The Flowering Cross

By Beth Ryan and illustrated by Renee Graef

The Flowering Cross is a story about a little girl who lives next door to a gruff older man. He has a beautiful flower garden but is not a very kind person. The little girl in the story, Katie, and her family practice kindness, patience and hospitality with their neighbor.

During Easter worship service that the neighbor, Papa Jack, attends is a flowering cross. People are invited to come up and place a flower on the cross and give thanks to Jesus for what he has done for them. Papa Jack gifts the family with their very own flowering.

The story is well told and the story of Jesus is explained in simple and easy to understand terms. The illustrations are delightful. There are numerous “Faith Imprint” moments in the book which give discussion starters, some of which are better than others. There are plans for your own flowering cross at the end of the book that require knowledge of woodworking, but it could easily be adapted to a child friendly Styrofoam project.
Having been a part of a flowering cross service before, this story would make an excellent addition to such a service as well as a gift for young ones this Easter.

Comments

Stories from the Kitchen: Taste and See

I celebrated my birthday last weekend. It was wonderful and the leftovers left me with a question or two. Find out what they are and how I'm currently answering them in this week's podcast. Stories from the Kitchen Season 2, Episode 2: Taste and See Notes from the episode: Taste and See by Margaret Feinberg Dad’s New York Cheesecake (from the back of a Philidelphia Cream Cheese package) 1 ⅞ cups graham cracker crumbs ¼ to ½ cup butter, melted 1 cup sugar, divided 2 lbs cream cheese (4 packs) 2 large eggs (lightly beaten) 1 tsp vanilla 2 tbsp cornstarch 1 cup sour cream Preheat oven to 450F Mix well graham crackers, 2 tbsp sugar, and enough butter that the mixture holds together. Reserve 2 tbsp for garnish. Press mixture onto bottom and sides of a greased 9-inch springform pan. Chill in the freezer while preparing the filling. Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth and light. Beat in eggs, vanilla, and cornstarch until just blended. S

Tasty Tuesday: Roasted Broccoli

I ran across this recipe on Pinterest the other day that was labeled " The Best Broccoli Of Your Life. " I normally either steam our broccoli in the microwave or saute it with olive oil and red pepper flakes on the stove top. I decided this would be something to try. I did the salt, pepper and olive oil part of the recipe. I didn't have the majority of the other ingredients. In fact, all I had was a little bit of Parmesan It was wonderful. Not the best broccoli of my life, but honestly, it was pretty close. And if I had the lemon juice and all that jazz, it may very well be the best. What have you been eating lately?

Sweet Caroline by Kelda Poynot

First off, my copy of Sweet Caroline (aff link) is not a gifted review book, I spent my well earned Amazon No-Rush Rewards money on this book. Second of all, this is not my standard close door kind of romance. Third of all, this is a really fun read. Caroline is a hard working young lady that is doing all that she can to make ends meet and to get her graduate degree. Part of that work is renting out the room above her garage. When she answers the phone of an unknown number, believing it's a future tenant, she has no idea how much her life is about to change. The young man on the other end of that call, Hashim, is tall, dark, and mysterious in all the right ways. The story quickly moves from the girl next door falling for a stranger to a fight for their lives. And in true real life fashion, those fights aren't just with external enemies but the ones we carry within. It's an entertaining story of Caroline and Hashim, discovering their love for each other and fighting to

Tina The Storyteller

Search This Blog