Beans and Rice
Tonight I smelled up our entire house with the aroma of corn tortillas, fried plantains, and gallo pinto, which is a traditional beans and rice dish in Nicaragua. In memory and celebration of my summer, I cooked my family a full-blown Nicaraguan feast. After two months of eating gallo pinto almost every day (and sometimes for all three meals), you would think I would get tired of it, but I don't. Instead, I crave it. The smell of gallo pinto brings me back to breakfast at the mission. When I patted the tortillas tonight in my kitchen, I thought about learning to make them with Marina in her kitchen. No matter how many times I've eaten beans and rice this summer, I will always have room for more. It never gets old because it reminds me of the places where I've been. In fact, it's so good that I just had to make it tonight so that I could share it with my whole family!
After dinner, I showed them pictures and told them stories for an hour and a half. I had the time of my life looking through those pictures that highlight every speacial moment of my time in Nicaragua. You would think that looking through 1,241 pictures would get old, but it doesn't. You would think that telling the same stories over and over would become boring, but it doesn't. Seeing those pictures helps me remember all the faces, and telling those stories helps me remember what it felt like to experience it the first time.
Just like I will never get tired of eating beans and rice, looking at pictures, and telling stories, so I will never get tired of boasting about my Jesus. To me, beans, rice, pictures, and stories are the stepping stones that make it possible for me to brag about how awesome God has been in Nicaragua this past summer. All my photographs and all my experiences would be meaningless had He not been behind it all.
I went to Nicaragua knowing that God would show me His presence, teach me His ways, and draw me deeper into a relationship with Him. But I had no idea that He would blow my expectations out of the water. As I reflect on everything He did, I stand in awe and say, God, you outdid yourself! I knew He would show up, but I feel like He really showed off! When I was only expecting Him to hand me a sparkler, He put on a fireworks show. His power, His love, and His presence were obviously visible and evident in ways that I could not have imagined. And I will never grow tired of bragging about Him.
Just like beans and rice, I want to not only taste God's goodness every day, but share it with others as well.
I think we should make a greater effort to share more of our stories with each other. I love to share my stories, but I want to hear yours as well. As the body of Christ, God has given every one of us a story to tell, a story that boasts of His greatness. Whether it is the story of a life-changing experience, the tesimony of how you met Jesus, or the story of a time in your life when God came to your rescue, you have something to share. For me, it might be the story of my eating disorder or of my summer in Nicaragua. Let us never grow tired of sharing stories about the greatness of our God. Together, we can celebrate the vastness of the love and mercy of Christ.
After dinner, I showed them pictures and told them stories for an hour and a half. I had the time of my life looking through those pictures that highlight every speacial moment of my time in Nicaragua. You would think that looking through 1,241 pictures would get old, but it doesn't. You would think that telling the same stories over and over would become boring, but it doesn't. Seeing those pictures helps me remember all the faces, and telling those stories helps me remember what it felt like to experience it the first time.
Just like I will never get tired of eating beans and rice, looking at pictures, and telling stories, so I will never get tired of boasting about my Jesus. To me, beans, rice, pictures, and stories are the stepping stones that make it possible for me to brag about how awesome God has been in Nicaragua this past summer. All my photographs and all my experiences would be meaningless had He not been behind it all.
I went to Nicaragua knowing that God would show me His presence, teach me His ways, and draw me deeper into a relationship with Him. But I had no idea that He would blow my expectations out of the water. As I reflect on everything He did, I stand in awe and say, God, you outdid yourself! I knew He would show up, but I feel like He really showed off! When I was only expecting Him to hand me a sparkler, He put on a fireworks show. His power, His love, and His presence were obviously visible and evident in ways that I could not have imagined. And I will never grow tired of bragging about Him.
Just like beans and rice, I want to not only taste God's goodness every day, but share it with others as well.
I think we should make a greater effort to share more of our stories with each other. I love to share my stories, but I want to hear yours as well. As the body of Christ, God has given every one of us a story to tell, a story that boasts of His greatness. Whether it is the story of a life-changing experience, the tesimony of how you met Jesus, or the story of a time in your life when God came to your rescue, you have something to share. For me, it might be the story of my eating disorder or of my summer in Nicaragua. Let us never grow tired of sharing stories about the greatness of our God. Together, we can celebrate the vastness of the love and mercy of Christ.
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