Tag Archives: fish

No Fear

February 12, 2025 A Labour of Love Leave a comment

There are so many things in life to be afraid of, loss, loneliness, criticism, uncertainties, future, past haunts, temptations, judgements, and losing ones voice. I often sit back and consider my own concerns or fears and remind myself that there truly is nothing in this world I need to fear if I am in Christ. Reminding myself that He gave me the breath of life, He brought me into this world, He guides my paths, He has chosen me to be a daughter, a granddaughter, a wife, a mother and a friend. He has chosen my path in this life and I just need to be patient, be encouraged, be hopeful, and faithful in knowing that nothing in the path I walk is a mistake in God’s plan. It may look different than I had hoped for or expected, yet it is His perfect plan and I will not fight against it.

I have been thinking lately about Christian liberty and moral self righteousness in the context of righteous anger. It’s an interesting concept, and when you really think about it, there is a temptation into thinking that one is acting with indignation to a cause in support of what they deem to be the moral high ground in their faith. Curiously I ask if it really is? I mean, what is the path taken to get the end result of what one expects? Is it a path of destruction, character assasinations and broken hearts? Is it a path of bitterness, anger, pride and stiff necks? Oh the pondering I do to try to explain that which I witness, and experience in witnessing others behaviors. It seems that in each situation, the main culprits of sin include and are not limited to gossip, resentments, hatred, self pity, bitterness, self righteousness, pride, broken hearts, and one of the biggest is fear. I just keep thinking that fear is one of the biggest issues humanity deals with. That being said, if one is claiming to live for Christ and in the Word, how can they blast through life leaving a path of destruction being led by fear? Living with a heart full of love and compassion, being in the Word daily and living a prayerful life, one would assume that fear would be abated. Yet, fear is offering gratification of self preservation for one’s own prideful nature. Oh Lord help us….

Many years ago I mentioned to a family member that with humility I feared God most of all. I was taken aback when their response was that I should never fear God, that God is love. I remember quieting myself and praying for them at that moment asking the Lord to open their heart to His truth and to know Him completely. Our society, through a great deal of media interference I may add, has taken God out of the picture and created an environment where many no longer fear God, they fear man and humanity. They fear for themselves that their own identity or their own personal desires will not be met. They take on the fear they feel others should have in life, they fear that salvation will not be theirs or that of other loved ones. Fear mongering as we would call it is running rampant in our culture along with self preservation. Goodness gracious I often ponder and ask the Lord if He is weeping over creation and over the evil that has begotten so many. Non believers and believers alike share in fear. Our churches are falling apart at the seems in this generation of self seeking prideful dispositions that believe authority is old fashioned and part of a tradition they do want to take part in. Little do they realize, authority came from their creator and from their beloved Lord who gave them the breath of life. I hope you caught that, self seeking prideful dispositions. After all, isn’t that what pride is? Self seeking feeling as though one is better than another, that one has more wisdom than another? Trust me, out of want to clear the air and make things (which I truly have no control over) right for peace, I myself feel the taste of a prideful heart that is self seeking. I am also reminded that it is out of fear of the Lord that squashes that taste and the sweetness of the Lords words overtake the bitter taste of a self serving moral high ground.

So how does one overcome the fear in life? How do good stewards of the Lord feed the masses with God’s manna for their own survival? Honestly, after a great deal of pondering, praying, seeking wisdom through God’s Word, I have come to the conclusion that through stillness and quietness in one’s own mind is best. Remembering that fear is of Satan, not of God. That alone should be key, yet sometimes humility is so far under the radar that one cannot see that a humble spirit is Godly. Humility and being meek and quiet in spirit often concludes with recognition of God’s blessings for salvation of a soul and also of God’s retribution toward the wicked. God does not allow anything to go wasted, not a prayer, not a thought, not a conviction of heart. Seeing a blessing through the thicket of the brush is something that does not come easy when there is pride, closed mindedness, selfishness, bitterness, anger, blindness, lack of faith, loss of hope …. The list goes on…..

What is my surety that fear is NOT of the Lord? Here are just a few of my reminders, hope they will also be yours:

The Lord is my shield (Genesis 15:1b) The Lord hears my voice where I am at in my journey of life (Genesis 21:17b) The Lord is with me at all times (Genesis 26:24) The Lord blesses those who have faith without fear (Deut. 1:21). The Lord fights for believers in Him (Deut. 3:22). Keeping Gods commandments brings blessings (Deut. 6:2). God makes it clear that It is the Lord God that should be feared (Deut. 8:6) Being courageous and valiant without fear is of the Lord (2 Samuel 9:7). Prosperity in life comes with the fear of the Lord acknowledged and pursued (2 Chronicles 26:5). The knowledge of God comes through fearing the Lord (Proverbs 2:5). Fear of the Lord is hatred of evil, pride and arrogance. (Proverbs 8:13). The fear of the Lord is wisdom and insight. (Proverbs 9:10). The fear of the Lord prolongs life. (Proverbs 10:27). Fearing the Lord allows for uprightness and strong confidence. (Proverbs 14) The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life (Proverbs 14:27). Instruction in wisdom and humility rather than honor (Proverbs 15:33).

There are so many more; 365 fear not statements in scripture, one for each day. Necessary for encouragement to the heart and mind of a Christian. A believer that has humility and fears the Lord will be blessed with safety, life and wisdom in truth.

Friend, where are you in this mire of a life? Are you stirred by self righteousness which you use as a religious crutch to build yourself up? Are you caught up in bitterness and anger that swells the hatred against others? Are you seeking the truth through humility and fear of the Lord so that you are given wisdom to know better? We are all sinners and we all have wrinkles that we need to seek ironing out. I encourage you as well as myself in great humility to stay focused on the Word, glorify the most holy of holiness, study and remind yourself that fear is not of God and that being alive means having no fear. Trust in Him, in His will for your life, in His leading and guiding without fear. Pray when that beast of pride begins to knock on the door of your consciousness and remind yourself that you are no better than anyone else on this earth, you are a sinner, you are not more important than the Lord our God, and that every time you allow yourself judgement on others you unsurp the glory of God off his throne. There is one judge and jury and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. So fear the Lord, know who He is wholly and completely, and live having no fear other than that of the Lord!

God bless you.

Menus / Recipes, Why?

Eat Right for Your Type Update Week – Two

February 8, 2016 A Labour of Love Leave a comment

Okay, so if you are following this fun journey with me (us…) then you already know that we are two weeks into eating according to our blood type. It’s been quite a journey. We have noticed that weight loss, although slow, is going to be accomplished. We learned that we are sleeping better, have more energy during the day, are thinking clearly, and are noticing that the water weight that “weighed us down” (ha ha) is actually minimized. And on a more personal note, “gut” reactions are improving. If you know what I mean. 🙂

The winner of this past week was the wild caught Walleye.

Arugula greens on the bottom…

Baked Walleye with approved seasoning…

Topped with: sauteed pinenuts, fresh garlic, 1 cup of parsley, pea shoots (chopped) and chopped green onion. Then baked again for another 5 minutes.

Served with: Sauteed purple, yellow and orange carrots, celery, pineapple, and garlic, in grape seed oil and a dash of a sweet red wine and a pinch of sea salt.

I topped it with some bean sprouts and served it up with a smile. 🙂

The peppery bitterness of the arugula was a nice addition to the fish since we cannot use any pepper for seasoning.

Some of our other favorites this week were:

The buckwheat pancakes with freshly ground buckwheat, ricotta, 2 eggs, sea salt, 1/4 C. honey, 1/8 C. olive oil and baking powder.

1 egg Omelette with black beans, green onion, kale and goats cheese.

Salads topped with a variety of the following: black beans, goats cheese, feta, cucumber, carrots, artichokes, pecans, almonds, avacados, and seeds. For dressing we bought and have enjoyed some various flavored olive oils with some fresh herbs.

I also made some greek muffins out of almond flour. They had feta, precooked turkey bacon and spinach. These are a favorite in our home. They actually look like and taste like muffins. 🙂

And second place went to the lettuce wraps that I made.

Diced Chicken breasts (I used only two breasts in the whole meal for a family of 4), chopped Kale, diced into cubes butternut squash, onions and pineapple. Placed in a leaf of Boston lettuce and topped with just a dollop of sour cream. These were also very yummy. I did season the mixture with fresh garlic, herbs, and a touch of coconut aminos.

So far so good. We shopped yesterday according to our weekly meal plan and I look forward to sharing with you next weeks favorites. (I already have to say that today’s homemade tortillas were a hit…until next week….)

Menus / Recipes

Back in the Kitchen…

August 22, 2014 A Labour of Love Leave a comment

This week has been spent putting up more vegetables for winter. From green beans to tomatoes to even more fermented vegetables. I’m so excited to be back in the kitchen, at times too excited as my legs and feet don’t hold up the way they used to before Lymes. I do however, take breaks to rest between projects so getting it all done plus making dinner actually gets accomplished…most nights! 🙂

Tonights dinner was one of our son’s favorites. Ahi Tuna with a wasabi sauce. Easy to make and very tasty. I found a great recipe out of Make It Paleo, however, didn’t have all of the ingredients as they listed, so I improvised a slight bit.

Ahi Tuna

Mix the following ingredients together in a bowl and pour in a bag over 4 Tuna Steaks:

1/4 C. Coconut Aminos

1/8 C. Fish Sauce

1 TBS. Chopped Garlic

1 TBS. Garlic Tea Tree Oil

2 tsp. Ginger (if you have, fresh even better)

1 tsp. Sea Salt

Let marinate 2 hours prior to cooking. Before placing on the grill, dip each side in a bowl with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sea salt and ginger. Lightly coating. Cook each steak on the grill or in a grill pan for about 2-3 minutes per side depending upon how rare you can handle it. It’s far better the rarer it is. One of our children does not like it rare so I compromised and did the 3. It was slightly over cooked for my taste, however, all ate dinner so that was an accomplishment.

Wasabi Dressing

Homemade mayonnaise (see previous post on recipe) with some wasabi powder. Wasabi is strong and it’s taste gathers steam to the palate the longer it’s in the dressing so be careful when using. Start small and gradually increase quantity to your personal taste.

Served along side the cucumber, tomato, olive and basil salad. Yumm!