How's everyone doing so far? Have you wrestled with being discontent? Have you been asking God, "Let me see what you see"? What are some of the realizations you've had so far? We'd love to hear your comments!
The simple realization of convenience. My kids normally pour themselves a quick bowl of cereal or heat up a waffle in the toaster. This morning I had to boil the water and make the rice. And I'm even taking the easy way out with canned beans. So I can only imagine if I was soaking and draining the beans. We are very spoiled here in the US. I'm not discontent. But I can see that my kids are struggling with it already.
It is an experience. We are hungry and wanting for some foods we normally would eat (and some dont normally, like burgerville double cheese with milkshake), but we are perservering...
We are excited about this for a couple reasons: 1) we are worshiping God and lifting up people by supplying clean water, and 2) we are getting asked "Why are you eating rice and beans only?" It has been great to live out Christ-like actions and share the Gospel.
Thanks to those of you who have posted comments, it’s great to get some insights. Here’s a small piece from our household…
A fourth-grade buddy of our son’s, left some candy at our house. Today, when Diana handed it to him, his eyes lit up, as he said, "All right, thanks!" Seconds later, his face fell, "Oh yeah, I can't eat this." I laughed about my wife's accidental tantalizing of this poor young soul. At the same time I thought, "Good job pal" as I envisioned the little guy sticking to his commitment. This is a unique opportunity for our kids as well as ourselves. Pray that they will see what God sees on this issue of hunger.
You might check out Isaiah 58:1-12. It's a revealing confrontation of self-centered religious activity. It's also a great commentary on some of the right reasons to fast. Our family talked about it briefly last night around the table. Enjoy your rice & beans.
:~) Just a reminder to listen to the song, "In Motion", by Matthew West. I was going through this half-heartedly. We are so well stocked, that it doesn't save me any money to not buy anything for the week, in fact, I had to buy rice and beans! As I was reading through FB comments about "I'm so hungry", "I'm sick of rice and beans", I thought "Oh, Lord! We are so blessed! We are making the CHOICE to eat this way and so many people don't get that choice". I ate rice for breakfast and thanked God for that meal. It tasted so good with that thanks!
This was funny.... We had rice and beans for dinner, of course. Taylor had a friend over. I said "Dinner's ready, but you have to eat rice and beans if you are staying". She is saucy. LOL! So.... I was explaining the premise of rice and beans, why we are doing it and I said "I am sure that some moms in other countries go without dinner just so their kids can eat". Taylor's friend said "Well, we'll be good children then" and handed me her plate.
The simple realization of convenience. My kids normally pour themselves a quick bowl of cereal or heat up a waffle in the toaster. This morning I had to boil the water and make the rice. And I'm even taking the easy way out with canned beans. So I can only imagine if I was soaking and draining the beans. We are very spoiled here in the US. I'm not discontent. But I can see that my kids are struggling with it already.
ReplyDeleteIt is an experience. We are hungry and wanting for some foods we normally would eat (and some dont normally, like burgerville double cheese with milkshake), but we are perservering...
ReplyDeleteWe are excited about this for a couple reasons: 1) we are worshiping God and lifting up people by supplying clean water, and 2) we are getting asked "Why are you eating rice and beans only?" It has been great to live out Christ-like actions and share the Gospel.
Thanks to those of you who have posted comments, it’s great to get some insights. Here’s a small piece from our household…
ReplyDeleteA fourth-grade buddy of our son’s, left some candy at our house. Today, when Diana handed it to him, his eyes lit up, as he said, "All right, thanks!" Seconds later, his face fell, "Oh yeah, I can't eat this." I laughed about my wife's accidental tantalizing of this poor young soul. At the same time I thought, "Good job pal" as I envisioned the little guy sticking to his commitment. This is a unique opportunity for our kids as well as ourselves. Pray that they will see what God sees on this issue of hunger.
You might check out Isaiah 58:1-12. It's a revealing confrontation of self-centered religious activity. It's also a great commentary on some of the right reasons to fast. Our family talked about it briefly last night around the table. Enjoy your rice & beans.
:~) Just a reminder to listen to the song, "In Motion", by Matthew West. I was going through this half-heartedly. We are so well stocked, that it doesn't save me any money to not buy anything for the week, in fact, I had to buy rice and beans! As I was reading through FB comments about "I'm so hungry", "I'm sick of rice and beans", I thought "Oh, Lord! We are so blessed! We are making the CHOICE to eat this way and so many people don't get that choice". I ate rice for breakfast and thanked God for that meal. It tasted so good with that thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis was funny.... We had rice and beans for dinner, of course. Taylor had a friend over. I said "Dinner's ready, but you have to eat rice and beans if you are staying". She is saucy. LOL! So.... I was explaining the premise of rice and beans, why we are doing it and I said "I am sure that some moms in other countries go without dinner just so their kids can eat". Taylor's friend said "Well, we'll be good children then" and handed me her plate.
ReplyDelete