This time of the year we focus on the manger and that is a good thing. But as we all know, merchandisers do all they can to take our focus from the Savior in the manger to all the "stuff" that they want us to buy and they turn the birth of Christ into a 3 ring circus. News media do all they can to put our focus on as much worldly sin as possible. Again, I say let us stay focused on Jesus this Christmas and all year through. Jesus takes us into eternity, where as, all the junk that we buy, buy, buy this time of year eventually leads us to the land fill and big credit card debt. Plus, the junk that we listen to from the news media is junk that needs to BE in the landfill!!! So, as we know, life is just a series of choices. Some of those choices have little consequences in the end, because they are small in the grand scheme of things. Some of us have not become tuned in to the guiding of Holy Spirit in our lives. Because, when we listen to Him, He will steer us to what is the most meaningful choice. And much of the time, the meaningful choices are Kingdom related.
So, at the end of the day, we have to examine ourselves and see if we have been Kingdom minded or worldly minded. And no, don't hear me say spending money in bad, because it's not. Spending money you don't have and know you won't have is bad. That is the type of spending that causes debt. The kind of debt that snowballs. If you have never prayed over your finances, now is as good a time as any. Go ahead, stop reading right now, and ask God to help you, if you need help. Only you know whether you do or not, I don't. But I do know that we have needed help and God was the one to help us!!! Most of the time when I go grocery shopping, I have cash in hand and I ask God to help me spend our money wisely, provide good sales and help me make good choices for my husband me to be able to eat healthier. Let me just say, God hears a prayer like that. So, start asking God to bless the cash you have, provide good sales for whatever it is you are looking for, plus not spending more than you have in hand and don't forget to thank Him when He provides, because He will, if you are serious. Anyway, just make good choices with every area of your life and you will prove yourself to be Kingdom minded.
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Ok, so recently, my old electric pressure cooker went to the landfill, kinda like I was talking about earlier. hahaha But, it was a very good purchase when I made it, 9 years ago. It was a Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker (google it, you won't be disappointed) and I have to tell you, I was grieved to the core when it quit working. It had been on it's way out for almost a year, but it had still been limping along, until about a week ago. I was in the middle of supper and it just STOPPED dead in it's tracks!! I worked with for about an hour and it wouldn't do anything!!! My husband heard me in the kitchen upset about about it and came and said lets go get another one. They are not carried in the local stores around here. I ordered the first one I had, but I knew I couldn't get one delivered in time to finish supper!! hahaha So, I took his advice and we went to Walmart, my least favorite place in town and picked up an Instant Pot, and no, they are NOT Insta Pots, they are Instant Pots. If anyone is too lazy to go ahead and the "NT" on to the insta, they shouldn't even be allowed in the kitchen. Just sayin'!!! That is a pet peeve of mine. It is what it is. hahahaha Anyway, I have 9 years of experience cooking with my Cuisinart and it was truly a pleasure to use!!! Now, I have the Instant Pot. It hasn't proven itself yet, but it hasn't disproven itself either. But since I have used one about 3 or 4 times weekly for the last 9 years, I have a hard time believing this one will last that long. I hope it proves me wrong. I have enjoyed using it. It has a yogurt feature that I will enjoy using, I think. The things I mainly had used my Cuisinart for was dried beans, meats, soups and the like. Here back I made a fantastic pasta meal in the Cuisinart. A box of noodles, a box of stock, a jar of pasta sauce and about a lb or so of already cooked and drained ground beef on high for 5 or 6 minutes and let it natural release for about 5 minutes. Take the lid off and stir in some melty cheese. That was delicious.
I'm not one for following a recipe like it's written in stone and can't be changed. I make whatever I'm cooking to be my own by adding my preferred ingredients, not what the recipe says. I was going to make a salad for our supper last night and I wanted some Quinoa to put in my salad. Hubby didn't care for it in his and that's ok, more for me!! But I put the rinsed Quinoa, 1 cup of it in the IP and added 1 1/2 cups of liquid. A half cup was emptying out a box of stock from the fridge the other cup was water. I added a couple of cranks of pink Himalayan salt and sprayed the sides of liner with avocado oil. I set it for 1 minute. It takes a few minutes to come to pressure. Then let it natural release for about 10 minutes. Took the lid off and stirred it around and it was perfectly done. I put about 1/4 cup on my salad and it was delicious. Quinoa will be a staple in my fridge from now on. It is a healthy grain and it's good for you. Plus it also tastes good, just remember to rinse it under running water to get the bitter natural coating off it. Use a fine mesh strainer because it is a very tiny grain.
I am trying once again to try to get healthy and I think the addition of Quinoa will help. It is very versatile. If you have a favorite recipe, tried and true, using Quinoa, please share. I would appreciate it. It's really hard to get and stay healthy when you keep having setbacks, I just keep praying that God will continue to push me forward and help me in my endeavor and He never fails me. Praise His name.
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I have a few changes coming for me in the new year, hopefully that will help me get more healthy. Just some things need to change in my life and I am ready to make those changes. It will be difficult and different for me for sure. I will share at some point in time what all I am doing to make the needed changes. Right now, it's just in the decision stage but my husband is totally in agreement that some things need to change for me and the first of those changes will take place shortly. Oh, it's nothing big or all that, just something I need to do for me, so it will free up time and mental energy to do some serious Kingdom work. That's why I'm excited. I will share at some point, but for now, just me putting it in writing helps me with the idea of moving forward.
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That's it for now. I hope you enjoyed your short visit here and will come back often. If you have any Quinoa recipes that are tried and true, do share. I hope you find more ways in your life to be kingdom minded. I hope you focus more on the manger and less on the mongers. I hope the next few days of 2019 are better than you could have expected or hoped them to be. I hope you know that God loves you enough to provide a way for you to be in right relationship with Him thru the manger. I hope if you haven't asked Christ to be your Lord and Savior, that you will today. Be blessed today and every day in the Holy name of Jesus Christ. Always remember that God loves you and so do I.hugs and love, patty
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