Hockey

Canadians LOVE the Olympics and they LOVE hockey. I wish I had kept track of how many hockey references I've heard in church even... and now that fans from across the country have united to root for one team, I think it's worse. There have been quite a few uncomfortable moments for me as an American who doesn't much care for hockey!

I know it's borderline sacrilegious to say this-- especially considering our proximity to Vancouver-- but I'm tired of the Olympics. It's all anyone can talk about! In some circles there seems to be a thin line between the Olympics and idol worship. I should be clear here, because I am in NO WAY saying that everyone who enjoys the Olympics or watches the Olympics is in sin. I've watched several events myself and enjoyed them. I am only saying that like anything else, the Olympics can be a stumbling block between us and our God. And I do wish the church used the opportunity to speak more to the parallel between the physical games and the spiritual training we undergo to attain eternal rewards. This verse has been on my mind continually this past week or so:

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 1 Corinthians 9:25

So let's just all keep a little perspective.

-JLR
ps.. the thought crossed my mind that maybe I should root for Canada in hockey this year... when in Rome... :)

Lent

I'm a bit nervous about Lent this year. "Giving something up for Lent" in my experience has always been an optional activity. I don't come from a background where it is expected or required, though I have always known others to do it. Some people give up soda, some give up alcohol, some tv... to be honest, I haven't participated in giving anything up for a number of years. But this year I was thinking a lot about some of the luxuries I could fast from and Facebook continued to rise to the top of the list. I view it primarily as a "water cooler" venue among many friends around the globe. I love it. But I spend way too much time on it. And I don't need it to survive. I have even had to ask myself if I love it more than God. I'm ashamed at my answer some days. But... could I really give it up for 46 days (Lent doesn't actually include the Sundays between Easter, but let's get real... how tempting would it be to check FB just once a week?!?!?)?? Could I really give up Bejeweled and some of my other addicting Facebook games?? The more I realized that my answer was "no" to some of these questions, the more I realized that I probably should fast from FB, and what better opportunity than Lent.

So that's what I'm doing. I'll probably have to blog on here much more often as I detox, and who knows I might actually catch up on my emails! (gasp!) But I'm looking forward to using at least a big chunk of that time for some extra Bible study and staying up-to-date on the Beth Moore study I'm doing now (which is kicking my butt, I might add!).

So there you have it. See ya in a couple months, Facebook!

-JLR

Wheat Pizza Crust

This is the recipe I've been using for pizza crust, if you are interested. I got the base from my sister-in-law and have been tweaking the wheat/white flour combination since this summer. Half and half works well, but I also tried 2 c wheat and 1 c white this past time and it was ok. It didn't rise as much as the other, but it tasted great! This is a very basic dough recipe-- probably similar to many others out there, I think.

1 C warm water (1/2 C boiling plus 1/2 cup room temp, then allow to cool only slightly)
1 T yeast
1 T sugar
1 T oil
3 C flour (1 1/2 C each of white and whole wheat)
1 t. salt
A bit extra flour
A bit extra oil
A sprinkle of cornmeal

Dissolve yeast in water. Add sugar and oil, stir, and allow to set for 5 minutes. Once you see bubbles forming, add salt and flour. Knead on lightly floured surface for 7-10 minutes or until not sticky-- try not to add too much additional flour during this step. Lightly oil the dough and place in a bowl, covered, in a warm place until it has doubled in size. Punch down. While dough rests for ~5 min, put small amount of oil into the pan (I usually use two small/med nonstick cookie sheets-- approx 9x13) and spread evenly. Should just be a very light coating. Sprinkle cornmeal lightly over the pan/oil. This helps keep the pizza from sticking once cooked. Roll out dough and place in pan(s), folding over the edges if desired to form a crust. I often put freshly minced garlic on at this point-- just mince and combine with small amt of butter, then brush on. Top with sauce and desired toppings (veggies, pineapple, meat, cheese, etc.)

--JLR

Olympic Torch

Today was a once-in-a-lifetime event for the community in which we live. Langley and Walnut Grove (our area of Langley) hosted the Olympic Torch Relay for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver! The torch has traveled throughout Canada and is spending some time this week in our area before it arrives downtown for the Opening Ceremonies.

One of my favorite parts was the mobile dance party that came around before the torch... it reminded me so much of Tanzania! Kenya, too, actually. We were in Nairobi during the 2008 elections and passed a number of similar vehicles holding bands/dancers/loudspeakers.

Here are a few pictures. We bumped into some friends from our Life Group (the Martins) so Micaiah enjoyed playing with them as we waited.
How very, very exciting!!!

--JLR

Pizza

I used to think that homemade pizza was just a sad excuse for poor people who didn't want to order it. I first learned how to make pizza in TZ (as a taste from home), and have been working on my technique/recipes ever since. I think I finally have it!

There are no pictures from the homemade pizza we had this evening simply because it's gone. And I didn't realize until now that I'd want to blog about it! But it was so amazing that I need to give it a spot on the blog.

So what is the perfect pizza? For me it is a whole wheat crust over a lightly oiled pan with cornmeal sprinkled on. Then some sauce (I used to make this from scratch, but I'm enjoying the canned kind for now, some cheese, some ground-beef-sauteed-with-onions, some pepperoni, and some more cheese. I guess I'm kind of childish in my preference to keep veggies off my pizza. But for me, meat and cheese is the way to go! (Although the occasional pineapple chunk doesn't bother me a bit.) :)

--JLR