Warning Craving A Cupcake May Occur!
This page is going to discuss the gift of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. I love cupcakes and couldn't find a good example with real fruit but cupcakes works perfect!
When we are born it is a physical birth. To be born again means to be reborn of the Holy Spirit. When He "moves inside you" the renewal process begins and hold on to your license and keep a journal because you won't recognize the new you. As with the ingredients to make a cupcake there are 9 so too the fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is fruit not plural because we all receive; God doesn't pick and choose who gets what so none can boast.
Jesus explains the fruit in Matthew 7:17 "Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit." Jesus was the perfect example of the perfect fruit by the way He lived His life and ultimately sacrificed Himself for all of us. We will never be perfect but it is an outline of what we should emulate in our own lives daily. Those who choose to continue to live in sin and turn away from the free gift of Christ will bear only bad fruit and at God's appointed time will be cut down and cast into the fire and forever be separated from God.
Love is a work in progress each day. He has taught me in one painful relationship how to forgive and still love that person rather than anger and bitterness. It is a wonderful feeling. Learning how to "love" people I don't know as commanded by God is tricky and learning through reading and prayer. Love has so many meanings but the ultimate is God's love for us and ours to Him in return. I can honestly say I would not be here today if it wasn't for His love for me.
Joy I have learned and relied on is God's strength through our tough times. Even though we are feeling defeated and in some sort of physical, spiritual, or emotional pain we are to know and be comforted that God is with us and that this will only last for a season. He is working all things for our good. The way we show our joy is to be smiling, gracious to others, helpful, not sulking, not worrying and fretting. We are to be the "light" even when we feel in the dark.
"And the peace of God, that surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7 This is just an amazing experience and I am in awe daily because of it. God's peace is unlike anything man can give you. I will have financial issues, business issues, relational, and through it I am at peace.
I know I struggle with impatience daily but I am catching myself more regularly. Whether in business with customers or living with my elderly mom, each day I am given a clean slate to try again. Thank You LORD!!! I thank God almost daily for being so patient with me and not giving up on me. The patience He shows in my learning and our relationship is never ending.
Kindness I am expanding on but I find myself smiling so much more now and trying to wave to people or just say hello. Covid ruined this quality for many people and emboldened them to being stale and aloof. There are other things I do but that is between me and my Abba.
Thank goodness for God's goodness; I see what He does in my life and others everyday even when we don't ask. We do not deserve any of it but He, like any good father, shows mightily in my life and my loved ones each day. The only way I can be good to God is to be good to others; this pleases and glorifies Him.
I always thought of myself as a faithful person; very loyal to those who I love and respect. However, God has shown me a new level of faithful when I think of how He has had to put up with me all these years! All the times I turned away from Him and His word; the times I turned to idolatry. He never forgot me. He just waited until I fell to my knees at my lowest and was there to lift me up, embrace me, and get me walking with Jesus.
Not proud to admit but I have been arrogant in my life. I think due to a relationship where I was always feeling I had to say "I did this!" or "I am how this came about!" because he never made me feel "seen"; but that is so not true. It wasn't until I started walking with Jesus how humble I became. My creativity, ingenuity, strength, fierceness, and more was all because of Him. The jobs I have managed, the businesses owned are all because of Him. Any money and possessions I have are because of Him; not me. He shares His bank account with me! I know that now and try to remember to voice that whenever possible. However, thankfully we have a loving and forgiving God for all the times I still fall short!
Ahhh, self control. This too I struggle daily but I think to be honest we all do in some form. Mine is anger, impatience, being emotional, and alcohol, just to name a few. I am glad to report today looking back at who I was and who I am now I have come a long way. I still fall short and will have set backs but I talk through it with Him and come out the other side the better for it. But it takes being in God's word, prayer/relationship, and seeking Him daily to be the change.
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
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▢½ cup (60g) all purpose flour, see note
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▢½ teaspoon baking powder
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▢⅛ teaspoon salt
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▢1 large egg
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▢¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
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▢2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
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▢4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
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▢¼ cup milk, preferably whole or 2% milk
Vanilla frosting:
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▢5 tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
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▢1¼ cups (156g) powdered sugar, plus more if needed
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▢¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
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▢1 teaspoon milk, plus more if needed
Instructions
Cupcakes:
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Place 5 liners in a muffin pan.
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In a small bowl, combine flour (see note), baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
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In a large bowl, whisk the egg and sugar for about 30 seconds. Add the vanilla extract and melted butter and whisk until well combined.
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Add half the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until just combined. Add the milk, and whisk until just combined. Add the remaining dry ingredients and whisk until combined (being careful not to overmix).
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Divide the batter evenly between 5 muffin cups (each cup will be between ⅔ and ¾ full). Bake for 14-16 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
Frosting:
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Beat powdered sugar and butter until smooth. Add vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon of milk. Beat on medium speed for several minutes, until light and fluffy. If the frosting appears too thick, add a little milk, if it appears too thin add a little more powdered sugar.
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Frost the cupcakes using a piping bag and pastry tip; I use an open star tip. Top with sprinkles, if desired.
Ingredients
the Fruit Galatians 5:22-23 :
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▢love
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▢joy
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▢peace
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▢patience
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▢kindness
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▢goodness
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▢faithful
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▢humble
▢self control
Just as with the cupcakes the ingredients are blended together, God with His perfect measure works His fruit in us for our Good and His glory.
How does God purify us with fire?
A refiner's fire melts down a metal, such as gold or silver, for purification purposes. Once a metal is in its melted down state, the dross in the metal rises to the top and is then removed from the metal before it cools. God spoke this analogy through the prophet Malachi to describe how he purifies our hearts.
It is not a painless process and requires us to learn to bend our will to His. This means a person or persons will be removed from our lives to allow us to grow and mature in our faith with God. It could be you have old habits of alcohol, drug use, sexual impurities, telling lies, manipulation, arrogance, you name the sin, He will be working it out of you. You must trust the "Chef" and know you will be ok; that through the process He gives you His peace which is not like man's peace.
What's the end product? Well we aren't a cupcake! The end result is we have an ongoing working relationship with our Creator and Father that will take us home one day to spend eternity with Him where there will be no pain, no disease, nor death, tears, sin. We will live in incorruptible, immortal, glorified bodies living in a new Heaven and new Earth and a new way of life. That's better than a cupcake!