I thought I would share with you today my tip for gluten free dumplings. You see I love dumplings in my soups and broths but the regular flour sometimes create havoc with my stomach.
If you are like me and love dumplings but suffer with your stomach or can’t digest the regular flour you would love this tip. As a matter of fact Saturdays are soup or broth days. When we order we say hold on the dumplings please. I wish the restaurant/take away eating place would provide gluten free dumplings.
Flour has a way of creating havoc with your digestive system. It is said that consuming flour may lead to arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease and even cancer. It is also now being communicated that whole wheat flour elevates your blood sugar, cholesterol and also clogs the arteries. Why then do we consume so much flour?
The bread, the pizzas, pastries, cakes. We can’t do without these but we can explore alternatives similar to this one where I discovered that cassava dumplings is gluten free and works just as well as normal dumplings.
Cassava flour has no cholesterol, gluten free and low in carbs and sugars. Not as sticky as flour, just add water and you have good mix.
You can have a tasty gluten free Fish Broth in minutes.
I always hear this phrase – ‘be careful what you think’ but never gave much thought to it until lately when I was listening to the reading of the Gospel and it dawned on me that God knows our every thought.
In Ecclesiasticus chap 42:15-25 it says – …. ‘not a thought escapes him, not a single word is hidden from him’. As a perfect gentleman God allows your thoughts to manifest into your reality. Hence the term be careful what you think.
As a matter of fact I was thinking that based on this bible reference God must know my every thought since he is everywhere, he is the breath we breathe, he is in nature, the animals, birds, the sea. God is life and without life we would be as good as dead.
Since he knows our every thought sometimes we may try to do something and it just would not happen no matter what. At this point it helps to recognize that maybe God is trying to tell us something like – it is said that he does not say no just it is not the right time for this, or this is not the right decision or just give it sometime. Review the advantages and disadvantages and see what is really going on.
I don’t know about you but I think it is awesome that he knows my every thought, but on the other hand I need to focus more on God so I could be alined with his thoughts also.
What do you believe, are there situations in your life where you feel he knows your thoughts? Have you ever experienced where you and another person were thinking the same thing without any prior discussion?
If God knows our thoughts, then how could we use this to make better decisions? I am sure there are times when you feel that you just need some guidance to make that decision about your job, your relationships, your life or your family life? Could knowing that God knows your every thought help you? One thing we know for sure is wherever you place your energy and focus that is where your thoughts are.
There is only one name that can get us through this Pandemic. We have to call on that name. All through out the Bible the Apostles said they were doing everything in the name of Jesus – the one who was crucified. Let us all on that name to break every chain that has tied us to this VIRUS.
So many of us are suffering because one of our loved ones has left this world or we have loved ones who are sick with the virus, or we are out of a job, we do not know how we are going to meet our expenses, we can’t pay the rent, the mortgage or the bailiff is waiting outside to take our car.
We have to call on that name – Come Lord Jesus Come! Now more than ever we need help. No money to be paid, Jesus already paid, no subscription just a few seconds to say and share.
God’s silence is not evidence of his absence in your life. This is actually an invitation to experience his presence in your life.
Respond to his invitation and start to refocus and see things differently. See the various ways he helps you or is trying to speak to you. Be present in all you do, experience the sounds and beauty in what you do. Even in washing wares feel the soap suds, the water on your hand.
When outside look at the beauty of the flowers the greenness of the trees, the raindrops, the brightest of the sun. Enjoy the sunrise and the sunset.
Enjoy each moment and know that once the moment has passed it has passed you cannot redo that moment. Time just keeps moving forward. So enjoy each moment to the max.
God would not always come to you like thunder or force winds but he would be very gently so look for him in everything that you do.
In any case Jesus said that he would be with us always and even stated that if two or three are gathered together he would be there. Having faith is key to feeling his presence in your life.
Having clear judgement helps us make right decisions as we go about our daily lives. That is our free will to make decisions and getting angry and resentful is also part of life . Things may not go as you planned it or as you want it to be and it is natural to get angry and upset.
Do you know when you get upset your mind is so clogged up there is nothing you can’t do? Some people after they commit a crime cannot figure out what happened. Even people they love so much they would destroy them and not recognize at that point in time what is happening. Some people are so angry that the person they pass their anger on may not necessarily be the person they are angry with, it just happened that that is the first person who crossed their path after the anger built up. They may also be angry with themselves and the anger just keeps building up and you cross their path and bam, as they say ‘all hell break lose’.
So how do you deal with this anger and resentment that has built up inside of you. You can get upset then move on, no tantrums, no yelling, screaming or punching because you recognize that you have to change how you look at things.
Acting out that anger is a different issue. When you are angry such that you want to knock the person you are angry with off the map, or wish that they were dead or some awful thing happens to them then there is a huge problem.
The first thing is any violent action towards the person not only hurts or destroys that person which of course you want to do, but also hurts and destroys you. It mat hurt your reputation, your character and if it reaches the authorities chances are your entire life could be affected. Not only your life but that of your family, and this is huge if you have children.
The second thing is that if you continue to hold this anger it destroys not only your reputation but your body. It is like a form of darkness, a virus or parasite eating you up inside when you see or hear about that person , you relive the entire situation. The nervous system starts to go haywire, you cannot think clearly, your head feels like it is bursting, soon all sorts of illnesses start to show up.
It is not an easy thing to get rid of or even reduce anger and resentment. Some suggestions that help me:
take time out for yourself;
take time to cry, worry, punch some punching bags but put a deadline on this then move on;
break down the issue – what about it caused you to be angry? Is it true or not true. If it is true what can you do about it? If it is not true then forget it and move on;
have you realized that the person you are so angry with is going about their life happy as ever and you are there fuming with anger;
do you have the guts to be the better person and apologize first, even if you were wrong? Two wrongs do not make a right;
seek guidance and counsel. Find a life coach.
remember we are all connected, the same God who made that person made you. There would always be some disagreement, but there is forgiveness. If God can forgive you what is keeping you from forgiving the other person.
Forgiveness is so hard to do but it is a choice, you see anything that is good for us sometimes shows up as hard work. We believe that we have the right to strike back when someone tells us something that is hurtful or when they do something to us that is hurtful, but this is so far from the truth. We are a better person when we forgive. Forgiveness and love changes everything. Try it, you maybe surprised.
Have you ever heard the comment ‘God does not sleep’?
I Heard this from my Mom when I was growing up and even as an adult. When things happen she would say do not worry God may wear pajamas but “God does not sleep’.
This saying is so true.
Now I have never really paid attention to this comment until recently. One night lying in bed it dawned on me that we all breathe the same air, it is one world and the breath is God’s breath. Now, I have read and heard that God is omnipresent on more than one occasions but as the saying goes it went through one and ear and straight out of the other ear.
If God is omnipresent and in my country it is night and in another country it is day , how could God sleep if he promised to be with us always. So there is wisdom in what my Mom used to say. God rest her soul.
At one time it did flash across my mind that God maybe sleeping because I was praying very late in the night , but now I am more comfortable to praying and asking for help anytime, any where because I know he hears me. I feel now that it is not that he is sleeping but I maybe sleeping and missing out on all his blessings. You should try asking for help. There is nothing he does not know about you. Ask him to forgive you and help you. The great thing about this is that you could also ask for help for other people – your family, friends etc.
There are so many instances recorded in the Bible and also current examples where people have received help for themselves and the persons they have prayed for. I am not saying that all your prayers would be answered because God is the only one who knows what plans he has for you or for the persons who you are praying for. All I am saying is to ask him.
Have you been telling yourself you are not good enough, you are not worthy or loved, or God would not forgive you. Things just not going right. You are not lucky.
These are lies. Luck has nothing to do with your life.
Stop and take look at the things that have happened. What decision did you have to make for this to happen? Was it your decision? Did someone put a gun to your head and say do this or that? Think about it – you have freewill. God would not interfere with that unless you come to him. He is there waiting to help you.
No – you decided that this is what you wanted to do and you went ahead with it. We all make mistakes, wrong decisions – maybe costly decisions, may even change the direction for where we want to go in life.
The thing is that Satan always wants you to believe that God was the one responsible for getting you to make those decisions, and now he is getting you to believe that because of those decisions you are not good enough or worthy enough . These are all lies.
Why would God want you to struggle and why does he want to torment you? If he is your Father and is good and merciful – ask yourself – why is he doing these things to me?
God is loving, generous , compassionate and merciful – he want the best for you. He can take all your mistakes and turn them into something good. All you need to do say is – Lord Jesus I am sorry for all the things I have done, please come into my life, help me, heal me and fill me with your presence.
Then everyday start thanking God for all the things you are grateful for and see what happens.
Have you ever wondered why you had to go through all those bad experiences .
What was God trying to tell me? Should I be more patient, have more compassion, be more generous.?
Your past is there to develop you – show you the way, but sometimes it is as though we have been blind folded and we do not see all the lessons to be learnt. Instead we see pain, anger, frustration, envy.
Take a good look at your past and try to uncover what you should have learnt? See where you are right now. If those past experiences did not happen where would you be? Can you thank your past for getting you to where you are now.
Life is short, don’t dwell on the past, uncover the learnings and move on.
What would happen if you can have the life that you have always wanted?
We all need encouragement, but I believe that we must first give encouragement in order to get.
This week ask God to help you lift or encourage someone and see how that feels. You see God does not need anything from us but we must help each other. Different circumstances come to us so we can exercise our skills – faith, love, patience etc.
Whatever comes out of us must be clean and helpful to others. It is the same way we like others to say clean and helpful things to us. After all we are all connected so we must treat each other with respect and we must be humble. Humility is recognizing that God is the one responsible for our skills and abilities. We get everything from him all the titles and awards you did not do these on your own. When we think more highly of ourselves, we place others at a lower level , but we are all one. There is one God. We can’t do anything without God. When we are humble we are lifted up so pray to be humble. I have been praying to have fear of the Lord and it is amazing the difference this makes in my life.
May you find strength in being humble.
If you would like to explore more about this topic email: joseylifeline@gmail.com
When you are going through your storm it helps to know that someone is there. Sometimes we forget and try to do things our way, thinking that we can have everything or be successful on our own, and when things go wrong we want to know what happened. I love this video, take a look, listen to the end and let me know what you think: IMG_8723
