July 5, 2011

Bite Into Truth

Truth Cookies...


When my husband and I lived in the states we would stop at a local chinese fast food restaurant on a Friday or Saturday night for a greasy pile of yumminess. That fortune cookie at the end of the meal was always the perfect ending. While the chinese food we shoveled down promised to make us fat, the cookie promised other things; health, happiness and all kinds of various scenarios for our future. But can a cookies really predict our future? Of course it can’t! So why do people buy into it? The world promises solutions to our problems, but it can never deliver. So who can offer us hope? The answer is simple; only Jesus. ONLY JESUS!
Jesus is recorded by John (John 14:6) saying, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” In Jesus we have hope for our future, “plans for welfare and not for evil” (Jeremiah 29:11). Only God knows our future, not a silly fortune cookie. Only he holds truth and the promise of life. Jesus is the only way to that future of great fortune in heaven.
.....Bringing Hope
Each of us desperately needs hope for our future. We need to know that Jesus has a firm grip on us or will grab ahold of us, depending on where you are in your walk with Christ. The world fights for our attention and it wants to pull us away from our hope. It wants to offer solutions, but those promises simply cannot be met. You have to choose to look away and turn toward your only hope. You must choose to turn to Jesus to secure your future.
“He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.” 
2 Corinthians 1:10
The Lord blessed me with an opportunity to deliver His words of hope to a group of men who need to hear from Him. Here is how you can create a sweet treat of real truth and hope for the one’s you love.


How to Make.... Truth Cookies



Step 1:

Type, print and cut-out Bible verses of your choice to insert into cookies. Here are verses to get you started:

Ephesians 2:8
Deuteronomy 31:8
Jeremiah 29:11
John 1:12
Isaiah 40:29
Daniel 9:18
John 8:31
Psalm 138:5
Hebrews 4:16
Matthew 16:25





Step 2: 

Make cookie batter.

Ingredients:

4 large egg whites
1 cup superfine sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
pinch of salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon almod extract

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit. Coat baking sheets liberally with cooking spray or line with slip mats. 

In the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, beat egg whites and sugar on medium speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. Add flour and salt beating to combine. Add remaining ingredients and beat until just combined.

Step 3: 

Line baking sheets with slip mat or spray unlined cookie sheet liberally with cooking spray. Spread two mounds of about a half tablespoon of batter each on one cookie sheet. 


Use the back of a spoon to spread batter into a thin circle. 


Place in oven for about 8 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. To make the process go more quickly, bake two sheets at once baking the cookies 4 minutes apart. I place cookies into the oven on the top rack, then after 4 minutes moved them to the bottom rack and placed a new sheet on the top rack. After another 4 minutes I removed the cookie sheet on the bottom and continued on with the rotation. You will need 3 cookie sheet for this rotation.


Step 4: 

Before cookies have a chance to cool, roll them into shape on a dish towel. Use an offset spatula to remove one cookie at a time from the baking sheet. Place one slip of paper containing your scripture verse along the center of the cookie.


Fold up the bottom edge of the cookie and pinch the top ends together to seal.


Carefully fold the open edges of the cookie inward by placing your fingers into the opening and bringing them together.


Hold the cookie in place for a few seconds. Pinch the top point if needed to help the cookie keep it's shape. I let my cookie cool for a few seconds under the edge of a plate to prevent them from opening up.


Repeat with remaining cookies. You'll need to work fast as these cookies cool quickly! Cookies will hot while working with them, be careful!

Once cooled, package them up in clear bags and share with friends!