Father's Day'11

The Sunday worship message this Father's Day was based on the question asked in Genesis 18:14a:   "Is anything too hard for the LORD?"   Of course, the answer is that "nothing is impossible for God; and the cross of Christ is the proof".  A really good reminder, whenever we feel like we are facing anything that seems "impossible".

Some other interesting points in the message:

• In vs 9, when Abraham was asked where his wife Sarah was, it indicated that this was God speaking, because only Abraham, Sarah, and God knew of the name change in the reminder of the covenant (Chp 17:5,15)
• In vs 6-9 are examples of what hospitality looks like:  taking initiative, giving guest honor, doing it willingly, and sacrificing something

Then for Father's Day dinner,  I made the following:

• Appetizers:   The Sweet&Sour Cucumber recipe from my "Chinese" cookbook turned out really well.  The honey and cilantro with the rice vinegar is a good mix - the best pickled vegetable  I've made.  As for the spinach, it was "normal"  (I did use a rice seasoning that had bonito, which added a different flavor)
• Seafood ClayPot:  I used the packaged mixed seafood, and the small pieces don't seem to be so visible in a small pot.   Also, I found that cooking the imitation crab meat over a long time makes it puffy with a strange texture.   In the future, I would use fresh seafood (maily fish and shrimp, probably).  The monk abalone worked well, though.  And, I added napa cabbage, snap peas, and tofu; which are all fine.   Also, it doesn't require such a long time to cook in the clay pot - not like it is for the crock pot.  It is also recommended to fry everything, rather than just boiling from cold.
• The Mao Pao Tofu, Orange Chicken, and Soybean Sprouts were just the normal recipes
• I baked the Teriyaki Salmon (400 degF for 30 min) with teriyaki sauce, green onion, garlic, and ginger wrapped in foil.  It came out a little tough; but, flavor was okay.
• For the stirfry vegetables, I made a mixture of baby bok choy, carrots, mushroom, and snap peas.  It was okay
• For soup, it was a mild napa cabbage, mushroom, and carrots mix

I did get to use my new set of serving dishes, and those were nice.  I like the varied shapes and sizes of the platters; and the ones with depth were good for dishes with sauce.