Prayer Changes Things

Sharon M. Knudson

Ever since I was a child, I’ve had a plaque that says, “Prayer changes things” on my bedroom wall. I wonder how many hours I’ve spent lying in bed, staring at that motto.

Over the years, I’ve sometimes wondered about the effectiveness of my prayers. Sometimes it seems like long-term problems will never go away. I’m apt to tell myself, “Nothing will ever change. The situation is hopeless.” I’m sure that motto was meant to be an encouragement to people, but when there doesn’t seem to be any change in sight, it stabs me in the heart. What am I doing wrong? I ask myself. Why aren’t my prayers working? Why is the world in such a mess?

That’s when I need to remind myself that it does no good to focus on the prayers themselves. What I should be focusing on instead is my loving heavenly Father.

Perhaps the plaque should be changed to read, “God changes things!” That would put the emphasis where it belongs. It’s not my correctness in wording, or my prevailing attitude, or my trying to please God that gets my prayers answered. It’s not my strength and perseverance (or the pitiful lack thereof) that makes Him listen to me. Sure, there are many factors that enter in, but only God determines what they are. He has promised to hear and answer our prayers, but He alone decides when and where and if and how He will answer.

God changes things! He is our all-powerful, almighty Benefactor. Full of mercy and loving kindness, He is to be honored and praised. Prayer is not a magic formula that we can tap into to make things happen our way. It’s not a list of requests we make to a “butler in the sky.” Let’s make sure we keep our focus off the characteristics and logistics of our praying—and on the God of Heaven and earth who sovereignly responds. Then He will change things!

“Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. Morning by morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; morning by morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:1-3).

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Naan Bread

Recipe and Photo from Susie Reuter

Naan is a delicious bread, served for dipping or stuffed with a variety of meats and vegetables. Topping can also be placed on top of the bread, such as hummus or artichoke dip. Naan is like pita, yet softer and larger.

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 1  1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup shortening
• 3 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup melted butter

Measure 3/4 cups warm water in a measuring cup. Add sugar and yeast. Allow yeast to soften and stir until yeast is dissolved. Cover measuring cup with towel and allow yeast and water to froth for 5-10 minutes. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour and salt. Add yeast water, yogurt, and shortening and begin to knead for 5-10 minutes until a dough forms. Place dough in bowl coated with oil and turn dough around to evenly coat. Cover bowl with towel and allow to rise in a warm area for about 1 hour or until the dough has doubled.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Divide dough into 10-12 pieces and roll out on floured surface into circles. Place rolled out dough on greased cookie sheet and brush with melted butter. Cook in oven for 8 minutes or until lightly browned and puffed up. Serve immediately or store in an air-tight plastic bag for 7 days. Also can be frozen.

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Lemon Asparagus

Recipe and Photo by Susie Reuter

I love asparagus, but usually only buy it a few times a year when it is on sale. Otherwise, it is often over $5.00 per pound. Instead of traditional steaming, I almost always prepare it on the grill, using a flat, unpierced 8×8 piece of foil as a “pan”, so the butter does not drip through onto the flames.

1 lemon, halved
1 pound asparagus, washed and 2 inches cut from bottom stems
1 – 2 tablespoons butter or butter substitute
1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Place foil on grill, crimping up edges, then preheat indoor or outdoor grill on high for 5 minutes. While grill is heating, cut lemon in half, then cut 4 rounds off of one piece. Set the rounds aside to garnish when done. Cut asparagus pieces in half.

Place butter on foil (on grill), spread around a little. Place asparagus in butter, cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. While asparagus is cooking, squeeze the remaining lemon half over it and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve immediately garnished with a lemon round, serves 4.

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The Joy of Reading

Sharon M. Knudson

What a delightful thing to get a cup of hot coffee or tea, sit back, and spend time in a good book. Reading good Christian literature is one of the finest things we can do with our time, and the resulting spiritual growth and transformation is hard to achieve as quickly or thoroughly any other way.

There are Christian books and magazines by the hundreds, even Christian newspapers. Authors are publishing in unprecedented numbers! The classics also make excellent reading: The Practice of the Presence of God by Br. Lawrence, The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life by Hannah Whitall Smith, and My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers, for example.

Biographies, autobiographies, and journals of great Christian men and women are informative and faith-building. I think of Corrie ten Boom’s The Hiding Place, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs by John Foxe, George Mueller’s Journals, and Just as I Am by Billy Graham. Secular novels can communicate the truths of Christianity too. Consider The Hobbit and The Ring Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien, Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, and C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia.

Cecil Murphey, a prolific Christian writer who teaches at writer’s conferences around the country, says, “Along with prayer, reading is the most important aspect to my Christian growth. It’s important to be in church, to worship with others, and to serve in various capacities, but those are the outward commitments. Prayer and reading are the private, unseen parts of our commitment. We can fake our spirituality in service, but if we don’t have that private life, it shows. I’ve learned so much from reading the insights and experiences of others through the years. When I was in graduate school, I sensed the importance of reading and promised God and myself that I would read at least one book a week for the rest of my life. I’ve held to that commitment.”

And last, let’s not neglect the most important book of all–– the Bible. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Reading and studying Scripture results in a joy like none other!

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Mediterranean Couscous

Recipe by Susie Reuter

There are so many types of side dishes available besides rice and potatoes ~ couscous and quinoa are two of my new favorites. Couscous is frequently thought of as a grain, but it’s actually a pasta. It is simple to prepare and has a unique texture and flavor. If you haven’t tried these as sides already, treat yourself to a new experience!

• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup Israeli couscous (the large type)
• 1/2 cup tri-colored Orzo pasta (optional)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon capers
• 1/4 cup split baby garbanzo beans
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, chopped

Bring the broth and water to a boil in a 2 quart saucepan over high heat. Place the couscous and orzo in boiling broth and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until tender. Drain using a small mesh colander. Add in the rest of the ingredients, stir well, and serve.

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Tangy Lemon Bars

Recipe and Photo by Susie Reuter

These yummy bars only take 15 minutes to prep, so they are a fantastic pot-luck or picnic treat. No matter what the weather is like, they always remind me of a warm, sunny day.

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Juice from 2 lemons
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, blend together softened butter, 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup sugar. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9×13 inch pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven.

In another bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar and 1/4 cup flour. Whisk in the eggs and lemon juice. Pour over the hot baked crust. Bake for an additional 20 minutes in the preheated oven. The bars will become firm as they cool. After bars have cooled, cut into uniform 2 inch squares. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Keep in air-tight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

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Simple Creamy Wild Rice Soup

Recipe and Photo by Susie Reuter

This Midwestern hearty soup is a favorite all around. I like to make large batches and freeze or can them, or give them out as gifts. Served with fresh baked bread and tossed salad for a complete “comfort food” meal!

• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth (organic if possible)
• 2 cups water
• 2 free range boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded (optional)
• 1 (4.5 ounce) package quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet (Such as Uncle Ben’s)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup thawed mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, corn, beans, etc.)

1. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water and chicken. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.
2. In a small bowl, combine pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.
3. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes. Shown served with Lefse.

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Missing Pieces

Mary Fran Heitzman

Have you ever searched the table top for a jigsaw puzzle piece? You need just the right one to fill that blank spot staring back at you. As you shuffle through the pile, your eyes scan knobs and inlets for the only perfect piece—the one that will fit the blank space you need to fill. You examine each shape carefully; give it a quarter or half-turn in your fingers. You bring it close to the bare spot in your puzzle and find at the last moment that it doesn’t fit.

So you scrutinize the picture. You’re sure the missing piece will be covered in foliage, as that is the whole of what you’re working with. Then when you finally find the only possible fit, it is not foliage after all, but the face of an owl or some other bird, which looks thoughtfully at you from a small branch. What you expected wasn’t the reality of what you found.

Prayers are like that, too. We can give God the specifics and parameters, the size and shape of our needs, the desires of our heart. But His answer is different than what we’re looking for. That’s because we don’t recognize the perfect fit that God sees. We think He has fulfilled only part of our requirements. It may take a great passage of time before we realize how perfectly suited to our needs God’s answer is.

Occasionally even the passage of time fails to satisfy our unanswered “why.” It is during the waiting times that we need to focus on the wisdom of Proverbs 3:5,6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.”

When we are focused on God’s wisdom, all the parts fit just so. Whether our perspective is perfect or not, God sees the big picture even without the missing pieces.

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Almond Poppyseed Bread

Recipe and Photo by Susie Reuter

This moist cake is wonderful for breakfast, a snack, at the dinner table, or even dessert. Bring this to work, and your co-workers will love you forever!

• 2-1/4 cups sugar
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
• 1-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1-1/2 teaspoons almond extract
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/2 cups milk

GLAZE:

• 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon  juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Grease bottom and sides of 2  8-inch x 4-inch loaf pans. Preheat oven to 350° F. Place oven rack in bottom 1/3 of oven.

In a large bowl, combine the sugar, oil, eggs, poppy seeds, lemon juice and extracts; beat with wooden spoon until well blended. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to sugar mixture alternately with milk, beating just until moistened.

Pour into greased loaf pans. Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Combine glaze ingredients until smooth; drizzle over warm loaves. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Makes 2 loaves (16 slices each).

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16 Bean Soup Kit

Recipe and Photo by Susie Reuter

This colorful soup is perfect on a cold day, and makes an economical and useful gift. Use as many types of beans as you would like, or look in the store for a variety bag. To package as a gift, place the beans in a jar, then put all of the spices into a small zip-top bag. Type the instructions then fold and use a hole puncher to make a small hole in the corner; tie to the jar with a decorative ribbon.

Each bag will get the following ingredients:

• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic or garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Print the following directions for each jar:

You will need:

• Large Soup Pot
• 8 cups cold and 6 cups hot water
• ½ – 1 pound cooked, chopped ham, if desired

Soak:  Rinse and sort beans in a large pot. Drain. Place beans in 8 cups cold water overnight. Drain and rinse beans.

Cook: Place beans back in pot. Add 6 cups hot water. (For more flavor, substitute 2 cups vegetable broth for 2 cups of the water.) Simmer with lid gently tilted for 1 hour. Add ham, onion, and seasoning packet, cover and cook 30-60 minutes, until desired tenderness is reached.

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