healing breadcrumbs

{via pinterest}

taste and see that the Lord is good

oh, the joys of those who take refuge in Him. 

:: psalm 34:8

don't pretend that it's not important to Him, this thing of breadcrumbs and drops of wine. we tend to look at the daily things, air and water and food and shelter, and brush them off. not important, He's bigger than that, we say. 

but even this is vital, even this He treasures. because we've turned food into pain. it's become a pointed look, a raised brow, a slightly caustic "should you be eating that?" and little girls cry and stand in front of mirrors at eight, nine, ten, and place hands on flat tummies and wish to be less and less and even less still. 

but food is not something He ignores. in fact, it's something He is. broken Bread, poured out wine, Life and Living Water. and the King of the World knelt on a sandy beach that morning when the world had turned topsy-turvy and curtains hung torn from top to bottom. 

and the Lamb roared in the voice of a Lion

come have breakfast.

and He laid out bread and fish and served the ones He loved a simple meal that meant the most. eleven men, One Messiah, dining together. and minutes later, He looked at Peter, denier forgiven and bade him thrice do a simple command laden with more love than we could ever understand. 

Simon, son of John, do You love me?

feed My lambs. 

because we all need food, food that passes our lips and lingers on our tongues for that moment before it fills and heals. and then there's the other kind, the kind that once left guilt and shame and now brings glory with every bite. 

:: woman, your faith has healed you. 

because He is sustenance of a greater kind, the glory that fills and restores with Life and Strength and Eternity.  

{sharing healing, imperfection, and grace with emily today; wont't you join us?} 

a sacred meal

{via pinterest}

certain things have begun to monopolize my thoughts in recent days. some of these things are rich and deep, filling my hours with turning book pages and steaming cups of tea.

the other is food.

it's almost comedic how things that were once unnoticed are now suddenly the center of a growling stomach. and it's not just the flavour of food, as certain once-beloved tastes have faded into the background.

it's the cooking, the creation of things at my counters with flour and butter and cheese and a warm collection of spices that make my nose tingle and my tastebuds ponder as though they had their own minds.

there's a freshness, a newness to the creation of food. 

in some respects, it's a breathing. 

when simple items connect and join to become something new. it's knowing that i'm touching something important to God.

because even the Messiah, the King of the Universe, cooked for those He loved.

{via pinterest}

the simplest meal of homemade bread and roasted fish over open flame, served on a beach for eleven frightened men once grieving and now faced with the Risen One again on the water's edge.

come and have breakfast.

so there is something blessed, something mysterious in food and the creation of a meal for those we love. it's more than just the caress of flavour on a palate. 

it's a sacred act, a humbling of self to the betterment of others. 

it's a warrioress' duty to provide for those in her care. with meals that take all day, or simple gifts of grilled cheese and chocolate chip cookies. 

it's still the echoing call of the Lion on the beach. 

I am the Bread of Life; 

he who comes to Me will not hunger 

and he who believes in Me will never thirst.

Cuisinière

Cooking is like love.  It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.  ~Harriet van Horne

I adore cooking. 

There is something so poetic about taking raw ingredients and transforming them into something beautiful and tasty...

...taking things that, while they are interesting and delightful on their own, become a symphony when they are combined to compose a cantata on the palate. 

Every since I was a little girl, I have been at home with a wooden spoon and sauté pan in my hand. 

When the other little children were watching Sesame Street and Clifford the Big Red Dog, I was immersing myself into the world of Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, and Caprial Pence.

These white-coated people were my inspiration...the first exposure my innocent eyes ever had to the world of culinary beauty. 

Even now, my bucket list is peppered with dreams of meeting, cooking, and conversing with my childhood idols...from Paula Deen to Emeril Lagassee to my all-time culinary hero, Chef Gordon Ramsey. 

There is magic in the kitchen...found on each oven rack, cooling on stove tops, and simmering in saucepans. 

There is comfort found in a butter and flour roux, waiting to be blended with melted cheese and spices to create my homemade macaroni and cheese...

There is spice and pizzazz wrapped up in each bite of a beautifully prepared pad Thai or the sweet burn of a green Indian curry.

There is pleasure found in the golden brown of a perfect pie crust, perfectly mounded with freshly cut peaches in their own sugar and cinnamon-hinted syrup...

There is blissful perfection within each bite of a chocolate-frosted cupcake, the frosting coating your lips and tongue.

And there is pride when you realize that every last crumb, every bite, every drop came straight from your own wooden spoon and mixing bowl. 

Each ingredient is a gift from Heaven. Each recipe is penned with love and expertise. 

I will never cease to love the magic that is food...

...and the wonder that is culinary creativity.

This is my bliss...

...the bliss of cooking. 

The colors of a fresh garden salad are so extraordinary, no painter's pallet can duplicate nature's artistry.  ~Dr. Sun Wolf