Pecan Pie Squares

Crust:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off

1/4 cup corn starch

1/2 cup Confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

Filling

12 tablespoons (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Generous pinch salt

2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

3 cups coarsely chopped pecans

Cover a 9-inch square baking pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. Push foil neatly into corners and up sides of the pan, using two pieces if necessary to ensure it overlaps all edges (the overhang will help removal from pan). Spray foiled pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place the flour, corn starch, confectioners sugar and salt in a bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal with pea-size clumps of butter within. Also can be made with a pastry cutter or two forks. Dump mixture into prepared pan and press firmly with your fingers into an even layer over the bottom. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. While the crust is in the refrigerator, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the crust until crust is set but not browned, about 17 minutes. Set on rack to cool. Leave oven on. In a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine butter, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and boil gently for 3 minutes. Stir in heavy cream and chopped pecans. Pour pecan mixture over crust (it's fine if crust is still warm). Bake until filling is bubbling and caramel in color, about 20 minutes. Cool completely on rack. To cut, use the foil overhang to lift baked square out of pan and onto cutting board. Loosen the foil from the edges, then cut with a sharp knife into 2-inch squares. Store finished pecan squares in air-tight container and serve at room temperature.

Welcome to Scripture Saturday!

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD! (Psalm 150:6)

Knowing that God is my Creator, the giver of my breath shows me that He is worthy of my praise every moment, every day for ever more! 

Well ladies, this is the last of our Scripture Saturday in our study of the Psalms. And what a way to end! This verse is an amazing ending to this psalm and to the entire book of Psalms. Everything that breathes should give its praise to the One who gave it breath. Every breath is the gift of God and praise is the worthy response we should make for this gift.

And not just while we walk on this earth…

And I heard every creature in heaven and earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying…”To Him who sits on the throne and the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” (Revelation 5:13)

Praise the LORD! Hallelujah! Yahweh is to be praised and honored, and will be among His people and all creation.

As the summer season draws closer, keep this verse in mind as you look at the renewal of creation around you. As you wake each morning praise God for the day you have been given - the breath that He has gifted you with. Only He is worthy of such praise!

Here is the link to our study on Facebook...WitW Facebook Page

Don't forget to share with us the attribute of God that most spoke to you this week!

Have a blessed summer break!

Sandra

Friday May 5th, Psalm 150, Isaiah 40:25-29, Eph. 4:4-8 

Wow! What an amazing journey we have been on through the psalms. Psalms is where I go to when I want comfort, direction, spiritual warfare and praises! I love this verse let everything that has breath praise the Lord!  I imagine the day when Christ will return and we will be praising Him forever.

Matthew Henry- "Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. Such is the very suitable end of a book inspired by the Spirit of God, written for the work of praise; a book which has supplied the songs of the church for more than three thousand years; a book which is quoted more frequently than any other by Christ and his apostles; a book which presents the loftiest ideas of God and his government, which is fitted to every state of human life, which sets forth every state of religious experience, and which bears simple and clear marks of its Divine origin." 

My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD, and all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever. Psalms 145:21

"For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands." Isaiah 55:12  This verse is the motto of the camp I work at.  I have to tell you that when the groups come and they are all varied groups...it is such a joy to hear them praising the Lord! I have heard them praising Him in many different languages and it is such beautiful music to my ears.  I have even heard them call the people with a shofar [which can also be called trumpet]. When I first heard the shofar I stopped and remembered that when Jesus returns He will be calling us with the shofar/trumpet.

I encourage you to go to the psalms often and find rest for your souls.  

Are you in His Word daily?                                                                                                                      Do you praise the Lord in everything?                                                                                                      Do you sing and dance before the Lord?

Father, we come humbly before You and want to give you praise and thanksgiving in everything.  For it is You who works out all things for our good because we love You and are called according to Your purpose.  Speak to us through Your Word.  Bring joy, peace and comfort as we praise You!  We long for and look and listen for Your return.  Thank you for these precious sisters that we have journeyed with through the psalms.  Keep them in Your care and bless them abundantly beyond what they ask for.  Put a song in our hearts of praise to You!   Help us to keep our focus on You, Jesus and look forward to His return for us.  Amen!

Lyn

 

Today’s reading: Psalm 149, 2 Corinthians 5:21

I am so grateful for the opportunity we’ve had to study the Psalms together! I have to agree with my sisters: it’s been a great journey and we’ve learned so much and our faith has grown too! So let us join David praising our God for blessing us through His word!

And in today’s psalm David invites us to:

“Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, and praise Him in the congregation of His godly ones (believers).” (V.1)

Yes, there is so much we should praise our God for, but in this first verse we are encouraged to sing to Him a new song! This takes me back to Psalm 40.

I remember in my first days as a Christian, we would sing these first verses at Church. There was a sister who was gifted in music, ant the Lord would literally give her the music to different psalms, and she would share them with the congregation and we would cheerfully praise our Abba along with her! These first verses of Psalm 40 made a great impact in my heart, for it clearly reflected who I was and where I was before surrendering my life to Jesus, and the amazing transformation His Holy Spirit made in me… I became a new person that wanted more of Him, and less of me through the power of His Loving and Saving Grace! This is so humbling, for I did not deserve anything!! I believe this is what the next verses in psalm 149 declare:

Our Reading: Psalm 148 & Ephesians 4:4-8

This final week of studying the Psalms is all about praise and this Psalm declares universal praise for the name of the Lord. It has a beautiful connection to the creation account of Genesis. God first created the heavenly places to include the heavenly lights. In v 1-6, we see a call for praise from these heavenly dwellings to include the angels, the Sun, moon, and stars. The heavenly realm and it’s angelic hosts are present because God created them. With precision and cosmic fine tuning, he keeps all the galaxies, including our solar system in perfect harmonious order. “Let them praise the name of the Lord! For he commanded and they were created. And he established them forever and ever; he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away.” Psalm‬ ‭148‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭

Next God created the features of the landscape of earth and its mighty oceans and filled it with living creatures. He established the weather patterns and ecosystems that could sustain life. Verses 7-10 bid praise from the elements, the creatures of land, sea, and air.

And finally, he created mankind and bid all people to praise Him from every walk of life, race, sex and generation. “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven.” Psalm‬ ‭148‬:‭13‬ ‭

Not only did He create every physical element necessary for life but He created and sustains all of the vast components and systems necessary to preserve life. Not only did He create it but He rules over it, having a vast passion to connect to mankind, whom He so lovingly placed here to be in relationship with. 

“Therefore ought the Lord to be praised because he is Preserver as well as Creator, Ruler as well as Maker.” (Spurgeon)

The peaceful, harmonious, and intimate relationship man first enjoyed in the Garden of Eden was destroyed when man decided to embrace sin and to put self on the throne of his heart. But, God, in His abundant mercy and passionate concern for man’s spiritual well-being, provided a promise of coming salvation for his people to hope in.

“He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are near to him. Praise the Lord!” Psalm‬ ‭148‬:‭14‬ ‭

The raised horn refers to a bull raising its horns after a victory and biblically is connected to victory, especially from oppression. Jesus was the promised raised horn. God, graciously stepped down from His exalted position to clothe himself in the humble cloak of human flesh. He willingly endured first hand the experience of being like us so that He could ultimately connect to us and save us. There is no greater act of mercy, compassion, or love! When we meditate on this, the awe of God and His love for each of us should bid our praise. 

“He is himself the crown of all things, the excellency of the creation. There is more glory in him personally than in all his works united. It is not possible for us to exceed and become extravagant in the Lord’s praise: his own natural glory is infinitely greater than any glory which we can render to him.” (Spurgeon)

As we have studied the Psalms together, I hope that you have been able to grow in your knowledge and personal connection with God. I hope that you have developed an ever expanding awe and admiration for the One who made you and the world that sustains life for you. I hope that from a heart surrendered to God, you find praise and worship freely flowing,extending out to touch those you encounter and rising to the heavenly realm in prayerful paise and jubilant exaltation. May your life be a continual act of bidding Him praise.!

The inner essence of worship is to know God truly and then respond from the heart to that knowledge by valuing God, treasuring God, prizing God, enjoying God, being satisfied with God above all earthly things. And then that deep, restful, joyful satisfaction in God overflows in demonstrable acts of praise from the lips and demonstrable acts of love in serving others for the sake of Christ.-John Piper

Prayer: Father, we thank You for the amazing world that You have created and how it reflects Your wisdom, Your sovereignty, and Your majestic power. We thank You for not only creating us and sustaining us, but for sending your beloved Son, Jesus, to be our raised horn of salvation from the oppression of sin. May praise become a genuine outpouring from the depths of our hearts. 

Scripture for today: Psalm 147 & Isaiah 40:25-29

We did it, Girls!  We've read and studied every psalm, or will have on Friday! Have we become women after God's own heart? I believe so! I know my faith has grown tremendously through this study; far more than in any other study we've done over the past ten years! And how fitting to end our study focused on praising our amazing Father and our Lord, Jesus Christ!

Before we begin, let me ask you, how easy do praises roll off your lips? 

Psalm 147 begins, "Praise the Lord. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!" (147:1)

I thought the choice of words the psalmist uses to encourage us was interesting - "pleasant and fitting to praise Him." for not everything that is fitting is pleasant. 

Forgiving an offender is fitting, but may not always be pleasant, particularly if the offense is often repeated, or the offender isn't sorry. Giving and receiving discipline is fitting, but it may not be pleasant at the moment (Hebrews 12:11).

BUT Psalm 147 tells us that praise is both pleasant, fitting and good! “How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!”

So, I've decided to go on a quest today to discover why! 

There are many good things to do in life, but praising God is man’s highest good. There is nothing more rewarding, more beautiful, and more beneficial than to praise the Lord of the universe and to appreciate His works.

Praise Invites the Presence of God

But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. (Psalm 22:3 KJV emphasis mine)

".. —indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying:

“For He is good,
For His mercy endures forever,”

that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God. " (1 Chronicles 5:13-14)

Praise Guarantees Victory

2 Chronicles 20:15-20 tells a story of King Jehoshaphat and his army, "rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying:

“Praise the Lord,
For His mercy endures forever.”

Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated..."

Praise Delivers Us From Our Enemies 

I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised;
So shall I be saved from my enemies. (Psalm 18:3)

Through the praise of children and infants
    you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger. (Psalm 8:2)

Praise Drives Out Depression 

  and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
    instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
    instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
    a planting of the Lord
    for the display of his splendor. (Isaiah 61:3)

Praise Satisfies our Souls

O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. (Psalm 63:1-5)

Praise Brings Joy!

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. (Psalm 100:4)