It’s a week until the Daniel Fast is over. If you stopped fasting, abandoned your fast, adjusted your fast, then start back today. Martha Fry at C3 in Clayton, NC has some recipes I am using on this weeks menu. Thank you Martha!

Monday

Dinner (Martha Fry)
Bean Curry and Rice:
2 tbls. Olive oil
1 large white onion, chopped
½ c. dry lentils
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbls. Curry powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
1 8 oz. can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
½ c. raisins
Salt and pepper to taste
8 c. cooked brown rice

Prepare the brown rice according to package directions so you have enough for 8 servings. Heat
the oil in a large pot over medium heat, and cook the onion until tender. Mix in the lentils and
garlic, and season with curry powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir
in the tomatoes, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, and raisins. Season with salt and pepper.
Reduce heat to low, and simmer at least 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Tuesday

Dinner (Martha Fry)
Black Bean and Rice Stuffed Peppers:
1 qt. 100% Vegetable or Tomato Juice
2 c. cooked black beans
1 c. cooked brown rice
2 med. green onions (chopped)
¼ c. fresh cilantro (chopped)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. lime juice
1 clove garlic (finely chopped)
2-3 large bell peppers (cut in half lengthwise and deseed)

Combine all ingredients except juice and bell peppers in bowl and mix well. Place peppers in
glass dish and stuff with mixture. Pour juice over peppers and plenty of excess in the dish.
Cover and bake in oven at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.

Wednesday

Dinner (Martha Fry)
Leek and Potato Soup:
1 tsp. crushed fennel seeds
1 tsp. ground pepper
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp. olive oil
4 pints vegetable stock
2 lbs. leeks (trimmed, cleaned, sliced)
2 lbs. potatoes (cleaned, cut into cubes)

Heat olive oil on medium heat in a large pan. Add garlic – heat for a few minutes until golden.
Add fennel seeds and pepper and stir in with garlic. Add leeks and potatoes and mix well with
other ingredients. Cover and cook 5 minutes. Stir quickly. Cover and cook for 5 minutes
further. Add stock. Bring to boil, then cover, turn heat down and simmer for 40 minutes.

Thursday

Dinner (Martha Fry)
Southwestern Corn and Black Bean Chowder:
1 ½ quart vegetable stock
1 15 oz. can black beans
1 12 oz. bag frozen whole kernel corn
2 large onions diced
3 stalks celery diced
2 tbsp. chopped garlic
2 chopped carrots
1 12 oz. can diced tomatoes in juice
1 red pepper diced
1 green bell pepper
1 bunch of cilantro chopped
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano leaves
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. black pepper
2. tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp. liquid smoke

Boil black beans with a little kosher salt until tender (do not over cook). Rinse cooked beans
with cool water and set aside.

In soup pot, heat olive oil and sauté onion, celery, carrot and bell peppers until tender and
slightly brown.

Add water and broth and bring to boil. Add all remaining ingredients except cilantro. Simmer
for 10 minutes and then add cilantro. Simmer for additional 10 minutes, uncovered.

Friday

Dinner
Pinto Beans
Spanish Rice

Every day I wake up and go through a sorta routine. I am reminded when I look in the mirror that my body is definitely not perfect. I have started to see the lines on my forehead and around my eyes from all my animated expressions.  I breathe in and out, my heart beats and pumps blood to my body. I am alive.

Being alive is a wonderful gift. I have the opportunity to choose how I live each day. Will my day be spent blessing others with my actions or words? Will I allow my thoughts to control what actions I take? Will I be in a bad mood and put everyone around me in a bad mood?

My desire is to be like Paul who gave everything to serve Christ. He “died” every day to serve Christ.  How much easier would it have been for Paul to have done what he wanted when he was falsely accused, thrown in prison, or beaten? Instead he sang and worshipped even in prison. Paul died to his desires, his wants, his thoughts, and gave himself completely to the service of God.

I am not dead yet, but I am working on dying everyday.