Soaking Flour: The Why's and How's

The process of soaking flour was always a little confusing to me.  ("Wait, I'm supposed to get my flour wet before I use it?  Wouldn't this change the recipe?  What am I supposed to soak it in?"  etc...)  But a few pages and a few clicks later, it all made perfect sense.  "Soaking" your flour before you bake with it has numerous health benefits, and can give baked goods a deliciously rich flavor and texture.  Sally Fallon, in her book Nourishing Traditions, sites the following benefits of soaking your flour before baking with it:
-activates the enzyme phytase, which breaks down phytic acid (phytic acid inhibits the absorption of calcium, magnesium, iron, copper and zinc)
-provides lactic acid and lactobacilli, helping to break down complex starches and proteins
-increases vitamin content
-makes the nutrients in grains more readily available
-softens whole grain flour, making it more palatable

Basically, soaking your flour makes your end product more digestible, readying nutrients for easy assimilation in the body.  Also, soaking your flour is one awesomely healthy change you can make for your family's diet without spending any extra money!  Can I get an "AMEN!"  Here's how it's done:

How to Soak Flour
You need the flour called for by your recipe and an acidic liquid medium.  Here are some of those mediums:
cultured milk
cultured buttermilk
cultured cream
yogurt (Can't contain additives, even natural ones.  Just milk on that ingredient list.)
kefir
whey
vinegar
lemon juice

If your recipe calls for cultured milk, cultured buttermilk, or cultured cream as the liquid base:
Mix the cultured milk/buttermilk/cream from your recipe with the flour from your recipe and let sit in a warm place, covered, for 12 to 24 hours.  After soaking, add remaining ingredients and finish recipe as instructed.

If your recipe calls for water as the liquid base:
Replace one tablespoon water with one tablespoon acidic medium for every cup of liquid in recipe.  For example, if your recipe calls for two cups of water, spoon two tablespoons of acidic medium into your measuring cup first, then finish filling with water up to the 2 cup mark.  So you still have two cups of liquid, but two tablespoons of that are now acidic for soaking.  Mix the water/acid from your recipe with the flour from your recipe and let sit in a warm place, covered, for 12 to 24 hours.  After soaking, add remaining ingredients and finish recipe as instructed.

If your recipe calls for uncultured milk, buttermilk, or cream as the liquid base:
Use cultured instead... it will be so much better!  :)  But if you can't...
Follow the "calls for water" directions above, using yogurt or kefir as your acidic medium.

The actual process of soaking is super easy, it just takes a little bit of thinking ahead.  An easy way to start getting in the habit is to soak your breakfast batter (if you're making pancakes, waffles, etc) overnight.  When you get up in the morning you'll have a half-finished recipe already (yay!) and a more beneficial breakfast to devour!

Happy soaking to all!

Thirty One Thursdays - An Inconvenient Journey

New to Thirty One Thursdays?  Start by reading the Intro Week and The Value of Virtue.

Proverbs 31:14
She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.

Verse 14 is represented by the Hebrew letter He (or Heh).

I love the international aisle at the grocery store.  I get my whole wheat pasta, my flour tortillas, and my Thai peanut sauce all in one 50 foot stroll.  I can be in the store at 2:00, and have just about any dish from any place in the world on my dinner table at 5:00.  If you think about it, that's pretty incredible.  Bringing food "from afar" for my family is as easy as tearing open the taco seasoning packet (and no, I never feel guilty about using a taco seasoning packet).

When we think about it this way, one might think it's not so hard to be this Virtuous Woman.  One commentary I read on the issue put it this way:

"This means the wife of today can actually top this rare wife of Prov. 31, and so we
see that the progress of history has made it easier in some areas to be superior to the most superior wife of the past. Congratulations modern wife, for you have in

this one area surpassed the woman who surpassed all the women of her day."(http://www.scribd.com/doc/33960878/Proverbs-31-Commentary)

Hmm.  Why doesn't that congratulations feel deserved?  Is it true that just being born in my current era and culture has made virtuosity more attainable?  Or is this commentator missing something?  Perhaps a better question is, in my search for virtuosity, am I  missing something?  The above commentary, in my opinion, is coming from a very western-minded (dare I say American) perspective.  It congratulates me, the modern wife, for winning... just because I was born in the 20th century.  Is that how one becomes virtuous?  You just have to be born at the right time?  Sounds pretty convenient to me.

Are we searching for convenient character?

If I don't feel like fixing lunch, I can drive my family through McDonald's (shame!) and feed everyone for less time (and possibly less money) than it would have taken to make it myself.  And that's what we're used to in American culture.  If I want something, I just push a button, make a phone call, or double click and it's mine.  But I'm not sure that McVirtuosity is on God's menu.

The author of the poem could have easily said, "She is like the merchant.  She brings her food from afar."  But she is not compared to the merchant... she is compared to the ship.  I imagine things were a little more convenient for the merchant himself.  He could sit comfortably behind his desk sending his merchant fleets in and out of port without ever having to step foot on board.  The ship, on the other hand, is the vehicle through which all the trading was accomplished.  The ship journeyed back and forth between countries; the ship carried the load of goods; the ship suffered the dangers of the sea; the ship was the one to GO.

Maybe you've heard someone say that a woman's place is in the home.  After reading this verse (and the rest of the poem), I beg to differ.  It is here that we see a picture of a woman who was willing to GO that extra mile, and weather the journey, to provide for her family.  She was active in the marketplace of life.  She did not sit comfortably at home all day.  Her tasks were not simple, nor were her duties for the faint, weak, or ignorant.  Like a ship, she was powerful, strong, and prepared for the trip.

I don't think the heart of this verse is a discussion about food.  Otherwise, our commentator is right.  We've achieved virtuosity in a quick trip to the grocery store.  That would be pretty convenient.  I think the heart of the verse is saying that the Virtuous Woman is willing to GO the extra mile for her family, to accomplish the difficult tasks, and provide for them in ways that no one else is equipped to.  It is not a picture of easily accomplished work.  It is, on the contrary, a beautiful portrait of a woman who gets her hands right down into the hard, dirty, menial dirt of the day and (remember verse 13?)... she loves it.

We can not wake up in the morning expecting to just be this woman.  The kind of character we are reading about here is not gained easily or quickly.  It is not for sale at the mall.  It will not come off a fast food line.  It is not on Amazon.  Instead, it is learned; slowly, with focus and hard work, on an inconvenient journey.  Oh, and with lots and lots and LOTS of prayer! 

Are you willing to get off the couch and GO, that this character might be developed in your own heart?

THIS WEEK'S ACTION STEP:  What is one task in your home/marriage/family life that you know will improve things for your family but you've been putting off because it's not convenient... or because it's hard... or boring... or requires a lot of preparation... or is menial... or... well you get the idea.  Make this task your top priority this week.  Schedule a time for it in your calendar if you have to.  By the end of the week, see it finished. 

NEXT THURSDAY'S VERSE:
"She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens."

Mission for Family, or Family for Mission?

"My family is my number one ministry."

Have you heard any moms say this before?  Have you ever said it yourself?  I have.  In fact, I was just recently telling a friend that if I don't do my job as a mother then my kids have to become someone else's mission, so I should just do my job as a mom in the first place.

And this is true.  BUUUT...

Should the mission be the means to which my good family is the end?  No.

In the natural living community I have read and seen a lot of moms who are making wonderful choices for their families' diets, apparel, education, and health.  I have also seen and read a lot of moms who, because their family is their number one mission, are focused only inward on their families.  There is nothing wrong with making our families a priority, and we should.  But for the Believing mother, cultured, educated, healthy children is not the end goal.

The end goal is that God's glory would be made known in all nations.  That includes Him being made known in my family, by my children... but it certainly doesn't end there. 

Are you building a mission for your family, or building a family for the mission? 

What if we stopped, as mothers, focusing inward, and started teaching our families to collectively focus outward?  What if our kids could learn from the very beginning that they are part of something bigger than themselves, and that they have a role to play in God's mission?

Would our families look different?  Would our suburban communities look different?  Would our churches look different?  Would we be more effective for the Kingdom of God?

Our homes are only where the mission begins.  "Good" families are not the goal.  Well-rounded children are not the goal.  A pantry full of organic food is not the goal.  The goal is Christ - for as many people as possible.

I would love to hear what you do to turn your family toward the mission!  Let's have a conversation about it, and maybe we can all benefit from hearing others' ideas!

Thirty One Thursdays - Loving Our Work

New to Thirty One Thursdays?  Start by reading the Intro Week and The Value of Virtue.

photo by Noel Mount

Proverbs 31:13
She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.

Verse 13 is represented by the Hebrew letter Dalet.

Have you ever felt unwilling to accomplish your day to day work?  It has been one of those weeks for me.  I haven't been sleeping well because I'm now in my third trimester of pregnancy and that has made for a rotten attitude during the day sometimes.  Add a toddler to the equation and, wow... I just want to call a babysitter to take the boy and sit on my couch watching movies all day.  I think we've all been there for one reason or another.

I will come back to the first part of the verse in a minute, but want to begin with the second part for our study this week:  "[she] works with willing hands."  The Hebrew word that's translated "willing" is chephets.  After reading about this noun (yep, the Hebrew form is a noun, not an adjective), I think "willing" is sort of an underwhelming translation.  The Hebrew word means delight, desire, longing, the good pleasure.  So the verse is saying much more than "she is willing to do it."  It's saying that the Virtuous Woman's desire, the thing that she longs to do, is her work.

I don't think I've ever gotten out of bed in the morning with a burning desire to rush downstairs and empty the dishwasher.  As if the most basic tasks of the day, the boring stuff that just has to get done by somebody, should be the highlight of my day.  Riiiiight.

But Proverbs is telling us that our Virtuous Woman is not merely willing to do the hard, laborious, boring stuff... she loves it.  She longs for it.  It is her delight and pleasure.

Let's jump back to the first half of the verse now.  "She seeks wool and flax."  We're all familiar with wool, ya know, the stuff that comes off sheep.  It was, and still is, used for clothing.  Flax was, and still is, used for its fibers as well.  That's where linen comes from - the flax plant!  Bet you didn't expect a lesson in fabrics today!  The process of getting flax from plant stage to linen stage is interesting to me, mainly because I don't have to do it.  Otherwise I'm sure I would see it only as painstaking labor. 

The plant is pulled from the ground, then laid out to dry.  Once dry, it undergoes a process called retting.  Retting is a controlled rotting, or decaying of the plant.  It is left to lie in a field for several weeks, allowing dew to collect on it.  The very abridged story here is that the dew, over time, yields a desired softening and decay of the plant, wherein the usable fibers separate from the core.  It is only after this retting process that the fibers can be pulled from the rest of the plant and turned to linen, which is historically one of the finest, most beautiful fabrics in the world.

When the flax is retted, the fibers become soft and willing.  It isn't until the unusable portion rots away that the plant can be used for a purpose.

But is this retting process harsh?  Nope!  In fact, it sounds quite calming.  The plant just spreads out there on the ground, enjoying the dew of the morning.  Flax can also be retted in a stream or a pond.  Like a cool bath.  Now I am starting to like this metaphor.

Sometimes God uses the harsh situations of life to break us and mold us and change us and make us more like Himself... and other times, He calls us to rest.  I notice that the times when I feel the most unwilling to get out of bed/love on my kid/tackle my list/find something- ANYTHING -to make for dinner are the times when I am the most unrested.  Burn out takes over and every nasty part of myself that normally gets battled way down deep inside comes springing up to the surface.  And I am thinking more and more that what I DON'T need in these times is to just put on a smile and push through.  That doesn't change anything in my heart.  It only makes me more resentful of the fact that I have to do all this crap.  I think what we really need when unwillingness takes over is REST. 

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:28-30

That sounds like the dew of the morning right there. 

The ability to take pleasure in our work is not usually part of who we are in our original form.  Going to Jesus to receive rest must become a part of our routine, in order that all the rotten stuff would fall away and we would become willing to be used by Him in whatever way He so desires.  When His desires become our desires - that is when we will delight in the work we've been given to do.

THIS WEEKS ACTION STEP:  Schedule a break.  If hubby can't take the kids, get a babysitter.  Get a mother-in-law.  Get a mama friend who will swap break time with you.  Just make it happen.  It's in your planner, so it is the law.
Let's not miss the very important part here that Jesus is the source of our rest.  Doing whatever we want might bring rest to the body or brain for a moment, but going to the Lord will give rest to our souls. 
So this is a very specific kind of break.  Here are the guidelines:
-It must be at least 4 hours. 
-It must begin with prayer and time in the Word.  You have a good chunk of a break here... go ahead and spend a longer-than-usual amount of time with God.
-Ask God to remind you of His Will in your life.  Ask God to remind you that He is your resting place when things get crazy.
-Then, do whatever you want for your remaining break time.
-No kids/housework/lists/planning/errands allowed.
-Just rest.

NEXT THURSDAYS VERSE:
"She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar."
Proverbs 31:14

Citations:
Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for chephets (Strong's 2656)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2011. 20 Jan 2011. < http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?

Strongs=H2656&t=KJV >

Being Missional Families

I am up in the middle of the night. 

And I think God is doing it to me.

Tossing and turning for an hour and a half in bed, I can't get thoughts about missional living out of my brain.  And believe me, I am trying, because I really just want to go back to sleep.  I have to chase a two year old around in a few short hours.  But it's no use.  So I'm up, out of bed, to the computer, researching.

I google: "Being a missional family"

Results:  "Did you mean: Being a missionary family"

Now I'm awake.  Google's programmed response shot me straight up in my chair.

No, Google, no I did not mean "being a missionary family."  We have come to believe, as American Christians, that missions are for families who travel overseas and live in the dirt and eat weird food and don't wear make-up and build things and......................  What happened to the day in and day out missional command of Christ for EVERY believer?  Have our families lost sight of this?  Do we think "missions" are to be the responsibility of a select few who "have a heart" to live in another country, or do we see missional living as a central building block in the foundation of our family make up?  Do we have to be a "missionary family" to be missional in our family, community, and world?  Or in another sense, should not every Christian family be a missionary family, no matter your address?

I want to share a short excerpt with you from a book I'm reading (a refreshingly challenging book!) called, Radical, by David Platt.

"Where in the Bible is missions ever identified as an optional program in the church?  We have just seen that we were all created by God, saved from our sins, and blessed by God to make His glory known in all the world.  Indeed, Jesus Himself has not merely called us to go to all nations; He has created us and commanded us to go to all nations.  We have taken this command, though, and reduced it to a calling - something that only a few people receive.

I find it interesting that we don't do this with other words from Jesus.  We take Jesus' command in Matthew 28 to make disciples of all nations, and we say, "That means other people."  But we look at Jesus' command in Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest," and we say, "Now, that means me."  We take Jesus' promise in Acts 1:8 that the Spirit will lead us to the ends of the earth, and we say, "That means some people."  But we take Jesus' promise in John 10:10 that we will have abundant life, and we say, "That means me."

In the process we have unnecessarily (and unbiblically) drawn a line of distinction, assigning the obligations of Christianity to a few while keeping the privileges of Christianity for us all."

I think the Lord got me out of bed tonight (eerrr, this morning) to begin showing me that He wants my family to be missional.  And not because He is "calling" us to it, but because He has commanded it of all believers and wants us to obey Him.

I am excited to obey Him in this.  I am excited to seek out ways to be missional in my family, in our city, and in the world.  And I am excited about the conversations that we might have about it here at Life On Purpose.

Life In Purpose, indeed.

Thirty One Thursdays - Deciding Our Dealings

New to Thirty One Thursdays?  Start by reading the Intro Week and The Value of Virtue.

Proverbs 31:12
She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.

Verse 12 is represented by the Hebrew letter Gimel.

"She does him good..." is a continuation of verse 11, further elaborating on why the husband of the Virtuous Woman trusts in her.  This might seem like a simple tag-on at first, and many commentaries I've read through have had little to nothing to say about verse 12.  But I think there is a wealth of teaching here, because doing good to our husbands, especially in the post-women's-lib culture we live in, can prove to be the most difficult task to accomplish on the entire list.

"She does" comes from the Hebrew verb Gamal, which means:

-to deal fully with

-to deal bountifully with

-to recompense, repay

-to deal out

A couple other places we see the word used are:

I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 13:6

I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord, the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that He has granted them according to His compassion, according to the abundance of His steadfast love.
Isaiah 63:7

We're not talking about any passive "doing" here. We're talking about an active, decisive giving of ourselves in the fullest sense. The Virtuous Woman decides every day to deal out goodness to her husband, much like the Lord gives Himself fully to us.  That is one heavy verb!

As a believing woman, you probably let God challenge you in many areas.  If you are working, and your employer is being nasty, do you feel that conviction to act kindly toward him/her?  When you clean out your closet, do you drop the clothes off at Goodwill?  When your kids are giving you an extra challenging day, do you hear the Lord calling you to be patient?  Do you take a meal to a family in need at church, or say something kind to a friend who's having a bad day, or decide not to honk your horn when someone cuts you off on the road?

We are usually more than willing to obey God in dealing out kindness to others...

...except when it comes to our husbands. 

For some reason, if hubby is being nasty, or challenging, or having a bad day, or cutting us off at every word, we tell ourselves that it's ok to be nasty and challenging in return.  In whose eyes do we think this is ok?  Who are we conversing with when we say, "he doesn't deserve my kindness right now"?

Jesus taught us,

"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you... for if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?"
Matthew 5:44,46

Have you ever felt like your husband is your enemy?  I have!  Two people living in close quarters trying to do life together are bound to get into it here and there.  But the Lord tells us to hang up our pride and repay kindness to those who deal unjustly with us (husbands are not excluded here).

Peter also tells us,

"Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing."
1 Peter 3:9

Remember what the other part of that "doing" verb means?  To recompense or repay.  Not only are we talking about how I treat my husband on the front end, but also how I respond to him.  Whatever his attitude is toward me, I am called to respond by dealing out goodness to him.

I, the woman, am supposed to be "the bigger man" in my home.

And not sometimes.  Not on good days.  Not when all is going well.  But "all the days of her life."

Not only does the Lord call me to deal out goodness to my husband, but He calls me to be consistent in my dealings, even when it's not deserved, following the example of Christ.

At the end of the day, this has far less to do with being good to hubs and far more to do with submitting to the Will of God.  Our culture wants to make it about the former, but if we remain tied to the Word, we can know the truth of obedience and decide to apply it in our marriages.  We can fully and actively deal our husbands a hand of goodness, and not harm or evil, all the days of our lives.

THIS WEEK'S ACTION STEP:  Read 1 Samuel 25:1-42.
Consider the kindness Abigail showed her husband in her actions toward David, even though it was totally undeserved.
Consider how the Lord rewarded Abigail's righteousness.
Consider how you can carry the same attitude into your marriage this week.

NEXT THURSDAY'S VERSE:
"She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands."
Proverbs 31:13

Citations:
Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for gamal (Strong's 1580)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2011. 13 Jan 2011. &lt; http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?

Strongs=H1580&t=KJV >

A Craft from PW - Faces of the Month

A friend of mine recently shared this craft idea and I immediately fell in love with it!  And I thought... what better way to share my love than to pass it along to you?  WOO!   The craft comes from a guest writer at one of my favorite blogs, The Pioneer Woman.  Here's the "Faces of the Month" tutorial so you can go get down with your creative self!