Lemon Raspberry Muffins

After a day of staring at the computer screen and a week of pretty intensive focus on homework for my summer class, I decided I needed a break...a muffin baking break. Since raspberries are in season, I snagged a few containers in the midst of a rainstorm and made it home only mildly drenched to put those berries to good use. This seems to be a good balance between the muffins that shout their healthfulness and those that are overly sweet (should really be in the cupcake category). So, hope you enjoy...just finished my fresh from the oven sample :).

Lemon-Raspberry Muffins
Slightly adapted from EatingWell
Yield: 12 muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup oat flour (1 1/4 cup oats ground in the food processor for about a minute, or just use +1 cup above)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
dash cinnamon

1/2 cup cane sugar
Zest of one lemon
1 egg
1/3 cup coconut oil (or other cooking oil)
1/2 cup vanilla Greek yogurt or sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbsp. lemon juice (squeeze half of the lemon you zested)

1 1/4 cup fresh raspberries (washed and dried)

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400'F. Prep 12 muffin tins with liners.
- In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flours, leavening agents, salt, cinnamon); set aside.
- In a small blender or food processor, combine the sugar and lemon zest; pulse to incorporate.
- Add remaining wet ingredients, but not the raspberries. Pulse or blend to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix just to combine.
- Add the raspberries; fold to incorporate.
- Drop batter into muffin tins to distribute evenly.

Bake for ~25 minutes. Store in fridge, or toss in the freezer for a quick on the go breakfast or snack (after you enjoy one just after cooling from the oven, of course).

Provision for His Purpose

I had a meeting this week in which two questions were posed to me; I've been thinking about them since Monday, and am equally challenged and thankful the more I ponder. The questions...
1. How has God provided for the desires of you heart? 
2. How committed are you to consistently praying for His provision of the desires you don't currently see met? 

Really, these two questions are intertwined; I don't think you can truly answer one without a 'gut check' on the other to determine if I'm aligned with God's intentions. When I think about provision, a habit that Oswald Chambers noted in His Utmost for His Highest today as the first godly habit we should develop, this Psalm comes to mind: "Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart." (Psalm 34:7) The Hebrew translation brings us to the word Mish'alah, which connects desire with request or petition. How often so we look at the latter part of the verse, that he will grant our desires, without remembering the preface of delighting in Him? In that sense, do my requests and petitions connect more to my own selfish desires or are they reflective of delighting in Christ and trusting in His provision accordingly? 
Sometimes, I think we just need to take a simple step back to check our desires...not the frivolous petitions and requests we so easily send up in prayer, but truly the deep desires of our heart...and look broadly to see how He has provided (through people, unexpected circumstances - both challenges and blessings, His Word)...according to what He needs to develop in us for accomplishing His purpose down the road. 

Trusting in His provision also implies action on my part...to obey and abide. 
Obedience: "Whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight." - 1 John 3:22

Abide: "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you." - John 15:7
This active work is reflected in the Greek root for abide, which infers the responsibility to wait for, remain in, and be aware of His Presence to allow His words to continually be in us, so that my wishes align with His purpose for my life...and that when it is accomplished, all glory goes to Him.  

My final thought...I know I can trust in His provision (not just because He has proven it time and time again), but we know that He is able (in spite of my shortcomings and selfish desires) to meet my deepest desires, needs, and more importantly...His purpose! 

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." - Ephesians 3:20-21

(It's pretty neat to think about His orchestration of your life up to now...how He has Provided, even in ways you may not have recognized while in process! Just take a minute to think about that...and praise Him for His Provision!)

Responsible to empty...

Spring semester (check)...ALE Site Visit (check)...Commencement (check)...Leadercast (check)... whew!...the past month has been all sorts of crazy! I'm sitting here enjoying the simple fact that I have taken a couple of days to relax before diving in to the summer semester full force. It has been a welcomed pause for processing and a little planning for the month to come (which is really like two months of work/school in one). I suppose it has been a bit of calm between the "storms" of chaotic schedules.

Although I've heard a lot of great messages lately, I'll focus in on Leadercast because I'm flipping through the program book and photos of the event over my lunch today. In the grand scheme of the event, there are many great take-aways; however, when you're overseeing the run of show for the event, you tend to be more concerned about what's coming next or any issues rather than the content of the speaker at hand. Yet, in the midst of trying to figure out a feed issue and the chat room being down, I was able to hear a little snip-it of Andy Stanley's talk. In that short window, I heard two important things:
1. It's not my responsibility to fill their cup, just to empty mine.
2. The value of a life is always measured in terms of how much of it was given away.

Thoughts on these two statements:
1. It's not my responsibility to fill their cup, just to empty mine.
This one hit home for me, to the point that it was what grabbed my attention while I was working on getting the chat room support back up; I stopped and jotted it down before pausing to listen to the contextual description he was giving. As one who typically assumes responsibility in various situations, this was a refreshing reminder that I truly can only accept responsibility for what I have control over. I cannot force someone to see from a new perspective or understand the importance of cultural context, but I can certainly ensure that I share my experiences and pour out what I do know and think would be beneficial for someone/a situation. To grasp on to this means less frustration with wondering if students 'get' the why behind things and more of me simply sharing the content that informs my passions of leadership development and intercultural competence. I also enjoyed his caveat of 'you're smarter than you think you are...share!'...how often do we hesitate to share because we assume others may already know something or because we don't have the full picture/all the answers? I find it oddly encouraging when leaders are transparent about their areas of expertise, knowledge gaps, and how they're trying to grow. 

2. The value of a life is always measured in terms of how much of it was given away.
When we focus on self, there are limitations to and perceptions of personal value; yet, when the focus is on pouring yourself out (emptying your cup), limitations and perceptions subside and living a value-added life leads to ripples of your impact continuing beyond your own sight! How powerful, humbling, and inspiring it is to see a little bit of your heartfelt service impact someone else! 

Great reminders from such a gifted communicator! Now, back to that planning thing :)!

"Do what you do well, and do it strategically for the Kingdom."