Why Fatherhood matters and what's to be done

                                       

Does it really matter to you what gender the Bible uses to describe God when you are in the midst of disorientating discouragement, like when you lose your job or face the daunting struggles of any major crisis? Do you remember the controversy surrounding “The Shack” when William P. Young's representation of “Papa God” was an older woman and Young’s depiction of the Holy Spirit was also that of a woman?

Over the years I’ve noticed plenty of people calling God mother or “her,” but then I wonder why the very people who portray God as feminine in His nature refuse to exchange or swap the given gender describing Satan or any male enemy of God throughout the Bible. That inconsistency, their glaring absence of labeling other male designated individuals as a female, probably tells you all you need to know about their agenda.

God is Spirit and is unlike humanity in His nature, but for whatever reason God is revealed throughout the Scriptures with masculine pronouns, and He is often portrayed as our Father. Take it for what it’s worth, but psychologists tell us our view of God or how we understand God is often filtered through our relationship with our own earthly father, perhaps because fathers typically provide our family units with a sense of comfort, confidence, safety and well-being.

The very fabric of society is woven securely through the protection and provision of fatherhood. Fatherhood matters, and there’s a reason it is under attack. This assault on fathers is a tactical move from the evil one to distort, devalue and minimize the value of fatherhood. “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” (Galatians 1:3-5)

Look at any of the sectors in our civilization that are crumbling, and you’ll trace the initial collapse back to the void left by absentee fathers. Prisons are filled with inmates who lacked a strong father-figure in the home. Likewise our schools struggle to discipline unruly students who are in the same boat, and some messy marriages can trace their struggles and problems back to a spouse who didn’t have a strong father growing up.

Yes the pressures of fatherhood are intimidating. Yes it feels thankless at times. Yes it requires men to be sacrificial. And yes it takes effort. But then again nothing in life that’s worthwhile comes easy. If your dad has already passed on, do your best to honor his legacy. If he is still alive, he doesn’t need another tie or a cheesy Father’s Day card, and he really doesn’t want you to spend any money on him at all — so leave those fishing lures on the shelf. What he does deserve is more respect, and what he really needs more than your appreciation is your prayers.

...Originally published in the Timesnews you can click here to read it

Overcoming Intimidation: Gaining my culinary confidence

 

Tonight we grilled a 3 pound tomahawk and it occurred to me that I am no longer intimidated by preparing and cooking food that I would categorize as extraordinary, unique, special, or what you could call gourmet.  This wasn't always the case, once I was afraid to try my hand at dishes that would not be normally "homecooked" meals but I remember what dish helped me over my timidity over messing up food.   

My boost of culinary confidence came from, of all things, making saganaki, the famous flaming cheese that is a staple at many Greek restaurants.  Saganaki is a rather expensive appetizer at the restaurant and few restaurants within 100 miles of us even offer it.  Saganaki requires a special cheese and certain preparations and methods, but I mastered it after only a few tries.  Tammy and I had a taste for it, we googled the instructions, sourced the kasseri cheese and took a stab at it, and I'm glad we did.  I've played around with a few ways of making it and I've improved on the recipes I studied and now Tammy and I make it several times a month, almost like it's nothing.  

I have enjoyed this lack of intimidation when it comes to tackling good food that we might not normally try, and I truly enjoy cooking with Tammy, and cooking new and exciting meals that we really enjoy.  I guess I took the approach, "What's the worst that could happen?"  So the food doesn't turn out and we toss it in the garbage, who really cares?  I've had a few meals that didn't turn out so great, but those are mere fractions of the overall great experiences we've had cooking.  My encouragement is to give it a try, if there's a meal you've longed for and feel fearful, you lose more by not trying to cook it than you could lose by attempting it and failing at it.  

Once you find out how easy lobster is to cook at home, you'll think twice about ordering it off the menu when you eat out.  The idea of cooking lobster shouldn't be terrifying, it is one of the easiest dishes to cook.  

We enjoy meals at home for a reasonable price that we never could afford at a nice restaurant.  For example, a frenched rack of lamb is under $40 at Sam's club, it includes around 14-16 or so servings, a serving portion of three lamb "lollypops" is over $50 at most restaurants, so we are getting about 5 times as many portions for about $10 less than if we ate out..  The same is true for Chilian Sea Bass, a few ounce portion is around $40 at the restaurant, if you buy it at the seafood store or frozen from the grocery store, you'll get a pound of Sea Bass for the same price.  How about fillet mignon, Prime Rib, or even a brisket?  It's far more reasonable to make it at home, but even more so is the rewarding feeling and the sense of accomplishment that you overcame your fears and made an incredible meal that you're proud of, that is priceless.  

If you have the stomach for it, check out the videos below, the videos are not everything we've cooked but only a sample, I share these videos to whet your appetite and to hopefully inspire you take up the challenge of cooking something difficult but delightful.  Bon Appetit!