This Living Land

Picture an epic battle: good fighting evil. The noble king of light owns the turf, but the lord of the night has a heart blacker than death itself. He covets the beautiful and fruitful plot of land. The attack has been long, for the lord of the night is cunning and persistent, constantly bringing new strategies and weapons into play. His spies circle overhead, searching out weak spots in the defensive line. The battle, however, is not going as he hoped. Just like every other gorgeous pot of land owned by the king of light, this land is living. 

The lord of the night's eyes narrow and he grinds his teeth, staring at his minion Vaain tumble into a gaping crevice in the earth that had cracked open with a brilliant flash of light. Yet another, taken captive. He spins on his heel, cloak brushing a standard-bearer with flames a color deeper than black. The creature yelps and glowers, slinking away from his lord. 

"Send Leyzi to that weak spot on the north end," the lord of the night barks.

"You can count on me to keep things from getting done, my liege," purrs a creature nearby. He hoists two sets of shackles over his shoulder and slips metal pebbles labeled "x-cusiz" into his pockets. 

"Just don't get taken, you hear?" 

Leyzi bows and slinks away. 

Meanwhile on the side of light, the living land is busy pushing waves of the living water from its source - the words pouring from the king of light's mouth - to every drying acre of ground. The water heals, satisfies, and energizes everything it washes against, creating a mosaic of vibrant green flowing from the source - the king. Every time the ground pulses or shifts, guiding the living water to thirsty corners, it knocks dark agents of the lord of the night off their feet. The very force giving life to the land sends waves of confusion through the ranks of snarling black minions. 

If you were watching this battle from afar, your eyes would be drawn to two things. One is a glowing cloud hovering over the whole battle. This cloud is the very spirit of the king of light, and it sends messages enclosed in glistening raindrops to the ground, pointing out areas the enemy has broken through and encouraging the land to take as many captives as possible. This leads to the second noticeable thing - flashes of light that dance over the battlefield. Every time the cloud pricks the land with a prompting to fight or to take a minion captive, the land responds, splitting open to capture the enemy. And inside, underneath the land, there is light.

The land is very busy, you see. Very busy fighting and growing and listening and being... And have you figured it out yet my friends? That living land is very real, that king and dark lord and battle are closer than the air we breathe. The living land is my mind. (And yours if you are a child of God) The battle is raging inside of me, and I've heard the very words of the king of light: For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every prevention that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Cor. 10:5)

It's the reality, folks. This living land. 

Confessions of a Writer who hasn't been Writing

I've been lazy.

Telling myself I have no words to write

But really I've just failed to dig them up out of my heart.

For me, writers block is a frame of mind

That comes in the summer.

Lazy days and

No deadlines.

I think I sometimes cheat myself out of deep words spilled out on the page

Because I fear the currents

Tugging beneath the glittering surface.

I see the sun reflecting off the shining water 

Mesmerizing 

Pretty shallow thoughts

And Pinterest-perfect quotes.

I sit on the bank ignoring parched lips

And dirty hands,

Content somehow.

I need to force myself to step into the water

Break the smooth shining surface 

And 

I need to drink deep,

Dip in

And find strong currents.

Dangerous waters.

Because there 

In the scary place

In the dark mystery

I find Him.

And when I find Him

I find words.

I'm gonna try to write more, guys. 

Easy Party Chip Dip

So I've got another recipe for you today. It could be because I love food or it could be because I've been cooking for a graduation party... Or maybe a bit of both? ;)

But this recipe is seriously the momma of all chip dip recipes. It is uh-ma-zing. Sweet, rich, and tangy. It tastes complex, but it only has three ingredients! So so fantabulous (that's an actual word!). 

Easy Party Chip Dip

      2 pkgs. cream cheese, room temperature

      10-11 oz. pepper relish (I used sweet, you could use hot or any other type)

      1 can crushed pineapple, undrained (20 oz.)

Whip the cream cheese with mixer until fluffy (a minute or so), then mix in relish and pineapple. Store in refrigerator. It's delicious right away, but if you're feeling fancy you can let the favors "intensify" and "mingle" in the fridge for 24 hours. ;)

Dream Come True

Guys. I am so excited. So so excited!!!!! One of my dreams has officially come true! See, there's this blog called therebelution.com and I love it. It encourages young people to soar above the low expectations our culture has loaded on us. If you haven't visited it before, I'd strongly encourage you to check it out! 

But yes. Back to my news. I wrote a blog post and submitted it to therebelution.com.... and they published it on the blog!!!!! Like, there are actually a LOT of people reading this crazy post I typed up! I am so honored. But really, God gets the glory because he kinda dumped the words into my head. So yeah. Hop on over to Therebelution and check it out! 

Brownie Cupcakes

My family has not made a boxed brownie mix for years. And I'm so so so glad, because we get to eat brownies that are even better! Have you ever made real homemade brownies? You should. Definitely. The recipe I use makes a 9x13 pan, but today I made a bunch of brownie cupcakes instead! Don't you want one?!?! Me too... they're pretty awesome. ;)

One of the best things about this recipe is that you only have to use one pan to mix it up in! So choose a large saucepan that will hold a whole batch of brownies. First, combine butter, cocoa powder, and oil over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until it's all melted together. While you're at the stove, turn on the oven to 350 degrees to preheat.

Remove from heat, then add the sugar.

Oh yum...

Stir in vanilla, then add all the eggs and stir. You may have to use a fork to get the eggs adequately incorporated. ;)

Add flour, baking soda, and salt and stir well.

My favorite part - a mountain of chocolate chips!

Put cupcake liners in cupcake pans and dollop the batter in! I didn't put anything on the liners to keep the brownies from sticking, but you could if you want. For tall brownie cupcakes like mine, fill the liners about 3/4 full and you'll get 18-19 cupcakes. If you want smaller cupcakes, fill them 2/3 full and you should have enough batter for more than 20. 

Bake for 26-27 minutes... and enjoy your delicious cupcake brownies! 

Brownie Cupcakes (with a gluten free option)

    Makes 18-21

Ingredients:

    2/3 cup butter

    3/4 cup cocoa powder

    1/4 cup olive oil

    2 cup sugar

    4 eggs

    2 tsp. vanilla

    1 1/2 cup flour*

    1 tsp. baking powder

    1 tsp. salt

    1 heaping cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir first three ingredients in large saucepan over medium-low heat until butter is melted. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Add eggs and stir. Add vanilla and stir. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix in chocolate chips. Put cupcake liners in pans and fill 2/3 full (for smaller, flatter brownie cupcakes) or 3/4 full (for tall brownie cupcakes) of batter. Bake for 26-27 minutes. 

*My mom makes this recipe gluten free by using an all-purpose gluten free flour mix instead of flour. It still tastes delicious, and I typically can't tell they are gluten free! :)

To make traditional brownies with this recipe, just grease a 9x13 pan and bake for 33 minutes.