The Smell of Prayer. Why You Need Wheat Germ. Update.

 For "Scripture Sunday":

The Smell of Prayer

An Amazing Fact: "One of the three gifts offered to Jesus shortly after His birth was frankincense. It is a fragrant resin that grows in some of the world’s harshest places—Oman, Yemen, and Somalia. The spindly trees themselves are actually disappointing to behold. They are lowly, twisted, thorny things with fat prickly branches spreading out into small crinkly leaves.

Yet as soon as an incision is made into the silvery bark, brilliant drops of white resin ooze from the wound. These drops, known as luban, are left on the tree for two weeks to dry. Then the little pearls are gathered in the early morning. From Rome to India, frankincense was deemed one of the most prized substances in the civilized world. It was essential for a host of uses, ranging from religious to cosmetic to medicinal. Besides its lovely fragrance, frankincense is attributed with healing powers, which range from treatment of depression and irritability to ailments such as eczema.

The frankincense trade peaked in the Roman Empire in the first century. (Nero burned it by the ton at religious ceremonies.) To supply the copious need, this rare resin had to be carried overland via long and grueling journeys. Eventually, incense caravans grew in size to 3,000 camels in a single procession. Even today, satellite images reveal faint traces of these ancient caravan trails carved in the wilderness. The trade was so lucrative that Alexander the Great planned to invade Arabia in an effort to control and tax the roads, a plan thwarted only by his death.

For religious purposes, many great civilizations in the ancient world believed that prayers could only be carried to heaven in the smoke of sacred incense. It was also used in the sanctuary service to depict prayers rising before the God of Israel.
 
One of the most beautiful prayers in Scripture is found in Daniel 9:3–19. Read through this passage and make it your own prayer to the Lord. Let it rise like incense up to heaven, a sweet savor before God. "
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. Revelation 8:4
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Why You Need Wheat Germ

"Wheat germ is the most vitamin- and mineral-rich part of the wheat kernel. In fact, the germ is actually the embryo of the wheat plant. This embryo will eventually nourish the new wheat plan. This is the reason why it has so many wonderful nutrients.
Unfortunately, this kernel, which includes the wheat germ, is tragically removed during the refining of whole wheat grains to white flour. In the manufacturing process, it is removed because its healthy oils can go rancid quickly, so removing it makes it easier for food production companies to keep wheat in storage much longer. The germ itself only makes up about 3% of the kernel, and you need over 50 pounds of wheat to get one pound of wheat germ.
Why Is Wheat Germ So Good for You?
Because it is meant to feed the new plant, wheat germ is packed with good nutrients. Two tablespoons of raw wheat germ have about 1.5 grams of unsaturated fat, 9 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of protein, 2 grams dietary fiber, 2 grams of sugars, no cholesterol and about 60 calories. This is plenty of protein and fiber.
Plus, it has a number of other healthy nutrients for your body:

B vitamins
Wheat germ is packed with important B vitamins, such as folate, vitamin B1 (thiamin) and vitamin B6. B vitamins are important for the heart, to make proper mood chemicals for our brain, and are critical for cardiovascular health.

Fiber
Wheat germ contains lots of fiber, which is necessary for good blood sugar balance, cholesterol control, intestinal health and detoxification."
More at: http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/why-you-need-wheat-germ    By Pina LoGiudice ND, LAc and Peter Bongiorno ND, LAc  Directors of Inner Source Health
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Update:-

Open Live Writer and I aren't as happy as we should be.  I wish the old Live Writer was still available.

My new foster cat is a sweetie, but he and Nala don't play.  They tolerate each other, and sometimes go ring around the roses around the kitchen island.  Twice they had a fisticuff fight, but I hope that they will play together soon.  It was why I got him because Nala was lonely and needed a playmate instead of asking me to play with her any time I sat at my desk.  At least my time at the desk has been rewarding, as I have sold some stuff.

As he was finished with that re-siding job, Jay and I have been doing a bit of work to the guest house. 
One morning we cleaned up the whole area and put all the used 2 x 4's, cleaned of their nails, in a nice stack at the side of the guest house and covered them with a tarp.

Another morning, as the main idea is to keep the rain water from going under the building, we have been sinking cement boards (Hardie Soffit boards) on edge into the ground around the corner where the rain runs off the road and cementing the boards in.  We haven't had a hard rain since that part was done, so we don't know how effective it is.

Jay didn't go to church again, so I left early so that I could help the pastor's wife with the potluck.  I took a scalloped new potato, sliced turkey, onion, and mozzarella pearls casserole and a banana pudding made with lady fingers.

The Bible readings were Exo.13:1-17:16, Judges 4:4-5:31 and John 6:22-40 and the Message was about Truth and the Spiritual Body.  I went to the kitchen during the Message to put my buttered crumbs on the casserole before it went in the oven to warm up, but I heard the Message in there.


We have had some warm weather, and some freezing weather, but it is now a nice sunny day.