Fresh Start Daily

INGREDIENTS:

CRUST:
2 1/4 c all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 1/8 sticks (9 tbsp) butter, cold
5 tbsp butter, cold
1/2 c cold water + 1 tbsp vinegar

FILLING:
2 medium size carrots, diced
6-7 tbsp green peas
1 1/2 c mushrooms, sliced
1 large white onion bulb, sliced
1 garlic head, finely chopped
1 whole chicken breast, diced

EGG and CREAM MIXTURE:
2 1/2 c heavy cream
6 eggs
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
2 tsp salt

TOPPINGS:
1 c mild cheddar cheese
fresh basil leaves

Method:

1. Prepare the pie crust. I used the pumpkin pie crust recipe. However, I only used 1 to 2 tablespoons of the cold water and apple cider vinegar mixture.
2. Cook the chicken with olive oil. Set aside.
3. Saute the onion, garlic, mushroom, carrots, and green peas with olive oil. Then add the chicken. Set aside.
4. Put the sauteed ingredients in the pie crust, then pour the egg and cream mixture.
5. Put the basil and then sprinkle the cheese on top.
6. Bake

I made quiche today (not the orginal quiche lorraine recipe though). I used Kimiya Lim’s recipe for the filling but I tweaked it to my own liking. It’s my first time to make it and I’m happy it turned out well. The crust was a little crumbly. I think it’s because I added a little too much flour. Anyway, I had the second pan delivered to my sister because I was able to make 2 pans of it.

“Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, ‘Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.’” – John 11:3

“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” – John 11:5

“Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, ‘See how He loved him!’” John 11:33-36

This story touches my heart. It shows how Jesus loved the siblings Mary, Martha and Lazarus. It made me tell God I wish He loves me that way, too–that He will weep for me. There are many characters in the Bible who, after reading their stories, make me jealous because of God’s immense love for them. I find myself begging God to love me the same way and move in my life the same way.

However, as I was reflecting on it, I remembered how God the Father sacrificed His own Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for my salvation. He laid down His life for us on the cross. Knowing that pacifies my heart. To be reminded of God’s deep love for each and every one of us is so comforting.

I hear and read this often (not necessarily for me). People love to give this advice, and I understand that they have nothing but good intention. However, I have observed that I love myself better not when I spend so much time loving myself or making myself feel good by going on a trip, eating good food, getting a massage, or other things that they say will help us love ourselves but when I spend quality time with my Savior.

Sure those things are nice and they do make us feel good but the joy they bring is temporal. They don’t last. Those things make us feel good for a while but hours, days, weeks, months, or even years later, we revert to our exhausted, disappointed self. Then we do things to make us happy again. It’s a vicious cycle.

When I read and meditate on the Word of God, when I hear from Him through His Word, when I feel His warm and comforting presence, when I am enveloped by His peace that transcends all understanding, when He fills me with hope, when He reassures me that I am His, I feel good, I feel beautiful, I feel loved and I love others better. People’s opinion fade in the background and all that matters is I am loved by my Maker, my Savior, my King, my Father, my redeemer, my safe place…

People say we should love ourselves but what do they really mean when they say that? God teaches us the opposite in His Word. Nowhere in the Bible can we find God telling us to love ourselves. God even tells us to die to self every day.

“Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.’” Luke 9:23-24

What does dying to self mean? Dying to self means to love God first, others second, ourselves last. It means to love others even—most especially—when it’s difficult. (God says we are to love our enemies even if they doubt our intentions.) It means sharing the truth about God with people even if they persecute us, even if it literally costs our life! It means to have a peaceful heart even when others ignore or malign us. It means serving people even when they are thankless.

Boy, that ain’t easy! Humans are naturally selfish and it’s our instinct to put ourselves above others. I need to seek God daily and be filled by His love for me to be able to do that. My love is limited. It is God who supplies me with love when I’m running out. I always ask Him to fill me till I overflow…till I spill it to others. We cannot pour from an empty cup.

It doesn’t mean letting others treat us like doormats. It means following Jesus’ example of service and it is ultimately for the Lord (Matthew 20:26-28, John 13:14-17). Jesus said that whoever wants to be first should be last (i.e. slaves). Jesus did not come to be served but to serve.

The question is, what/who should be our source? Jesus is the only one who never runs out and never fails because He is God. His love is limitless. We can only truly love ourselves when we love God first because He is the source of love.

“We love Him because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:19

“The self-esteem cult that goes around saying we’ve got to build up people’s self-esteem is taking them the opposite way that the message of the Bible does, because the more you love yourself, the less likely you are to need a Savior. Self-esteemism is based on an unbiblical perspective. It is diametrically opposed to the truth of human depravity. Moreover, while Scripture commends self-control as a fruit of the spirit, the Bible has nothing positive to say about: self-esteem, self-love, or any other variety of self-centeredness.” – John MacArthur

INGREDIENTS:

BANANA BREAD
1 1/2 c sugar (half brown sugar, half granulated)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
2 1/4 c all purpose flour
1 c butter, melted
1/2 c milk, full cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
5 large ripe bananas (about 2 1/2 c)

CREAM CHEESE FILLING:
1 c cream cheese
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp sugar

I made banana bread with cream cheese today for mama because it’s Mother’s Day. I doubled the recipe because this makes only 1 loaf. 😊