levade | Reading

ODB: God’s Tender Care

Sep 14, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 14, 2025

He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart. Isaiah 40:11

Sitting in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit, I visited with a mother as her newborn baby cuddled up against her chest. In this technologically advanced medical facility, the doctors had recommended a very low-tech “prescription” to improve and strengthen the child’s health—the new mom was to spend extended periods of time simply holding her daughter.

There’s almost nothing like the overwhelming love and tender compassion of a parent providing healing comfort for a child. We see this powerful imagery in the prophet Isaiah’s description of God with His people.

Even after prophesying impending exile for the nation of Israel because they’d rejected God (Isaiah 39:5-7), Isaiah emphasized to the people that God still loved them and would always provide for them. God’s tender compassion and secure care is evident in the beautiful metaphor where He is described as a shepherd who, much like a loving father, gathers His sheep “in his arms and carries them close to his heart” (40:11).

God’s presence grants us peace and protection and reminds us that He carries us close to His heart, like a newborn baby with its mother. As He “gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (v. 29), the Spirit’s healing comfort allows us to meet the challenges of each day.

— Lisa M. Samra

What comes to mind when you think about the love of a mother for her newborn baby? How has God’s protective and loving care strengthened you?

Heavenly Father, I'm so grateful that You hold me close to Your heart.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: hopeful

sparowe

ODB: Searching for Mercy

Sep 13, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 13, 2025

READ: Exodus 16:11-16

Then you will know that I am the Lord your God. Exodus 16:12

Her fans knew her as Nightbirde. Singer-songwriter Jane Kristen Marczewski won a following in 2021 on a popular TV talent show. In 2017, she’d been diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer. In 2018, she went into remission. She started touring, but months later the cancer returned, giving her little chance of survival. Amazingly she recovered and was declared cancer-free. But on February 19, 2022, Nightbirde died.

During her difficult journey, she blogged, “I remind myself that I’m praying to the God who let the Israelites stay lost for decades. They begged to arrive . . . but instead He let them wander, answering prayers they didn’t pray. . . . Every morning, He sent them mercy-bread from heaven . . . . I look for the mercy-bread . . . The Israelites called it manna, which means ‘what is it?’ That’s the same question I’m asking . . . . There’s mercy here somewhere—but what is it?”

The exodus story reveals much about God’s mercy. First, His mercy was promised to the Israelites. “You will be filled with bread” (Exodus 16:12). And second, His mercy may surprise us. “They did not know what it was” (v. 15). Mercy often doesn’t look like what we think. But it’s mercy nonetheless. For the Israelites, it looked like morning manna. For Nightbirde, she wrote of the gift of a blanket from a friend, and her mother’s hands.

— John Blase

How has God’s mercy surprised you? What might it mean for you to look for mercy today?

Merciful God, thank You for Your mercy. Please help me search for it. For further study, read A Child’s Compassion.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: thoughtful

birdylion posting in

fancake

Fandom: Leverage
Pairings/Characters: Alec Hardison/Parker/Eliot Spencer, Peggy Milbank, Amy Palavi
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 21452 words
Creator Links:

page_runner
Theme: food & cooking, casefic, competence, outsider pov

Summary:
She was only here for a long weekend, using this convention as an excuse to see Alice for the first time in over a year, or using Alice as an excuse to get away for a convention, or using both as a reason to finally take a vacation, because it was about damn time.
At least, that was the original plan.

Reccer's Notes:
Peggy Milbank is a side character who appears in 2 episodes: once when Parker's alias "Alice White" gets called in for jury duty, and once when Parker, Sophie and Tara sneak into a ball at an embassy for an event where Peggy does the catering.

This fic has her meeting the team once more, and has her involved in a job in Portland when they investigate a sketchy business man who drives independent food cart owners out of business, not shying away from inflicting violence on them in the process.

While the team does their thing, Peggy offers to take over the food cart, and does so with remarkable competence - learning a whole new cuisine on the fly. Food plays a big role in the whole story, because of their case, but also because now there are several people in one place who care a lot about food. It's also about a community of food cart owners. And just like Eliot found a way out of his violent life by learning how to cook, there's a side plot in this story how he does that for others too.

While the ship Eliot/Parker/Hardison isn't the main focus, it is definitely in the background, and Peggy's perspective is a really nice outsider POV on them, so I tagged it as such as well.

Fanwork Links: The Food Cart Job on ao3

birdylion posting in

fancake

Fandom: Leverage
Pairings/Characters: Maggie Collins, Eliot Spencer, Alec Hardison, Parker (Leverage), Amy Palavi
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 711 words
Creator Links:

Hagar
Theme: food & cooking, gen

Summary: Her ex-husband's associates are occasionally useful. For example, when Maggie has a really bad feeling about her latest client.

Reccer's Notes:
Maggie visits the brewpub looking for help regarding a client of hers. It's lovely how the food she is served there acts as kind of character description for the relationship between her, Eliot, Hardison and Parker.

Fanwork Links: What friends are for on ao3

sparowe

ODB: Guarding Thoughts in Christ

Sep 12, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 12, 2025

READ: Philippians 4:4-9

Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure . . . think about such things. Philippians 4:8

Lap after lap, Katie Ledecky was in a familiar spot during the 1500-meter freestyle race at the 2024 Paris Olympics. For some fifteen minutes, she was far ahead of the rest of the swimmers and alone with her thoughts. What was Ledecky thinking about during the long race? In an interview conducted immediately following her gold-medal-winning performance in which she set a new Olympic record, Ledecky said she was thinking about her training partners and saying their names in her head.

Distance swimmers aren’t the only ones who need to focus their minds on the right things. We as believers in Jesus also need to guard our thoughts throughout our faith journey.

The apostle Paul encouraged the Philippian church to “rejoice in the Lord,” not be “anxious about anything, but pray about everything (Philippians 4:4, 6). The result? “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (v. 7). Jesus, the Prince of Peace, helps put our worries and troubles in perspective.

Paul also encouraged believers: “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (v. 8).

As we go about our day, let’s be aware of our thoughts. When we see God’s hand in our life, we can count our blessings and worship Him.

— Nancy Gavilanes

What have you been thinking about lately? How can you honor God with your thoughts?

Dear God, may my thoughts be pleasing to You.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: thoughtful

pumpkinkingmod posting in

trickortreatex

First, if you nominated Batman AMT, Digimon Adventure, or Sonic AMT, please check out this query post!

Second, signups are now open! 🎃 They will close on September 18 at 7:59 PM EDT/23:59 UTC.

Please review the signup instructions in this post before signing up.

The community challenge post will be up sometime this week.

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full_metal_ox posting in

fancake

Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi
Pairings/Characters: Gen; M/M; Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian; Lan Yuan, Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, OCs
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 2,442 words
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply, anonymous author, autobiographical incident, Chinese diaspora feels, inappropriate choice of rabbit food, racist microaggression, secondhand embarrassment
Creator Tags:
Based on a True Story, yes my mom really couldn't find a basic cake and so we had to go with bread, Fluff, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Baking, Icing, Frosting, AHAHAHAAHAHAHAHH THOSE ARE TAGS, Michael's (the store) makes a big appearance, Father's Day, but idc if it's not father's day yet, I was inspired, Inspired by Real Events
Creator Links: none
Theme: Food & Cooking, Cultural Differences, Family, Fluff, Modern AU, Slice of Life

Summary: In which Sizhui and his Baba ice a loaf of bread for Father's Day (plus some angst, but we don't really have to get into specifics do we?)

Author’s Notes:

something i wrote while having writers block

enjoy

(also stay safe and wash your hands and quit going outside if you are)

this isn't really asian rep it just happened when i was 10 and i typed for two hours also its may and here we are with a fictionalized crackheaded version of what happened

yes there were mean girls

… lan zhan's the one getting the cake because his personality's the closest to my dad's but like my dad cut off the frosting and we ended up using the bread for other stuff

Reccer’s Notes: The Chinese-American author posted this anonymously on 8 May 2020 for U.S. Asian and Pacific Islander Month, apologizing that “this isn’t really asian rep”; given that the canon creator is Asian, her target audience is Asian, the characters are Asian, and the OP is Asian fictionalizing their Asian family’s real-life experience, I personally don’t see how it can avoid being Asian Rep.

The author’s self-consciousness—both at the time of writing and in retrospect—is flying from the ramparts, and arguably an integral part of the story. They never did emerge from anonymity, and they’ve since deleted the story—which is a shame, because this is a valid slice-of-life in the Lynda Barry vein, with the OP’s imaginary friends as proxies. Since there seems to be no identifying information that could be used to trace them, I don’t think posting a Wayback Machine capture will expose them to further embarrassment.

And let’s not be like the Mean Girls at Michael’s, okay?

Fanwork links: a loaf of bread is not a substitute for a blank cake

Current Mood: listless

pronker posting in

fancake

Fandom: Dark Shadows

Pairings/Characters: Roger Collins, CC Female, Which Would Give Away Too Much If Named

Rating: G

Length: 2,394 words

Creator Links: AO3 Profile

Theme: Food & Cooking

Summary: Roger meets a friend for dinner who shares his discomfort regarding marriages.

Reccer's Notes: Roger remains one of my favorite Dark Shadows characters, acted superbly by Louis Edmonds, a veteran of stage costume dramas. He always wears period clothing with impeccable insouciance despite figure-hugging trousers, wing collars, and Victorian handlebar moustaches. In this fic, we see how much food presents an opportunity for revealing, soul searching reflections with a sympathetic friend, in fact so much that they don't even eat until the last paragraph or so. The universality of sharing food provides a letting down of the hair, so to speak, voluminous in his friend's case and not-so-much in his. There's an absolutely delightful twist at fic's end. Also, the AO3 profile mentions Author's website, WickerManStudios which contains stories along with more personal content.

Fanwork Links: Mysterious Circumstances

Current Mood: awake
Current Location: comatose in bed
Current Music: birdsong

sparowe

ODB: Lamenting to God

Sep 11, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 11, 2025

READ: Lamentations 1:20-22

See, Lord, how distressed I am! I am in torment within, and in my heart I am disturbed. Lamentations 1:20

I viewed the opening displays of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum in New York City with curiosity but kept my emotions in check. That changed when we entered the inner exhibit, which the curators have wisely closed off from children and those wanting to shield themselves from the more heartrending images. As I encountered story after story of heartbreak and loss, waves of lament rose within me.

When we witness or remember such destruction and pain, we can join the cries of those who have voiced their distress to God. This includes the words of anguish found in Lamentations, which many scholars believe the prophet Jeremiah wrote after the destruction of Jerusalem. In the tightly formed structure of this poem, he releases his sorrow and grief over the pain of God’s people: “See, Lord, how distressed I am! I am in torment within, and in my heart I am disturbed” (Lamentations 1:20). And yet he looks to God as the ultimate judge, knowing that only He can deal with the sins and destruction: “Let all their wickedness come before you” (v. 22).

This kind of honest crying out to God can help us to grapple with painful atrocities such as what happened on September 11, 2001, or other current-day evil deeds. We look to God for help, hope, comfort, and justice.

— Amy Boucher Pye

When you witness wickedness, how do you keep your heart tender before God? How might He lead you to pray for those who are hurting today?

God of truth and love, I know that Your heart breaks over the pain in the world. Please envelop me in Your grace and mercy and heal my wounds.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: thoughtful

mific posting in

fancake

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: Gen. Teyla Emmagan & Rodney McKay & John Sheppard & Ronon Dex
Rating: G
Length: 7229
Content Notes: No AO3 warnings apply.
Creator Links: fiercelydreamed on AO3, anatsuno on AO3, anatsuno on Audiofic Archive
Themes: Food and cooking, Team as family, Friendship, Hurt/comfort

Summary: The thing was, John had never been good at patient, and Teyla looked like okay was a couple galaxies over from wherever she was now.

Reccer's Notes: A touching hurt/comfort story set after the team rescues Teyla from Michael. Although Teyla and her baby are back in Atlantis, she's slow to recover and remains low and depleted. Rodney has a plan to cheer her up, though, involving food, and he ropes John in to help. It was I think written in the hiatus before the last season so a few minor details have been jossed, but that doesn't matter. This is the best sort of found family story, with them all rallying around to support Teyla. Lovely.

Fanwork Links: Battle Potato, and there's an excellent podfic read by anatsuno.

pumpkinkingmod posting in

trickortreatex

I have some questions for the nominators of the below fandoms! Please reply by Saturday, Sept 13, 11:59 AM EDT, or I'll choose how to handle them without input.

Note that this deadline does overlap with signups, which will open later today (Sept 11). So if you intend to sign up with any of these fandoms, you may want to wait a couple days - my apologies for the inconvenience!

Batman - All Media Types
There are various Batmans already in the tag set. Can this be merged into DCU (Comics)?

Digimon - All Media Types
Digimon Adventure
There are two overlapping Digimon nominations. Can the AMT nominator pick a specific version? And does the Digimon Adventure nominator mean the original anime or the 2020 reboot? (or does the fandom treat them interchangeably?)

Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games) is already in the tag set. Can this be merged with that, or can you pick a different specific version?

---

Tron - All Media Types
Tron: Uprising is already in the tag set. Can you pick a specific version?

The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Other Zeldas are already in the tag set. Can you pick a specific version?

Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
The TV show and video games are already in the tag set. Can you pick a specific version?

mossy_bench

(i.e., things I hope will merit dedicated write-ups on my journal, should I make enough headway)

Making fanmixes in a post-8tracks era
This is a topic I want to write a proper post about after I've done some more sleuthing. I'm not sure how long that will take, but hopefully I'll have something to show for it by the end of the year.

I adored 8tracks and was devastated when they disappeared, and there still isn't a good replacement for fanmixes. I loved the playlists curated by actual human beings with intention. I would really love to have a Ryuji/Daigo playlist to listen to as I write, but finding songs that actually fit them has been like pulling teeth.

This relates to a larger issue, which is that I find my current music discovery process deeply unsatisfactory. It feels like every method is either too passive, or too glacial. Algorithmic recommendations will just feed you things based on what you've already listened to; picking through databases like Rate Your Music and AllMusic feels very random and inefficient because there's just SO much, and yet they have their blind spots genre- and language-wise; music blogs and forums, as well as indie radio stations, are similarly such a crapshoot and I guess I still haven't found the right ones. And nothing has been all that helpful for locating songs that fit specific themes and dynamics for fanmix purposes. But I'm still testing the waters. And I hope to have more to share about what works and what doesn't for fanmix development today, both when locating songs and when figuring out a place to host and share them.

Kinktober or Schlocktober, using Hello From the Magic Tavern
I'm pretty close to being caught up on this long-ass fantasy podcast. My current hope is that I'll be completely caught up by the end of the month, and that I'll have accumulated enough ideas in the meantime to make a proper go at either Kinktober or Schlocktober. Maybe I'll vacillate between the two. There are so many things in the show that are ripe for cracky PWPs—it's such a huge, silly sandbox to play in. I hope this serves dual purposes: creating more fic for a fandom that has very few, and giving myself a real writing challenge after falling off the wagon for a bit.

Working through my AO3 Marked for Later
Enough! Later is now!
And then relatedly, updating my Calibre fic downloads with any fic I've bookmarked since the last time I did a pass.

Things on the backburner
Topics I've thought about journaling on, but not sure when they'll happen:
- My favorite Pokemon and the merch I've accumulated for it
- Examining the submerged iceberg that is my drawerfic
- Reflections on my time in non-English-language fandom (specifically, trying to do fandom in my heritage language)
- Reviews/reactions to various media I've gotten through in recent months
- How I first got into fandom

chibifukurou posting in

fancake

Fandom:The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System
Pairings/Characters: Luo Binghe/Shen Yuan
Rating: T
Length: 14.5k
Creator Links: CheckersXIV
Theme: Food and cooking, (Five) Things, Complete AU

Summary: Luo Binghe has accepted his life for what it is: a dull repetition of a burned-out passion for a job. Back when he started his "Not Your Mother's" cooking channel on youtube, he had been ready to face the world. Now he just wants the world out of his face. When he hits one more bump in the road, he can't really say it's too surprising considering that the universe seems to just hate him.

And yet, the universe sends him to Shen Yuan.
_
Or 5 times Shen Yuan accidentally distracts Luo Binghe's attention from his videos, and the one time Luo Binghe gets his.

Reccer's Notes: This theme was a good excuse to go back for a reread. I love a fic where the point isn't so much falling in love as growing into the kind of person ready to love and be Loved.

5+1 is always a fun framing device. Particularly when combined with in universe comment section. And I love that this js a broad world with various people who know each other from various settings in it.

Fanwork Links: The Way to a Man's Heart is His Stomach

22degreehalo posting in

fancake

Fandom: The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System
Pairings/Characters: Luo Binghe/Shen Yuan
Rating: T
Length: 143,334
Creator Links:

mellicindi
Theme: Food & Cooking, (Secret) Hobbies, Asexual & Demisexual Characters, Alternate Universe - Modern, Book Fandoms, Canon LGBTQ+ Characters, Characters of Color, Disability, Families of Choice, Favorite Fanworks, No Canon Required, Novel-Length Fic, Trauma & Recovery.

Summary: Shen Yuan isn't lonely. He's just overseas in a new city, trying to muddle his way through a business degree, and dealing with the side effects of his stupid intestines trying to kill him. So, maybe he sometimes watches ASMR to cope with his too-quiet apartment. Maybe he has a little bit of a parasocial-relationship-thing going on with one particular cooking ASMR channel. It's 2016, who doesn't? The point is, he's content with his quiet life.

And then Shang Qinghua strong-arms him into watching one Hallmark Christmas movie, and it all goes to hell.

Or: Shen Yuan is a Hallmark movie protagonist, Luo Binghe is a Lifetime movie protagonist, and somehow they make it work.

Reccer's Notes: I read this fic over three days right in the middle of Battleship and it instantly became one of my favourite fanfics of all time. I could seriously gush for hours about this fic and its themes: the recurring thread of food as a love language (especially given protagonist Shen Yuan's digestive disability he's too self-conscious to talk openly about), the differing nature of familial, romantic, and friendship bonds and the varying privileges and presumptions behind each, this Luo Binghe's long-term trauma that manifests in the best goddamn depiction of Borderline Personality Disorder I've seen outside Crazy Ex Girlfriend seemingly entirely on accident - and among all of that, it's just a goddamn well-written story, incredibly easy to read and funny and heartfelt and true to its characters while being 100% readable fandom-blind and just - if any of the above appeals to you, I really can't advise anything other than to read it ASAP. <333

Fanwork Links: Life is (not) a Hallmark Movie

sparowe

Surprises

Note to readers: This is an alternate reading from the Three Year Lectionary, and may not match up with the readings your church uses this Sunday.

1 Corinthians 1:18-25 – For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

If there’s one thing I can count on with God, it’s that I turn out to be wrong about stuff, all the time. I look at the past, and I think I know what He’s doing In my life—and then things take a sharp left turn, and I’m confused again. I thought He was doing X, and I built my plans around that—and it turns out He was doing Y, and I’m back to start again.

After so many years, I’m starting (finally!) to get used to it. Because I’m not going to change Him, after all; and it’s a lot more interesting to live with a God who’s smarter than I am and far more creative. The answers He comes up with are usually things I wouldn’t have imagined at all.

Take Jesus. Who would expect the most high God to humble Himself and come into our world as a tiny baby? A helpless baby—because He was completely dependent on Mary to eat and breathe and carry Him during the nine months of her pregnancy, and then on Mary and Joseph both to protect and keep Him during His childhood—which included living as a refugee in Egypt. Why did God risk it all that way? He’s just like that.

And then His ministry—and His self-chosen suffering and death on the cross. Why should the holy, immortal God choose to carry our sin and shame into death for our sakes? And yet He did. And the resurrection, which broke the power of death over everyone who believes in Jesus, forever—because we cannot be separated from Him, if He lives (and He does), then we, too, will live with Him forever. He has chosen to tie Himself to us for all eternity—not just as our Savior but as our close relative—for He has not given up His human nature.

Paul is right to be amazed: “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counselor?” … For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen (Romans 11:33-34, 36).

WE PRAY: Lord, what You have done for me amazes me. Thank You! Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Current Mood: thoughtful

sparowe

Snakes

Note to readers: This is an alternate reading from the Three Year Lectionary, and may not match up with the readings your church uses this Sunday.

Numbers 21:4-9 – From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.

It doesn’t look like there was any way to avoid getting bitten by the snakes. Even after the people repented, the snakes were still there, and they had to cope with them. And maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, because that’s the way it is in our lives, too. When we do something wrong and stupid, we still have to deal with the consequences, even after we repent. That broken relationship, that lost reputation, that fine or jail time, is still there.

But God takes away the worst bit, which is kind of Him. That would be the death that results from sin. In the case of the Israelites, all they have to do when they get bitten is to look at the metal snake Moses has put on a flagpole. That’s a really weird way to heal people, but it does make it super clear who actually believes in God’s promise. Because they’re the ones who look and live.

So what about us? We, too, get bitten by the snakes of evil that seem to be everywhere in our lives. We live in a broken world and we ourselves are broken by sin. But God has given us Jesus to heal us. And if we look to Him—the One who loves us so much He gave Himself up to death for our sakes on that cross—we will live forever. Because He has risen from the dead, and He has promised to raise us, too. And He never lies.

WE PRAY: Lord, help me to trust You and look to You for help and forgiveness, every day of my life. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Current Mood: thoughtful

denynothing1 posting in

fancake

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairings/Characters: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Rating: Explicit
Length: 22,349 words
Creator Links: lamardeuse on AO3
Theme: Food & Cooking

Summary: Author's Summary: In which Rodney is a famous TV chef and John is a lobster fisherman. I am not even kidding.

Reccer's Notes: This is a complete SGA AU featuring Rodney, John, Ronon, and Teyla as the only SGA characters, surrounded by a community of OCs, most of whom are women. The writer notes, "[This is] Pure AU crack. You have been warned. Based on my forty-second reading of the back cover of a random Harlequin and my internalization of romantic comedy conventions through innumerable films and books for the past thirty-odd years."

And the story is exactly as advertised: a light-hearted, rom-comical, persnickety fish-out-of-water meets laid-back fisherman romance.

Fanwork Links: story on AO3

Current Mood: hungry

pumpkinkingmod posting in

trickortreatex

Nominations are closed, but please don't worry if your tags haven't been processed yet. The schedule includes three days for me to finish that up before signups open :)

If I have any questions about the lingering tags, I'll make a clarification post, so stay tuned!

sparowe

Secure Steps

Psalm 40:1-3 – I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.

This psalm of thanksgiving and praise begins in a pit of destruction and a miry bog. Whatever his exact troubles may have been, the psalmist felt trapped, as if in a pit, or sinking into a bog, a swamp. But he waited patiently and prayed for help. Then the Lord lifted him up and set him down on solid rock. The psalmist responded to his rescue with a new song of praise to God. When others heard the song and saw the power of God to save, they too would come to trust in the Lord. These verses begin in a pit of despair and end with rescue, praise, and witness.

These psalm verses give us a preview of our Lord’s saving work. The Lord who rescues and saves allowed Himself to be trapped in a pit of destruction. Accused by His enemies of crimes He did not commit, He was mired in a bog of hate. For us Jesus went down into the pit of death. In patient, willing love, He endured the cross, knowing there would be no immediate rescue from death. He died and was buried but then, on the third day after His death, the rescue came. Jesus was raised up from the pit of destruction. Alive forever, His nail-scarred feet stood again on solid ground in triumph over sin, death, and the devil. That victory, won for us, puts a new song in our mouths, a shout of praise to our crucified and living Lord: “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!”

We have shared the psalmist’s experience. We know what it feels like to be trapped in a pit of destruction and despair, to feel like we are caught in quicksand and sinking fast. Every effort of our own to get out only makes us sink more quickly. We cry out in prayer and beg to be rescued from the despair, strife, worry, and all of the troubles that drag us down. The Lord Jesus—who endured the cross for us and helps us to bear our own crosses—will lift us up again. Our lives rest securely on Jesus, the Cornerstone and Foundation of our faith. We follow Him, walking with firm, secure steps. While we walk, we have a new song in our hearts, a song of praise to the Lord who rescues and saves. That song is our witness in the world, and we pray that all who hear it will “see and fear and put their trust in the Lord!”

WE PRAY: Lord Jesus, let my praise be a witness to Your love. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Carol Geisler.

Current Mood: thoughtful

sparowe

ODB: Dependence on God

Sep 7, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 7, 2025

READ: Mark 10:13-16

The kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Mark 10:14

“Oh, you look so serious!” I said to my ten-week-old granddaughter Leilani. She was studying my face with a knitted brow as I talked to her. “I’d be serious too,” I continued, “looking at this world. But you know what? Mama loves you, Daddy loves you, and Baba and Papa [our nicknames as grandparents] love you too. But best of all, Jesus loves you! And that means everything!”

Then it happened. Like a cloud letting the sun through, the furrow left her brow and her little face lit up with a smile that melted my heart. Like most grandparents, I’d like to believe she understood me, though that may be a stretch. But perhaps she caught some of the joy behind my words. The simple, innocent joy that shone on her face brought to mind Jesus’ words that we must “receive the kingdom of God like a little child” (Mark 10:15).

Jesus said those words as “people were bringing little children” to Him so He might “place his hands on them” and bless them (vv. 13, 16). But “the disciples rebuked them,” thinking Jesus too busy or important. That troubled Him (vv. 14-15).

Children are naturally humble and dependent. To receive God’s kindness to us in Christ, we too must turn from pride and admit our need for Him in everything. As we do, He exchanges this world’s hopelessness with the promise of life with God forever. And that should make us smile.

— James Banks

In what ways do you need God? How can you declare your dependence on Him today?

Abba Father, please help me to humbly live in Your kindness today and also share it with others. Learn more about having a personal relationship with God.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: touched

hhimring

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mossy_bench

This was my main goal for the weekend, lol, and I achieved it. Still working through how I feel about some of it, but these were my immediate reactions. Spoilers, obviously.

( Read more... )

All in all, I was genuinely moved by Y0's and Y2's endings, even though those were also soapy as hell, but Y3 did not quite reach those heights, unfortunately. Still a lot of fun. I liked seeing Kiryu weep.

spook_me

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sparowe

ODB: A Sense of God’s Justice

Sep 6, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 6, 2025

READ: Psalm 109:6-9, 26-29

May this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers, to those who speak evil of me. Psalm 109:20

The news was horrific. A live-in foreign domestic helper had been so ill-treated by the family she worked for that she died. The employers were eventually jailed, but I felt it wasn’t enough. They should have suffered the same horrors they put that poor girl through, I thought, and then put to death. Then I wondered if my anger had crossed the line. Was I wrong to think such things?

Reading Psalm 109 gave me an insight into our natural sense of justice. David, for one, wrestled with anger toward those who wronged the poor and needy. “May his days be few . . . . May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow,” he charged (vv. 8-9).

But King David didn’t take revenge on these men—even though he had the power to. Instead, he turned to God as the true source of justice and deliverance. “May this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers, to those who speak evil of me,” he said. “Save me according to your unfailing love” (vv. 20, 26).

I believe God made us with an inherent sense of justice, for it reflects His own character. And we can express our feelings honestly. But ultimately we’re to leave judgment and punishment to Him—trusting Him to bring justice in His time and way. The apostle Paul states things clearly: “Do not take revenge . . . but leave room for God’s wrath” (Romans 12:19).

— Leslie Koh

What news or events disturb you? How can you pray for those in need and for victims of injustice?

Dear God, You are the all-seeing, righteous God. May Your justice prevail so that all may come to fear and worship You.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: contemplative

denynothing1 posting in

fancake

Fandom: Hockey RPF
Pairings/Characters: Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin
Rating: Explicit
Length: 10,281 words / 1hr podfic
Creator Links: thehoyden on AO3, exmanhater on AO3
Theme: Food & Cooking

Summary: Unlike Nealsy, Evgeni can cook his own food when he has it. He’s perfectly capable of making breakfast. His kitchen is well-equipped, and he’s got some good basic cooking skills down. In short, he is not going to starve to death if left to his own devices.

None of this seems to matter to Sid.

Reccer's Notes: This is a story about seduction by breakfast. As the title says, there is a clear game plan at work here -- possibly more than one. Much of the charm of the story is in how oblivious the determined seducer is to the effect he is having and how bewildered his target is that it's not clear how willing he is to be seduced.

Bonus: the descriptions of the ever-more-elaborate breakfasts are fantastic.

There's an accompanying podfic by exmanhater that is a delicious listen as well.

Fanwork Links: story on AO3, podfic on AO3

Current Mood: hungry

mific posting in

fancake

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, Evan Lorne, Simpson, Radek Zelenka, Laura Cadman, Sam Carter, Daniel Jackson/Jack O'Neill, Stackhouse/ Markham
Rating: Explicit
Length: 7963
Content Notes: no AO3-type warnings apply
Creator Links: yin's old site on Wayback, yin_again on AO3, yin on LJ
Themes: Food and cooking, First time, Complete AU

Summary: Rodney looked at the prep area and nodded decisively. "How do you feel about waffles?"
"I love waffles," John said with a grin.

Reccer's Notes: This is the initial and main story in yin's Clean Plate Club 'verse, in which John's a sought-after photographer and Rodney's a chef turned food stylist (he prepares and arranges food for perfect photo shoots). It's a fun meet-cute with clever dialogue, great characterisation and a very hot first time. It's enormous fun, even if the "hero food" meticulously arranged by Rodney is actually dressed with glycerine and motor oil!

Fanwork Links: Clean Plate Club on Wayback (scroll down a little and you'll see this fic and the others in the 'verse.)
And yin also recorded it as a podfic, here.

sparowe

ODB: The Freedom God Provides

Sep 5, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 5, 2025

READ: Deuteronomy 5:28-29, 32-33

Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper. Deuteronomy 5:33

A team of landscape architects studied the effects of providing a fence around a preschool playground. On playgrounds without fences, children tended to gather close to the school building and their teacher and didn’t stray away. But on fenced-in playgrounds, they enjoyed the entire area. The researchers concluded that boundaries can create a greater sense of freedom. This seems counterintuitive to so many of us who think boundaries restrict enjoyment. Yet fences can provide freedom!

God underlines the freedom His boundaries provide for us. In offering the Ten Commandments to Israel, He promised that a “prosperous” life would result from living within His divine boundaries. “Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess” (Deuteronomy 5:33). Here the concept of prosperity includes a life lived with good results—a life of quality.

Jesus, who fulfilled the law with His death on the cross, proclaimed, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). Indeed, God’s boundaries are for our good. “Fences” can free us to enjoy the life God created us to experience with Him.

— Elisa Morgan

In what ways do God’s commands free you? How can you better embrace the freedom such boundaries offer?

Dear God, thank You for the wise parameters You put in place for my good.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Current Mood: thoughtful

denynothing1 posting in

fancake

Fandom: One Direction
Pairings/Characters: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan/Zayne Malik
Rating: Explicit
Length: 81,459 words / 9.5hr podfic
Creator Links: hattalove on AO3, frecklebomb on AO3
Theme: Food & Cooking

Summary: Louis couldn’t be prouder of his bake, but there’s something—there’s something. Something about Harry Styles and the earnest way he measures, pours, mixes, scrapes. Something about the tip of his tongue poking out of his mouth as he knocks the air out of his batter.

Or, a Great British Bake Off AU in which Louis cares about winning and winning only, Harry is made of sunshine and rainbow sprinkles, and Niall sticks his nose into other people's business. Also featuring Liam as Louis's best friend-slash-concerned mother, and Zayn as a macaron connoisseur.

Reccer's Notes: I love GBBO AUs to pieces and this is one of the very best I've found. This story features characters in their early 20s who love baking for a variety of reasons. They are mostly charming but can be very stressed and vulnerable. They find joy in being good at what they can do with batter and dough, but can also be tough on themselves as well as others. IOW you've seen these characters on the show itself at times. : )

There's an enemies-to-lovers progression happening for one half of the main pairing that is exasperating and very human until it reaches the point where it's also very hot and very fun. The writer deserves a cake stand and a big bouquet for managing to weave all these elements together into a very satisfying story.

There's a marvelous podfic version of the story by frecklebomb as well. It's one of my favorite listens.

Fanwork Links: Leave It To the Breeze by hattalove, podfic by frecklebomb

Current Mood: hungry

sparowe

Losing It All

Luke 14:25-28, 31-35 – Now great crowds accompanied Him [Jesus], and He turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? … Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple.”

This is one of those passages that make us squirm. Really, Lord, we have to hate our own families? We have to renounce everything we have?

I think Jesus intends us to squirm. If we aren’t squirming, we aren’t taking Him seriously enough.

Because He’s absolutely right when He says that following Him may cost us our families, our belongings, and even our own lives. Plenty of Christians have lost everything for Him already. We may be more privileged, but there’s no guarantee about the future. I have a friend whose family is throwing him out right now because of his faith in Jesus!

So does this mean we have to get rid of everything right now if we want to have Jesus? No, but we have to be prepared for the possibility. Some of Jesus’ early disciples did keep their homes, their families, their businesses. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus opened their home to Jesus when He was visiting Jerusalem. Matthew entertained Him at dinner. At least one of the disciples had access to a fishing boat, to carry Jesus around in. What they held on to, they kept with the intention of serving God first. And if a conflict ever arose, they knew Who was going to come first.

All this is very hard—but it becomes possible when we think of the way Jesus has loved us. Because He didn’t wait to see if He was going to have to lose it all for us—He tossed it aside. It was Jesus who left heaven behind to become our Savior—who traded a glorious throne for a musty, straw-lined manger. It was Jesus who left behind family and home to walk the roads of Palestine, teaching, healing, and serving from morning till night. And it was Jesus who lay down His own life for love of us, at the cross—because by doing that, He could win our freedom from sin, death, and the devil.

Now that Jesus has risen from the dead, He gives us everything we need. Life? Yes, life that lasts forever. Family? Yes—His own church as our brothers and sisters, and God Himself as our Father. Even if we lose it all, we have Jesus—the One who loves us like nobody else, and we will have Him forever.

WE PRAY: Dear Jesus, keep my eyes and heart set on You. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Current Mood: contemplative

sparowe

ODB: Ready to Pray

Sep 3, 2025/in Our Daily Bread/by YMI

September 3, 2025

READ: Romans 15:30-33

Join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Romans 15:30

A pack of hyenas surrounded a lone lioness. When the cackling beasts attacked, the lioness fought back. Biting, clawing, growling, and roaring in a desperate attempt to ward off her enemies, she finally fell. As the clan engulfed her, another lioness came to the rescue with three helpers only seconds behind her. Though outnumbered, the big cats fought off the hyenas until they scattered. The lionesses stood together, scanning the horizon as if expecting another attack.

Believers in Jesus desperately need help from others too. The most powerful help we can offer is prayer. The apostle Paul wrote in a letter to the church in Rome, “I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me” (Romans 15:30). Paul asked them to pray that he would “be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea” and that the “Lord’s people” would receive him and his gifts “favorably” (v. 31). He acknowledged the rewards of being a part of their community (v. 32). He stood with them in prayer, too, ending his letter with a blessing: “The God of peace be with you all” (v. 33).

As we live for Jesus, we’ll face adversaries in the physical and spiritual realms. God promises to be with us and fight on our behalf, however, as we stand together . . . always ready to pray.

— Xochitl Dixon

How has God used intercessory prayer to strengthen you? How does He keep you ready to pray?

Mighty God, please make me steadfast in prayer as I thrive in community with You and others.

Source: Our Daily Bread