Thyme & Seasonings: Kitchen Wisdom for Joy and Personal Growth in Your Life

By Maria Bakera

Just like there's a time and place for everything, there's a thyme and a season for everything to happen!

Is everything feeling new in your life like spring, or are you struggling in winter? Thyme and Seasonings is a workbook series that will help you uncover which season you're in and how to grow, by teaching kitchen analogies su

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Oct 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781647734077

Maria Bakera

Maria Bakera has written articles since 2006, and Thyme and Seasonings is her first book publication. She has been gifted with writing analogies that help inspire and influence people. She has shared the teachings in this book with her chronic pain group Open Roof Ministries.

Book preview

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Thyme and Seasonings

Volume 1: Time to Make a Cake!

and

Volume 2: Time to Go in the Pan!

Maria Bakera

Trilogy Christian Publishers

TUSTIN, CA

Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive

Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2020 by Maria Bakera

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Cambridge Edition: 1769.

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

For information, address Trilogy Christian Publishing

Rights Department, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, Ca 92780.

Trilogy Christian Publishing/ TBN and colophon are trademarks of Trinity Broadcasting Network.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Trilogy Christian Publishing.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-64773-406-0

ISBN 978-1-64773-407-7 (ebook)

It takes time, ingredients, and seasonings for food to taste good, and in much the same way are the seasons of our lives. Life is filled with ups and downs. Some are good, and others are bad. It’s what you take out of these moments that transforms them into something new—or let’s say, a cake!

This book is about how to best use the times, seasons, and events of your life and blend them together so you can recognize, identify, and transform them so that they propel you into who you were made to be.

Contents

Dedication vii

Introduction ix

Thyme and Seasonsings, Volume 1

Time to Make a Cake!

Chapter 1. The Beginning 3

Chapter 2. Your Thoughts, Mind, and Emotions 7

Chapter 3. Your Purpose 13

Chapter 4. Another Kind of Hero 17

Chapter 5. Mise en Place (Cooking 101) 23

Chapter 6. Putting the Ingredients Together (Cooking 102) 31

Chapter 7. Time, Thyme, and Time! (Cooking 103) 37

Chapter 8. Sifting: Ugh, Do We Have To? (Cooking 104) 43

Chapter 9. It’s Sifting Time! ☺ (Cooking 105) 51

Chapter 10. I Mean, Really, Does It Make A Difference

(Cooking 106) 59

Chapter 11. Now It’s Time for the Ingredients (Cooking 107) 65

Chapter 12. Mixing, Fixing...Fishing? (Cooking 108) 71

Chapter 13. Flavor, Flavor, Flavor (Cooking 109) 79

Chapter 14. Time to Go in the Oven! ☺ (Cooking 110) 93

Chapter 15. A New Creation! (Cooking 111) 101

Chapter 16. His Masterpiece! (Cooking 112) 107

Thyme and Seasonsings, Volume 2

Time to Go in the Pan

Chapter 1. Here It Is 113

Chapter 2. Preparation: Brining and Marinades 115

Chapter 3. Let’s Get Started: Brining and Marinades! 121

Chapter 4. Faith: The Essential Ingredient 127

Chapter 5. Fear: The Deadly Destroyer 131

Chapter 6. The Demons Within 137

Chapter 7. Getting Seared? 145

Chapter 8. Searing...Ouch! 151

Chapter 9. Searing...Ssssss! 157

Chapter 10. What Now? 163

Chapter 11. Let the Healing Begin! 169

Chapter 12. Now Let’s Heal! 177

Chapter 13. Healing...How?! 185

Chapter 14. Going, Going, Gone! 195

Chapter 15. Preparing the Entrée 203

Chapter 16. Where Do We Go from Here? 211

Dedication

Jesus, thank You for helping me create this book. You are my Lord and my best friend. I love You very much, and I am thankful for everything You have done!

This book is dedicated to several special people in my life. They have helped me when I needed encouragement, strength, and faith in myself to finish this piece.

First, I would like to dedicate this book to my soul mate, Nathan. We have been through so much together. Thank you for always supporting me and believing in me. Even when I couldn’t trust myself, you did it for both of us, and you never gave up on me. I love you, Nathan!

Thank you, Mom, for having my back and watching out for me. You are not only my mother, but you are also my friend. To Joseph and Jackson, always believe in yourselves. I am so glad to know you, laugh with you, and see who you are becoming. With God’s help, you can accomplish anything!

Thank you to my Christ United family for all your support, love, and prayers. You have been a second home to me, and I will not forget you. I love you very much.

To my dearest family and friends, you have given me words of wisdom, prayed for me, and provided support and encouragement to me when I wanted to quit. You have been my cheerleaders, and I love you and thank you for what you have done. You are amazing!

Introduction

What is it that you want to do in life? Do you know what it is that you want to be, and do you know what is needed in your life? Life is about time and seasons, and sometimes we are given the ingredients in life before they are all supposed to mesh together. Why then do we receive these things in the order that we do?

It is because everything works together, even when it doesn’t make sense. Life can go from 30 to 50 miles per hour without a moment’s notice. I’ve been through several challenges. My father died when I was twenty-five years old. I have been divorced, dealt with medical issues, and experienced other losses. Many years ago, I started a chronic pain group called Open Roof Ministries. It is not easy being in charge of a ministry, and I learned a lot through this experience.

There are times when I would cry out to God, saying, Why, God, why? Now I know that it is everything that happens in your life that makes you into the person that God wants you to be. Not just the good—all of it!

That is the purpose of this book: to show you that some seasons are good and others aren’t. What matters, though, is what you take from these experiences, to build and to grow into the person you were meant to be. This book is meant for everyone because nobody has been without challenges—not even Jesus. He is perfect, and He faced a lot of difficulties.

The first volume of this series is called Time to Make a Cake! It is designed to help you find out where you are in life. Your identity is one of the most valuable and special parts of you. When you don’t know who you are, it is like a computer without a CPU or an artist without a paintbrush. You must recognize the tools you have and why God made you the way that He did. There is something in you that no one else has. You are priceless!

Volume 2 is called Time to Go in the Pan! This part is about facing and overcoming adversity. We’re going to talk about techniques more than ingredients. We will learn more insights about ourselves: what motivates us, why we do what we do, etc. Here we are going to talk about searing, brining, and a few other techniques that are important when making a dish.

The more you understand these steps, the more that you will begin to see the journey that you are in right now. There are different ways to describe the steps that you are facing, such as being pruned, put in the kiln, and sifted.

It’s important to remember that there’s more than one way to look at something. God is unique, and He doesn’t do anything the same way twice. As you read this book, it is my prayer that you will see more of who you are meant to be, what you are meant to do, and how you will do it.

Join me on this journey, and let’s unearth truths about ourselves together! As you read this book, imagine me sitting across from you speaking with you. It is my prayer that this book is a blessing in your life and in mine. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen!

—Maria

Thyme and Seasonings

Volume 1

Time to Make a Cake!

CHAPTER 1

The Beginning

In the beginning was the Word. God spoke and said, Let there be light (Genesis 1:3 NIV). This was the beginning of all things. It is the same with us. God knew who we were called to be before we were even born: Before I formed you in the womb I knew you (Jeremiah 1:5 NASB). We were made out of the earth, out of clay. It will take time and seasons, or Thyme and Seasonings, to be born, live, and die. Life consists of experiences and memories. It’s what you do with them that helps you figure out who you are and what you are meant to become.

Have you ever had moments in your life when nothing feels right, and you can’t figure out what was happening? Everything seemed blurry, and nothing made sense. Those are the seasons when we are in the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23:4 NASB). It might seem, feel, and smell like death, but it’s only a shadow. What is a shadow? It’s something that appears after the light shines, not before. Shadows can’t appear before God’s light. Jesus is Light, and nothing can appear before Him, not even death, or the appearance of it. So, if this is true, then why are we afraid?

I think part of the problem is that our culture gives us too many options. There are so many things to choose in our world: food, shelter, entertainment, etc. There are