Psalm 138:8a - The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever.
Truth has a way of taking anxiety, fear, uncertainty, and insecurity and putting them to rest. Tonight, Psalm 138:8a has supernaturally calmed my heart and stilled my thoughts.
I believe that it is always Gods desire to communicate truth to us, but I never cease to be amazed at how alive Scripture is, especially when I come to it with a heavy heart. Tonight my heart was heavy for a lot of reasons, mostly triggered by the upcoming school year. This heaviness isn't sadness, instead, it a deeply rooted ache that is the result of how much I miss my students and how significantly my heart yearns for reciprocal and healthy community. After dissecting why I felt this way, I had no ability to dismiss these feelings on my own. Yet, because of Christ, I am able to claim Psalm 138:8a - the LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; His love endures forever.
So, other than missing my students and longing for reciprocal and healthy community, what have I been up to? I'm so glad you asked:
In light of the upcoming transition from summer vacation to a new school year, I have been enjoying life at a slower pace, filled with things like walks to the library, extra time at the gym, uninterrupted morning devotions and of course, plenty of time to cook! There are two things from that list that I would like to pay special attention to, because they have brought an unexpected amount of satisfaction to my days. The first notable activity is walking to the library. Sometimes I get really nervous about taking long walks by myself, especially if I haven't fully decided where I am going, so in order to still take advantage of this walking weather and ditch the nervousness, I needed to have a final destination in mind. Without missing a beat, one day I decided that the library was the perfect final destination, so off I went. The adventure is not complete without picking up or dropping off a book which means I have the added incentive of checking an errand off my to-do list without my car keys in hand. I think one reason that I have been especially blessed by this very insignificant task is because it reminds me of all of the hours I spent running last summer in anticipation of my first half-marathon. I can't help but walk and think about how truly faithful God has been to me, and how graciously He has walked with me as I have worked through a lot of the hurt I was carrying from grad school only one short year ago. Plus, who doesn't love breathing in the warm sweetness of summer air?
The second thing that is noteworthy, is of course, cooking! Unlike most normal people in the summertime, I think I have turned my oven on everyday for some reason or another just because I won't have the kind of time to cook at my leisure once the temperature encourages oven-use once more. As a result, I have been sweating profusely but making great food like chicken enchiladas, poppy seed bread and cinnamon buns from scratch. One meal that thankfully utilized my stove-top, instead of my oven was Chicken Fried Rice. Yum!
This is now the second successful recipe I have prepared using The Everything Freezer Meals Cookbook by Candace Anderson and I couldn't be more excited about having this rice in the freezer, where it is patiently waiting to become my lunch in the fall. So, if you are in the mood for some simple, at-home Asian cuisine, you've gotta try this:
Chicken Fried Rice Truth has a way of taking anxiety, fear, uncertainty, and insecurity and putting them to rest. Tonight, Psalm 138:8a has supernaturally calmed my heart and stilled my thoughts.
I believe that it is always Gods desire to communicate truth to us, but I never cease to be amazed at how alive Scripture is, especially when I come to it with a heavy heart. Tonight my heart was heavy for a lot of reasons, mostly triggered by the upcoming school year. This heaviness isn't sadness, instead, it a deeply rooted ache that is the result of how much I miss my students and how significantly my heart yearns for reciprocal and healthy community. After dissecting why I felt this way, I had no ability to dismiss these feelings on my own. Yet, because of Christ, I am able to claim Psalm 138:8a - the LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; His love endures forever.
So, other than missing my students and longing for reciprocal and healthy community, what have I been up to? I'm so glad you asked:
In light of the upcoming transition from summer vacation to a new school year, I have been enjoying life at a slower pace, filled with things like walks to the library, extra time at the gym, uninterrupted morning devotions and of course, plenty of time to cook! There are two things from that list that I would like to pay special attention to, because they have brought an unexpected amount of satisfaction to my days. The first notable activity is walking to the library. Sometimes I get really nervous about taking long walks by myself, especially if I haven't fully decided where I am going, so in order to still take advantage of this walking weather and ditch the nervousness, I needed to have a final destination in mind. Without missing a beat, one day I decided that the library was the perfect final destination, so off I went. The adventure is not complete without picking up or dropping off a book which means I have the added incentive of checking an errand off my to-do list without my car keys in hand. I think one reason that I have been especially blessed by this very insignificant task is because it reminds me of all of the hours I spent running last summer in anticipation of my first half-marathon. I can't help but walk and think about how truly faithful God has been to me, and how graciously He has walked with me as I have worked through a lot of the hurt I was carrying from grad school only one short year ago. Plus, who doesn't love breathing in the warm sweetness of summer air?
The second thing that is noteworthy, is of course, cooking! Unlike most normal people in the summertime, I think I have turned my oven on everyday for some reason or another just because I won't have the kind of time to cook at my leisure once the temperature encourages oven-use once more. As a result, I have been sweating profusely but making great food like chicken enchiladas, poppy seed bread and cinnamon buns from scratch. One meal that thankfully utilized my stove-top, instead of my oven was Chicken Fried Rice. Yum!
This is now the second successful recipe I have prepared using The Everything Freezer Meals Cookbook by Candace Anderson and I couldn't be more excited about having this rice in the freezer, where it is patiently waiting to become my lunch in the fall. So, if you are in the mood for some simple, at-home Asian cuisine, you've gotta try this:
2 cups rice
4 cups chicken broth
1 shallot, chopped
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup chicken, cooked
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/4-1/2 oyster sauce, to taste
1/3 cup soy sauce, or to taste
Sesame oil, to taste (used on reheating day)
Freezing day: In a large saucepan, bring rice and chicken broth to a boil over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low and cover the pan. Cook for 20 minutes. Put rice in refrigerator until it is cold. In skillet (or wok), saute shallot with ginger in vegetable oil for 6-8 minutes. Add eggs and stir until scrambled, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in rice, chicken, peas, oyster sauce and soy sauce. Cool. Freeze in freezer bag.
Reheating instructions: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and heat in skillet over medium heat for 15-20 minutes until it reaches desired temperature. Toss with sesame oil.
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