My wife is a great cook, and lately she is striving to be a healthy one as well. It is amazing the amount of things she can do with Chicken.
Part of her magic I think lies in a process called marinating. She will take the chicken or steak or whatever meat and place it in a bowl with different liquids in it. I always love when she use soy sauce as part of it, I love the smell.
This process of marinating is different depending on what result she is trying to get.
I have learned that you can leave the meat in too long as well as too short. That the items used in one recipe may not work with another. It is all about what you want the end result to be.
I got thinking about this process and how it changes the actual texture and flavor of the meat. It is a neat trick.
I wonder how we are marinating our spirits every day.
What formula are we using to change the texture of our souls?
Do we surround ourselves with things that will enhance the overall recipe?
I have come to enjoy my MP3 player. I love music and have it on around me as much as possible.
On my player I have several playlists, one is entitled “Mini Power” or mini marinated.
It has 4 songs on it, whenever I feel like I need that extra push or reassurance or the extra kick in my Spirits seat of the pants. I hit play on this list. This is my list and my not make sense to others, but it is mine and I gladly claim it.
The songs are:
Bring him home from Les Mis as preformed by the Piano guys
Be Still My souls as sung by the group Eclipse
Abide with me as sung by David Osmond
And Let Me In by the Osmond’s.
Lately I have added one more to my list. Today is you day by Shania Twain
I have a much larger play list called Greatness that includes these songs as well as a lot of others.
The spirit that I feel when I surround myself with these tools is priceless.
I don’t watch a lot of TV just for me. As soon as I walk in the door my 4 year old seems to think that it is my job to keep her entertained.
I have seen bits and pieces of some Reality TV and I am so glad that I don’t have time to watch TV just for fun.
In the”For Strength of Youth” put out by the LDS Church we read:
Satan uses media to deceive you by making what is wrong and evil look normal, humorous, or exciting. He tries to mislead you into thinking that breaking God’s commandments is acceptable and has no negative consequences for you or others. Do not attend, view, or participate in anything that is vulgar, immoral, violent, or pornographic in any way. Do not participate in anything that presents immorality or violence as acceptable. Have the courage to walk out of a movie, change your music, or turn off a computer, television, or mobile device if what you see or hear drives away the Spirit.
Sounds a lot like reality TV show descriptions to me.
What does this do to our spirits? What are we willingly choosing to marinate in?
Some have told me, “It’s only a few hours a week that I watch this show, it’s not that much. Well, we are only in Church a few hours a week and see how that effects us. I have also heard, well it’s only a few words in a few songs, or these songs are great to dance to and sound awesome with my head phones.
If we go back to my marinating the meat example,
I have never seen my wife use gas to marinate with. Not even a quick dip. Now gas is awesome and powerful item when I use it in my car or lawn mower but I think it loses some of that awesomeness when it is used for something it was not meant to be used as.
One time My wife bought a knock off brand of sauce to use as a marinade. It smelled close to the real thing but the overall effects just simply lacked the power of the original.
The same can be true with the media we choose to surround ourselves with.
My wife is getting ready to go to girls camp. She has been asked to teach the girls 2 songs that they need to know for camp.
For a few days I have come home from work, opened the door to find my wife and Boo singing along with the music to these songs. I cannot adequately describe the feeling I get as I enter into he house on those days. It is warm, and so inviting and something I wish was there every time I walked through the door.
For the knowledge and direction I get from leaders on the media and for a wonderful wife you helps my home be a place of warmth and where the spirit feel comfortable I am grateful.
No comments:
Post a Comment