking “What is status quo?” So I started doing some digging to find out about status quo and Christianity.  Here is what I found….

This excerpt, from Jane Morin, says it perfectly.  And she gives us examples of biblical people who dared to move beyond the safe way of living, a.k.a status quo, into a brave way of living.

“Status quo is a Latin term meaning the present current, existing state of affairs. To maintain the status quo is to keep things the way they presently are. There is nothing wrong with the status quo when it pertains to certain areas of our lives. However, living a status quo Christian life is totally unacceptable. At least it was during the days of the bible. I can think of many biblical characters who dared to move beyond the status quo of their belief system.”

•The woman who knelt and touched the hem of Jesus garment so she could be healed. (Luke 8:43-44)

•John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness. (John 1:23)

•David as he danced before the Ark of the Covenant throughout the kingdom to welcome back God’s presence. (1 Chronicles 15:29)

•Moses, when God used him through a series of plagues to set the Israelites free. (Exodus 9:14)

I could go on and on but I think you are getting the idea of what I am saying here. We have never been called to live in the cozy, Christian, comfort zone of life.”

(JaneMorin.com)

For we live by believing and not by seeing.
2 Corinthians 5:7 NLT

Living beyond the status quo of what you see and fully trusting God in whatever it is—is a brave way of living.  This is how we were meant to live…not in our safe little boxes where we are afraid to step into the unknown.  The situations you have no control over are the ones where God can shine the most and where miracles can happen.

I also had the gift of seeing Christine Caine and Lisa Bevere at this conference.  Here are a couple of things they said that struck me about living in a Higher Place beyond the status quo….

“It is time to grow up, ladies! What are you doing under your circumstances? Go to the Rock that is higher than I…”
Christine Caine

…From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I….
Psalm 61:2 ESV

“Status quo is no longer an option, you are bringing the threshold of heaven.”
Lisa Bevere

Will you be brave and trust God with the very details of your life?  The choice is ultimately ours.

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Heavenly Father, I pray for each lady reading this, and myself, that we will choose to live beyond the status quo and be brave in the unknown places and trust you. In Jesus’ Name. Amen!!!

Just A Reminder

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Answer me when I call to you,
O God, Who declares me innocent.
Free me from my troubles.
Have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
Psalm 4:1

I almost get the feeling that the psalmist is trying to rush God in Psalm 4:1.  In my mind, I picture God just shaking His head thinking, “Rest, my child. I see your troubles and I have handled them.”  Then again, the psalmist could just be making a sincere plea to God for Him to answer the prayer.  Regardless of how I decide to perceive this verse, I feel the Lord’s verbal response would be the same—Rest!

Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30

This verse says that if you come to the Lord, He will give you rest. So, take your request to Him and then rest. {Do not forget about the resting part!}

And don’t forget this:

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace.
In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
John 16:33

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Lord, help me take my requests to You and then to rest.  Thank You for the ability to rest in the midst of troubles, knowing that I am adequately taken care of.  Amen.

Trust In Jesus

One of these days we all will stand in judgment for
Every single word that we have spoken
One of these days we all will stand before the Lord
Give a reason for everything we’ve done and what I’ve done is

Trust in Jesus, my great Deliverer
My strong Defender, the Son of God
I trust in Jesus, blessed Redeemer
My Lord forever, the Holy One, the Holy One

What are you gonna do when your time has come
And your life is done and there’s nothing you can stand on
What will you have to say at the judgment throne
Well, I already know the only thing that I can say

There’s nothing I can do
On my own to find forgiveness
It’s by His grace alone
I trust in Jesus, trust in Jesus

Singer/Songwriters: Third Day ~ Mark Lee, David Carr, Mac Powell, and Tai Anderson
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Jesus came to call the Jewish people to a new life.  When His people would not listen, He sent the disciples and Paul to minister to everyone.  Jesus reached many hearts who turned to Him and His Father, but He knew His twelve would need to reach the rest of the world.  Now it is up to us to go and tell others the good news of his edemptive work on the cross and how God loves us. John 3:16 (KJV) tells us, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  Isn’t that amazing! Only let’s look further, let’s look at the context of the verse. Jesus was speaking to Nicodemus, a leader of the Jewish people. Nicodemus came to ask Jesus how to become saved. Here is a bit of their conversation from the Gospel of John, chapter 3…
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”  Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?”  Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?  Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended into heaven except He who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.  “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.  Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.  And this is the judgment: the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light because their works were evil.  For everyone who does wicked things hates the Light and does not come to the Light, lest his works should be exposed.  But whoever does what is true comes to the Light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Wow, He did that for us.  We are blessed to know the Father through the Son.  When we feel the Holy Spirit nudge us, sometimes to the point of a hit, we should heed the warning and repent.  We should stop and listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying.  We do not know when we will be called home.  We should be mindful of what we are doing and example we are displaying for others to follow.  God is a forgiving God, One who does have limits.  I do not want to find those limits.  But I feel sometimes I push them. Thank You, Lord, for not giving up on me.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

 

Here in New York, we have had quite the cool fall season so far!  (How about where you live?) Here in our home that means it’s soup season!  I’ve already made and frozen a batch of veggie broth and also chicken broth. Having those containers stacked up in the freezer means that basically any day I can throw together a pot of soup. All of the ingredients for today’s recipe are things that are generally on hand in my ‘fridge and pantry…well, maybe not the ham steak. 🙂

There are plenty of bright green broccoli florets floating around in this hearty soup, but it’s broccoli stems that make up the base of the soup. This is a ‘healthified’ version of many Broccoli-Cheese soup recipes available. Rather than making a roux—a soup base consisting of onions, butter, and flour—we prefer to thicken this creamy soup by pureeing the potatoes and broccoli stems. Also, I use a larger proportion of broth, and less of milk and cream. And, I have found that using just 4 ounces or so of shredded cheese is quite enough. Each of these changes makes this soup ‘healthy but oh-so-yummy!’ Enjoy!

Broccoli Potato Cheese Soup

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ingredients:
2 large heads broccoli (approximately 2 pounds)
1/2 large onion
5 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (approximately 1+1/2 pounds)
1/2 pound ham steak, cut into small cubes (optional)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil + 1 teaspoon
2 heaping teaspoons chopped garlic
4 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth
2 cups milk (I used coconut milk)
1/2 cup half & half
4 ounces shredded cheese (use something very flavorful
sea salt and freshly ground pepper (I used a lemon-pepper-salt combo)
directions:

  • preheat oven to 375
  • separate florets from stems of broccoli
  • take 1 cup of tiny florets, toss with 1 teaspoon olive oil; season w/salt&pepper
  • place on baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes…just ‘til beginning to brown;
  • remove from oven when done and set aside for garnishing
  • when you set aside the roasted broccoli, use the same pan to heat the ham cubes for about 6-7 minutes; remove from oven and set aside ‘til plating
  • rough chop stems of broccoli into 1-1+1/2″ pieces
  • peel and cube potatoes into 1″ pieces
  • chop onion into small dice
  • heat butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 4 quart (or larger) stockpot
  • add cut veggies and stir to coat; saute for 5-6 minutes; do not allow to brown
  • stir in broth; raise heat to bring to a boil
  • cover pot; reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or so…’til broccoli stems are tender
  • remove pot from heat and, using immersion blender, puree ‘til smooth
  • place back on stove and add broccoli florets and the milk; stir
  • cover and simmer for 10 minutes or ‘til florets are still bright green but cooked through
  • remove pot from heat and, again using immersion blender, puree for just a minute or so, breaking up the broccoli
  • place pot back on stove; and over low heat add half & half, and shredded cheese; stir ‘til combined and cheese is melted
  • carefully taste for seasoning, adding more s&p as needed
  • scoop into bowls adding the ham and roasted broccoli florets

NOTE: if not using an immersion blender, you can puree the soup like this (from Food Network.com):

“When blending hot liquids, first let cool for 5 minutes or so, then transfer to a blender, filling only halfway. Put the lid on, leaving one corner open; this will prevent the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel to catch splatters and pulse until smooth.”

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God loves you!  ♥  (Don’t ever forget that!)

♥  coleen

Prayerfulness

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Answer me when I call to You, O my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress,
Be merciful to me and hear my prayer.
Psalm 4:1

This verse reveals the kind of person who will be answered by God in times of distress—it is one with an earnest desire for God’s help.

There are times in my life when I have been down and cried to my God to answer my prayers because I felt that they were not being answered and that I was left alone with no one to turn to.  And this only brought discomfort and fear in me. All the faith had gone…all I could see was unanswered prayer and so it led me to focus on the issues and not where the solution can could come from.  But the Holy Spirit communicated to me saying “You know what, Ann? Cast all your cares unto God and He will give you rest.”  And it was at this time when my eyes opened and I remembered Jeremiah 33:3.

Call to Me and I will answer you,
and I will tell you great and mighty things,
which you do not know.

Prayer is a weapon for answered prayer especially when it comes from an earnest heart…and so earnestly He will answer us. Make a choice to engage into a different dimension of living.  Engage in a prayerful gear and you will appreciate, too, what I appreciated.

O Lord, in the morning You hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait expectantly.
Psalm 5:3

In this verse, we see David committing himself to three actions

1. Confident that God will hear his voice, he persists in prayer
2. He will pray in the morning – if we orient our lives around God, morning prayers will be a natural thing to do
3. He will wait in expectation for answers to his prayer and throughout the day he will search for signs that God is at work in his life

I rise before dawn and cry for help I have put my hope in Your Word.
Psalm 119:147

The Word of God is not false it is a living thing that helps us to build trust in the Lord.

And then was a widow until she was eighty four.
She never left the temple but worshipped night and day, fasting and praying.
Luke 2:37

Therefore, my brethren, with the few Scriptures quoted in this devotion, I urge each one of you to be earnestly prayerful and regularly engaged in prayer.  With faith, we will have answered prayers.  All that we need is to ask God for help. Our prayers will be granted.

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Lord, I pray that You hear me when I pray as I come to You. I pray for Your mercy to hear me when I call, Lord. Supply to me according to Your riches in glory. Silver and gold is all Yours! Have mercy on me, Lord, and on my sisters in the Lord, too. We seek You and thank You that all things will be added to us, Lord. Glory and honor be unto You always. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Healing Has Begun

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You have carried the weight of your secret for way too long
Thinking if there is a place called forgiveness you don’t belong
Oh, but freedom can never be found behind those walls
So just let ’em fall, just let ’em fall

Oh, the healing has begun
Oh, the healing has begun

How long has it been since you felt anything but shame
Child, lift up your eyes ’cause mercy remembers your name
And those tears you’ve been holding back, let ’em fall down like rain
‘Cause today is the day, yeah today is the day

Oh, the healing has begun
Oh, the healing has begun

Hallelujah, hallelujah
Just lift your eyes
Lay it down
What once was lost
Has now been found, oh

There’s a world full of people dying from broken hearts
Holding on to the guilt, thinking they fell too far
So don’t be afraid to show ’em your beautiful scars
‘Cause they’re the proof, yeah you’re the proof
Oh, the healing has begun

Songwriter/Singer – Matthew West along with Joseph Houser

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I heard this song for the first time Saturday night at church during communion.  It touched me on so many levels, and in so many ways, I would have to write a book to explain it all.

Matthew West has said this is a song about healing and forgiveness…about embracing the gift of grace.  This song reminds me how grateful I am that “…mercy remembers [my] name.” The Psalms tell us:

The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent.
Psalm 34:18 AMP

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds [curing their pains and their sorrows].
Psalm 147:3 AMP

We all have broken, shattered pieces of our lives.  Things we regret doing, things that make us feel guilty and ashamed.  Jesus came to heal us of spiritual ailments as well as physical ones.  I love this part “So don’t be afraid to show ’em your beautiful scars, ‘cause they’re the proof, yeah, you’re the proof….”

I have often asked God not to let my pain be in vain.  Isaiah 61:1b (AMP) tells me: “He has sent me to bind up and heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes to those who are bound….”  Sometimes it hurts to reveal those scars.  Sometimes it is scary to open yourself up to others.  But just imagine what it would be like if doing so helped someone else begin to heal!

The part that really touched me this weekend is the “Oh, the healing has begun.” I have sung that refrain over and over and over again in my head.  There is a person…a situation…that I have been praying for and about for years.  This song is something they really need to hear and believe.  God showed me He is using my pain and my scars to begin their healing.  And those words were confirmation that God has indeed begun the healing in them.

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Thank You, Father, that Your healing in us has begun.  Let our pains, our scars be a light of hope to others.  In Jesus’ name I ask this, Amen – It Is So!

Answering the Caller ID

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Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness:
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress;
have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
Psalm 4:1

Do you have caller ID?  Most everybody does.  It is one of those digital advances that most people cannot live without these days.  It is a way of identifying who is calling you.  You can decide whether or not to answer the phone when it rings. You can decide whether to answer the phone if you don’t know who it is. If you miss a call, you can go back and see who called. Then you can decide whether or not to call that person back. You can ignore tele-marketers and bill collectors. Caller ID has certainly made it easier to ignore those we don’t want to talk to when the phone rings.

As humans we can select who we call and whose call we answer here on earth. However, when it comes down to it, there is one call that we are supposed to answer no matter what. The caller ID is our heart being tugged at by Jesus wanting us to accept Him as our Savior. It is a call that should be answered every time.

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Romans 10:17

By answering the call of Christ, our faith is strengthened and fortified. Our spirit is healed. Our heart becomes stronger in the Lord. We begin to strengthen our faith and fortify it through listening to Christ and practicing what He teaches us. We strengthen ourselves through our relationship with Him. When we answer Christ’s call, God hears us. We become blessed even more.

God blessed us when His Son sacrificed Himself on the Cross for our sins. He showed us mercy. Jesus brought us closer to God by shedding His blood. God heard the call to be saved from death. He gave us a way to be reconciled with Him. All we have to do is recognize His call on our internal caller ID—our heart—and accept the gift that Jesus gave on the Cross.

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Dear Heavenly Father: Thank You for calling us to You. Thank You for giving us an internal caller ID to recognize Your spirit and love. Thank You for strengthening us and fortifying us. Without our own internal caller ID, we would ignore You and not listen. We would be facing an eternity of fire instead of an eternity filled with love and Your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

I’ve Always Loved You

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I don’t know how to explain it
But I know the words would hardly do
Miracles and signs and wonders
Aren’t enough for me to prove to you

Don’t you know I’ve always loved you
Even before there was time
Though you turn away
I tell you still
Don’t you know I’ve always loved you
And I always will

Greater love has not a man
Than the One who gives His life to prove
That He would do anything
And that’s what I’m gonna do for you

 Songwriter: Mac Powell / Performed by Third Day with Josh Wilson

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This song was more than words to a dear member of my family.  It was as if God was speaking directly to her.  On her worst days, this song would come on the radio and she would smile through tears.  How encouraging that when the whole world is crumbing at your feet and everything that you held dear is gone, that the Creator of the universe is wildly, madly in love with you. He always has been and always will be.

Sometimes He has to really work at making us believe it—that no matter what we do or don’t do, He will never stop pursuing us.  Miracles and blessings come our way, and yet on a hard day, we question.  Why do we still have so much doubt?  We hear all around us that if God loved us that ___ wouldn’t have happened, or that divorce wouldn’t have gone through, or that your child wouldn’t have become sick, or even worse, died.  We will never know the answers to those hard questions. Not on this side of Heaven.

What we do know is that He is Sovereign and His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.  We know that even if we could rewrite the story, we would choose His way.  We only see what is in front of us.  There is a bigger picture and all of the things we trudge through  do have a purpose.  Maybe one person was saved through your example. Jesus stopped for the one, right?  And even if just one person asked Jesus into his or her heart, wasn’t it worth it?

All of this life is doable, simply because He does love us. There is so much hope in those four letters…and joy and peace.  I challenge you today to find all the ways He loves you.  Write them down and look at them when those bad days come (and believe me, they will).  But your hope is in Him.  And He is really all you need.

Here are some verses that I encourage you to write on index cards and place them where you will see them and be reminded that He has always loved you.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son,
that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

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For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, “Fear not, I will help you.”
Isaiah 41:13

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The Lord your God is with you,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

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Let us pray: Dear Lord, You are amazing, wonderful, and loving.  You are Sovereign and You are good.  You have always loved us, even when we feel we do not deserve it.  You sent Your Son to die, so that we don’t have to work to be saved, we just are when we ask.  The veil was torn and now we come to You as we want.  No temples, no walls, no harsh judgment… only sweet love and forgiveness and grace.  Remind those who forget often.  Let them know that they are loved by You!  We thank You and we praise You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Merciful, Merciful, Merciful God

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 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger and rich in faithful love.
He will not always accuse us or be angry forever.
He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve
or repaid us according to our offenses.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is His faithful love toward those who fear Him.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.
For He knows what we are made of, remembering that we are dust.
Psalms 103:8-14 HCSB

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What a merciful, merciful, merciful God
What a merciful, merciful, merciful God
What a merciful, merciful, merciful God You are
You are

You are so gentle
You are forgiving
You hold me close to Your heart

When I am distant
You show me mercy
You bring me close to Your heart

Written by Terry and Randy Butler/ Vineyard Music

Pumpkin Chia Pudding

Pumpkin Chia Pudding resize

It seems like when we turn the calendar page to October, we all mysteriously start craving PUMPKIN!   I am not immune.   However, I didn’t want to make a big sugar bomb, so I searched around for something to satisfy the pumpkin craving and not spike my insulin.  Bingo:  Pumpkin Chia Pudding!

If you’ve never made chia pudding, now’s your chance.  I love it – the texture is a crazy blend of creamy and crunchy—like tapioca with attitude!  I make it with coconut milk, but you can try another nut milk or soy milk if that’s your thing.  This was ready to eat in an hour, and tastes just like pumpkin pie.  What more can you ask for?!

Pumpkin Chia Pudding

Ingredients:

  • 1 can full-fat coconut milk (about 2 cups)
  • 1/2 can pumpkin puree (about 1 cup, or use one cup of roasted and mashed pumpkin)
  • 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or combine cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves)
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup chia seeds

Directions:

  1. In a blender or food processor, blend the coconut milk, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and honey together.
  2. Pour into a Tupperware container with a tight-fitting lid, or a very large jar with a lid.  Add the chia seeds and Shake!  Shake!  Shake!
  3. Refrigerate.  After another hour, shake again!  If it’s cold, go ahead and eat it!  Garnish with a little whipped cream if you like.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana


To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!