Black Beans and Yellow Rice

I'm having a wild love affair with all things cilantro and lime. When I came across a recipe for beans and rice that called for, you guessed it, cilantro and lime, I had to make it. I made a mental note to pick up a saffron rice packet, which I did. Then I proceeded to completely forget where I even saw the recipe. Then weeks went by. Then I was searching high and low for a CD and I could no longer ignore my desk-in-a-milk-crate, so I dumped it out and sorted and tossed and filed and almost cried at my complete inability to throw things away. And then I rejoiced because I had finally found the recipe. (The CD is still #1 on my most wanted list. You can't have it all people, you can't have it all.)

And now, so that it doesn't happen again - I give you, from Southern Living Quick and Easy Weeknight Favorites:

Black Beans and Yellow Rice

1 (5 ounce) package saffron rice mix

1 (15 ounce) can of black beans

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, divided

Garnishes: sour cream, sliced green onions

Cook rice according to package directions, keep warm. Meanwhile, drain beans, reserving 2 tablespoons liquid. Combine beasn, reserved liquid, lime juice, chili powder, and cumin in a sauce pan. Cook over medium heat until thoroughly heated, stir in 1 tablespoon cilantro.

Serve beans over rice, and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon cilantro. Garnish if desired, Yield 3 servings.

Huh. Now that I read through the recipe, I realize I totally made this wrong. I dumped all of the other ingredients into the cooked yellow rice, stirred it and served it. It was extra limey, and I bet it would have been better had I READ THE WHOLE RECIPE. Nice.

Als0 - I bought a 10 ounce package of the saffron rice, so I doubled everything else and it made a ton! I served it as a side with steaks, but it would make a very hearty lunch or would be fine for a vegetarian dinner.

Ultimately, It's About Trusting God

What is?

Everything.

I've known this for a long time, but it's been coming up a lot lately.

I'm reading The Battle Belongs To The Lord by Joyce Meyer, and let me tell you - it's good. I'm only a couple of chapters in, but it is already worth it's weight in gold.

One of the things she talks about a lot is waiting on the Lord. Was that a collective sigh that I just heard? Oh, I've been there, friends. Honestly, I'm perpetually there in some way, shape or form. I feel ya. Every time I find myself in that place, AGAIN, I think, "Hmmmm..... Really should of learned this lesson last time." I honestly think Waiting On The Lord is a class that we, as believers, will NEVER graduate from in this lifetime. I think it will get easier, as we either A. graduate to the next level. or B. retake the class that we fail. (Ask me sometime about my four summers in a row of waiting on God for basically the same exact thing. It's a great story, now that's over.)

Joyce says, "the sooner we depend entirely on God, the sooner we will have the victory."

What are you trying to control? As a dear friend says a lot, (which is funny, considering this post that was written long before I met him) what's in your hand? What do you need to lay at the feet of Jesus, so He can bring the victory, like He has been waiting to do?

Any time I'm talking with a friend who is struggling with something, or working through something of my own, I (we) can always trace a straight line back to something that I've (we've) not surrendered.

Joyce talks about how the enemy whispers and sometimes screams in our ears, "What are you going to do?"

For someone who has always been the git 'er-done type in life, that is the right question to send me off in the wrong direction. How can I fix this? How can I control it? How can I make it what I want it to be?

But God says, wait. Let me do it. I already know what I'm going to do. It's all planned out. My way is better. You will benefit more, it will have a happier ending and you won't be as exhausted at the end. Let ME be God. You're terrible at it.

And He's right. What are you waiting for? Or holding onto? Or holding out for? Don't give up! Know this: No matter what it is, it's truly about trusting God, and you can DO that! It's easy. Look at His track record. It speaks for itself.

I think the hardest thing to wait for is for God to change someone else's heart. I have been praying for God to move in the life of someone VERY important for a long time. I have the 5 year old journals to prove it. I speak from experience when I say, the sooner you take your hands off of it, the sooner God can do what He does. I can also speak from experience when I say, we miss the lesson when we don't lean into God in those times of waiting and learn what God has for us to learn, and allow Him to make us more like Him while we wait. When we try to bring about change that only God can bring about, we miss the opportunity to see how He can work ALL things together for our good.

There are lessons in the waiting, and though they are not fun to learn, they are the lessons that we will never forget. They are the lessons that we carry for the rest of our lives.

In everything, wait and trust. Trust and wait. He is so faithful, you will never look back and think, shoulda done it my way.

I pinky promise.

How I Remember to Pray

I try to be in a constant conversation with the Lord. I fail miserably, but I sure try. I'm not sure if having a two year helps or hinders more. It definitely adds to the need for constant prayer. Can I get a witness?

Especially when I have a friend or family member who I want to pray for often, I need a reminder. Something that prompts me to lift up the need more than just once or twice a day.

I don't wear a lot of jewelry, and bracelets in particular kind of drive me crazy. Over the past year or so, I've been using a bracelet as a prayer reminder. Whenever I have an important prayer request that I want to be focusing on often, I wear a bracelet and every time I notice it, I pray. This has been such a great way to remember!

Another thing I used to do a lot is put up sticky notes. In the cupboard, on the bathroom mirror and by the changing table. When Chloe was a tiny baby that was the prime real estate for the most important prayer requests. If you made it to the changing table, you were getting prayed for at least 10 times a day! ;)

How do you remind yourself to pray? For more great tips, check out We Are That Family.

Cheap Entertainment

My bestie and I got some quality time out together last week. We thought about doing dinner and a movie, but there was nothing we were dying to see. We were going to head to the mall after the delightful middle eastern dinner, but as we drove past the Salvation Army, it was as though a magnetic force field was drawing us into the aisle upon aisle of rejected, decades old fashion. It didn't even occur to us to fight it.

In we went.

Oh my word.

We had so much fun, it was ridiculous. Totally ridiculous. One of the highlights was when I tried on this homemade house dress circa 1970. It smelled funky, but I powered through for the comedic value of modeling it. As I took it off, (it fit me like a glove, by the way) I noticed the atrocious arm pit stains. Yikes! I'm pretty sure it came straight from some dear deceased granny's closet. Do not pass go, do not stop in the laundry room, go straight to the Salvation Army.

The things I'll do for a laugh...