SBC 2013 Chili Recipe

Sunday, June 9, 2013 by BW Writers

BW Texas Chili

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, diced
• 2  14oz cans diced tomatoes, do not drain (May substitute tomatoes with green chilies)
• 2  15oz cans of beans (pinto, kidney, Ranch style, or combination)
• 1 8oz can tomato sauce
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ cup BW Texas Chili Seasoning
• Salt to taste

Combine meat and onion in large pot over medium-high heat and cook until browned, breaking up meat as it cooks. Drain and discard fat. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve with corn chips or crackers. Top with Shredded Cheese, Sour Cream, Onion, Avocado, or Lime

Serves: 8

To prepare in a slow-cooker: Cook ground beef in skillet over medium-high heat until browned, breaking up meat as it cooks. Drain and discard fat. Add cooked meat and remaining ingredients to slow cooker. Cover and cook on high 4 hours or on low 6-8 hours. Serve as above.

 

BW Texas Chili Seasoning

• ½ cup Chili Powder
• ¼ cup Ground Cumin
• 2 T Garlic Powder
• 2 T Oregano
• 1 T Paprika
• 1 t Cayenne

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Store in a tight container or zip top bag away from moisture, light, and heat. Makes 1 cup, enough for 4 batches of BW Texas Chili.

 

While you’re here, check out some of the issues we’ve been talking about at Biblical Woman

• The Birds, the Bees, and Plan B
• I Wasn’t a Plan…I Was a Hot Date!
• Lifetime at Your Preacher’s Daughter
• My Downton Disposition: How TV is Teaching Us
• Dear Dottie, My Husband Won’t Let Me Go to Church
• I May Not Be There..But Please Keep Honoring Moms
• Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, What is My Worth After All?

 

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Learning from Grief, Listening to Job

Tuesday, June 18, 2013 by Cheryl Bell

No doubt, you’re familiar with the story of Job. But have you considered that, just like Job, our response to tragedy and difficulty reveals our hearts?

Job’s crisis was completely unexpected and utterly incomprehensible.  This blameless and upright man who feared God and shunned evil lost everything; every sheep, camel, ox, and donkey that he owned.  A total of 11,500 animals died along with the servants who kept them.  And as if the loss of these possessions and people were not enough, Job’s seven sons and three daughters died when a mighty windstorm destroyed the house they were in.  All of these events occurred within the span of a single day.  The emotional misery and grief was compounded as Job was stricken with boils from head to toe and his only remaining family member, his wife, urged him to curse God and die. No matter what our circumstances, Job’s tragedy reminds us of a few unshakable truths.

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When The Right Way Feels Like the Wrong Direction

Friday, June 14, 2013 by Katie McCoy

We were so close yet so, so far. When I moved down to Fort Worth, my mom and I were navigating around a still unfamiliar city after dark trying to find our hotel. The directions were simple. And we found the road we were supposed to turn down. But there was one problem – instead of seeing the hotel, all we could see was a road-sign that said we were getting onto I-20. We’ve GOT to be missing something…we don’t want to get on I-20. These directions are wrong. After looping around a confusing intersection, we gave it a shot and turned down the service road…still can’t see the hotel. So we turn around to start over, thinking we missed the correct road. Nope…we’re right back at the I-20 service road. Finally, after much frustration, we trusted the directions, still unable to see where we were going. And there it was – our destination.

The funny thing was that we were right where we were supposed to be the entire time. But between the directions that didn’t seem to make sense and the fact that we couldn’t see beyond what was in front of us, we felt like we were going the wrong way.

The funny thing about being in unfamiliar territory is that sometimes the directions don’t make sense until you can look back and see where you were.

God’s Word is chock full of gutsy, adventurous women who probably felt like they didn’t know where they were going at the time. Before Ruth was the celebrated ancestor of King David she was an impoverished, widowed Gentile who left all that was familiar to stay with her mother-in-law (Ruth 4:18-22). Before Elizabeth gave birth to the son who would prepare a nation to meet its Messiah, she was infertile until her old age and lived in reproach (Luke 1:5-25). Before Abigail married into royalty she was stuck with a fool for a husband and had to intervene for their lives when he spoke rashly (1 Sam. 25). Before Priscilla met and traveled with Paul on his missionary journeys and spiritually nurtured the preacher, Apollos, she and her husband were displaced Jews that were kicked out of their Roman home (Acts. 18). And before she was revered for her obedience and known as the virgin mother of Jesus, Mary was a socially ostracized teenager few would believe (Luke 1).

These women were just like us. They had fears, uncertainties, and situations beyond their control. But they trusted God over their circumstances.  They lived as though the “why” part of their story wasn’t as important as the “what” God did with it.  They remind us that we may not understand why we’re being led in a certain direction until we can look back and see from where God brought us.

Sometimes, it’s really easy to get stuck in trying to figure out the will of God. We end up focusing on the destination we’re trying to find instead of simply moving in the direction we’re supposed to be going. We forget to zero in on what we already know is God’s will for us, like our sanctification and purity (1 Thess. 4:3-8), a heart of joy, prayer and thankfulness (1 Thess. 5:16-18), and a reputation for goodness that leaves unbelievers speechless (1 Pt 2:15). We miss the reality that the purpose of our lives know Christ and make Him known (Phil. 3:8, 2:9-11; 2 Pt 3:9).

It might sound simplistic, but lately I’ve been learning that following Jesus is more about the direction I’m headed in than the destination I’m headed for.

I don’t know what destination you’re trying to find, or all the dead-end roads you’ve taken while looking for it. But just around the corner of our fears, and just past the intersection of bitterness and indecision, is a road of peace. And that kind of peace only comes when the direction is set towards obedience. Isaiah 50:10 says it this way: “Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant? Let him who walks in darkness and has no light trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.” We may not understand exactly where we’re headed. We may not ever understand all of the “whys,” behind the direction we’re told to move. But if we’re faithful, we will see the “what” that God has accomplished in the middle of it.

Katie McCoy is the editor of BiblicalWoman.com and is pursuing a PhD in Systematic Theology at Southwestern Seminary. When she’s not reading for her classes (a rare occasion!), she loves hanging out with friends, eating sushi, learning new words and shopping with her mom. Connect with Katie on Facebook or Follow her Twitter!

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Don’t Miss This

Tuesday, June 11, 2013 by Gayla Parker

Recently a friend sent an email entitled, Perception. You know, one of those we all get and typically move to the trash folder without reading. My plan was to scan the story and either file it away or delete it.  After scanning a few sentences scanning changed to reading, and reading to contemplation.  If the email had arrived on any other day it probably would not have been so poignant. But this day…it spoke loudly.

Wondering what was in it?  The email was the story of a man dressed in semi-shabby clothes playing his violin in the D.C. Metro Station.  Only a few stopped to listen and even fewer placed money at his feet.  Later the audience who barely listened that day learned that his name was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world.  He was playing an extremely difficult piece on a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Just a few days before he had played for a sold out audience in Boston with tickets averaging $100 per seat.

The people moving about the D.C. Metro Station had missed it.  Not once had it occurred to them that this man was offering something for free that most would pay hundreds to hear.

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Giving Up and Giving In

Thursday, June 6, 2013 by Candi Finch

Can you think of the last time you gave in to something you know you shouldn’t have? What causes you to lose heart, give up on doing good, and give into temptation even when you know it is wrong? Consider Galatians 6:9: “Do not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time you will reap a harvest if you do not give up.” I love this verse because of the promise it offers: In God’s time, the proper time, the harvest or the benefits of doing good will come. The results are not up to us; they are in God’s hands. We are just called to be obedient. Paul was writing to a group of Christians, and he knew that they may be tempted to give up and stop being obedient to God. He was warning them against this temptation.

I have spent some  time the last couple of months meditating on what causes me to grow weary and want to stop being obedient.  Now when I say weary, I am not talking about being physically tired because of lack of sleep or something like that. The word Paul uses for “grow weary” in the Greek actually means “giving into evil.” This is a kind of spiritual weariness that causes you to want give up on doing good and give into sin. One source even suggests this word means “losing heart and becoming a coward” because you are essentially giving up on doing what you know is right.

Ever been there? Me too. I know the good I am supposed to do, yet there are times I willingly choose to sin. That crushes and grieves me! I have become a coward because doing the good thing, doing the God thing, is too hard or the payoff isn’t immediate enough.  Or, frankly, sometimes my character is just plain weak. I remember a time when I thought it would just be easier to lie rather than face the consequences of my sin, just compounding sin upon sin.

Paul understood this struggle so he wasn’t writing to the Galatians as someone who was “holier than thou” who didn’t understand the temptation or struggle. Paul faced his own struggle with doing good. In Romans 7:14-25 he talked about the spiritual battle that raged in his own life (and that rages in each of our lives), and he said in verse 19, “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want.”

So, I want to be real honest with you. As I have been thinking about what has caused me to give into sin in the past, I have noticed several recurring patterns and symptoms. I have come up with an acrostic using the word “weary” to help us talk about those things that may cause you and me to be spiritually weary and tempted to give into evil:

Weariness

Here I actually do mean physical weariness because the truth is that there are times when I am physically tired and give into sin more easily. If I get worn out and don’t take time for real rest, I find myself getting really impatient and short tempered with people. Adequate sleep, along with eating properly and getting exercise actually helps me in this. I have also found that real rest doesn’t necessarily come from inactivity—just vegging out on the couch for a couple hours in front of the TV doesn’t usually solve my problem. In some cases, it makes it worse if I end up watching junk.

Evangelism is Lacking

Our one purpose for remaining on this earth after we have been saved is to go and tell other people about how to
be saved and how to live the Christian life (Matt 28:19-20). When I am sharing my faith regularly, this has a great positive, energizing impact on my walk with the Lord. However, the reverse is also true; when I am not sharing my faith regularly, this is often an indication of my own spiritual weakness and weariness.

Actions Replace Time with God

If I were ranking things, this would be the number one thing that contributes to spiritual weariness in my life. Doing ministry is never a substitute for spending time alone with God reading His Word. In fact, there are a lot of times in the Bible when people were going through the motions, yet their hearts were far from God (Is 29:13; Hos 6:6). If I consider those times when I have really struggled with sin (even while being actively involved in ministry), the one common denominator is that I was not regularly spending time in God’s Word. Now, that doesn’t mean that when I do spend time with the Lord, that magically all temptations cease. No, what happens, though, is that God’s Word gives me strength to resist giving into evil (Ps 119:11). God’s Word turns me into a courageous conqueror over sin instead of a coward who loses heart and gives into sin (Rom 8:37).

Relationships Aren’t Refreshing

We aren’t supposed to live the Christian life as lone rangers, yet I have done this at times. I may surround myself with people who aren’t encouraging me to run the race with endurance and even distance myself from my “iron sharpens iron” friends who keep me accountable. I avoid the very people who could help me not to grow weary! Over and over Paul talked about how certain believers helped “refresh” him in his walk, literally reinvigorating him to keep doing good (Rom 15:32; 2 Tim 1:16; Phil 1:7). This doesn’t mean you should only surround yourself with believers because remember that evangelism is crucial to spiritual vigor! But it does mean that you need people in your life who challenge you to keep doing good, even when it is hard.

Yeast is Influencing

In Galatians 5:9, Paul used a baking illustration and warned the believers that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. He was specifically talking about the impact that wrong beliefs could have on their whole life. So, by yeast, I am referring to anything that influences or infects my life. Some yeast that has negatively influenced my own life has been taking in the world’s influence through binging on TV or movies, my own wrong motives, wrong beliefs, and even unconfessed sin. When I have allowed any of those things in my life, it has caused me to grow weary. The Bible encourages us to lay aside those things which easily trip up us and cause us to sin and instead fix our eyes on Jesus. The author of Hebrews says if we will do that, then we “will not grow weary and lose heart” (Heb 12:1-3).

What about you? Be honest with yourself. What causes you to grow spiritually weary? Are there patterns that need to change so you will not be tempted to give into evil? It is not enough for us to just identify destructive symptoms, habits, or patterns; we must then do something about it. Let’s not be those Christians who act like we have it all together while we wallow in our sin. Find someone who will hold you accountable and encourage you and build you up to continue to do the good you know you ought to do (Heb 3:13, 10:24).

 

Candi Finch serves as Assistant Professor of Theology in Women’s Studies at Southwestern and is nearing the end of her PhD studying systematic theology. She loves used book stores, getting to teach young women, and eating any food she doesn’t have to cook herself!  Her secret ambition in life is to compete on Survivor or The Amazing Race. Connect with Candi on Facebook!

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From “Frogs, Snails, and Puppy Dog Tails” to Mature, Godly Men

Tuesday, June 4, 2013 by Karen Yarnell

Have you ever been to an exhibit of Optical Illusions? The first glance is contradictory to further study of the picture. Are the stairs leading up or down? Is it really a picture of a profile or of two faces? My personal optical illusion occurred at the birth of our first child. When my now-twenty-one year old son was born, and the doctor held him up, I had two simultaneous thoughts: “He is the most beautiful sight I have ever seen!” and “He looks like a frog.” He developed this energetic, friendly personality, and while surprisingly is nothing like a frog, is still very precious to me.

Three years later we were given another son, distinct in his personality. This child is free: free from concern, free to invite people into his life, free to laugh. Another five years and along came son number three, now our handsome introvert just entering the high school years. All three boys are unique and all three are blessings.

Being a mom to young boys involved trains, diggers, imaginary worlds and video games. Those days were action packed! As these boys have become young men, my role as a mother has changed. My husband has taught them to look to the future with an understanding that they will one day care for a home and family, as the Lord wills. They know that they are to work hard now so that they will have the skills to meet that responsibility.

Realizing that the Lord has designed these young men to be leaders in the home, my role as mother has shifted. I could order and direct them as I did when they were young, assigning chores and tasks, or I could come alongside them and support their giftedness and growth, expecting responsible actions on their part. I still am their mother (and schoolteacher, since we homeschool), so I still must direct to a certain extent, but I want to treat them with the respect they will one day receive from a wife, friends, and coworkers.

One day I realized that I was truly a mom to a teenager, when our oldest was in eighth grade. We were in the kitchen having a discussion. In the course of a short conversation, I went from thinking how dear and precious he was, to wanting to banish him from the room. It dawned on me that these were the extreme emotional situations in which a mother of a teenager may find herself. It was then that the Lord began discipling me as the mom of a young man. It was the beginning of a new phase in personal growth for me as a mother. Three main things have helped me: a scriptural passage, a change in expectations, and a spiritual activity.  I hope they will help you too, as you grow from parenting boys made of “frogs, snails, and puppy dog tails,” to mature, godly men.

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