Learning to Initiate & My Go To Bowl

Taking time to write over the past few months has been something I’ve easily neglected. Although I have an abundance of both of time and effort, I don’t always gear them towards writing. I want to grow in pursuing my passions and I desire to prioritize them more. It is such a desire in my heart to carve out time to invest in my passions rather than let time just slip away.

The past few weeks consisted of spending a lot of time in the car, church hopping, and popping in and out of my in-law’s house. In the midst of all of these things I find myself with a lonely demeanor. In all honesty, these feelings catch me off guard because I have activities that somewhat keep me busy and people that I am seeing.

The reality is I don’t really feel known.

I have been trying to press in to why that is and the main answer that keeps hitting me in the face is that I haven’t tried to be known. I go about my day bouncing from this social thing to that social thing, babysitting here and there, going to gyms and exercise classes, sitting in a chair at a church, and yet it’s all blurred together by this gnawing feeling of not being known. Through this realization I am slowly learning the value in the process. The process of being real, open, vulnerable. The process of stepping out and asking Jesus to bring people into my life that can be real community.

Through this journey I am learning the value in initiating. I went through college flying by the seat of my pants and floating from one thing to the next. Although this was a blast and inevitable throughout college, I am seeing outside of the college context that people long for and desire to be pursued.

As a 22-year-old discovering a new place and craving to be known, I am choosing to be bold and to initiate in relationships. Although I’m the one writing a blog about this, it can be so hard to choose it in the moment. I think the enemy wants us to be confined and sitting on the sidelines waiting to be pursued or for others to initiate friendships. Yet the more I learn and read about Jesus, I see how much of an initiator He was. He continually invited people into His ministry and those around Him were so receptive to His inviting and tender heart for them. I want to grow in being an initiator like He is. I want to start living an open life and inviting others into the little moments of my day. I want to fight for community and vulnerability. I want to be consistent in the new relationships that I have made here in this place I now call home. I desire to make others feel valued rather than wallowing in my pity of not feeling known. I believe this is the heart of the Father.

I love this photo because it captures the "real us"
when attempting to take a photo

My motive for sharing all of this is to encourage you to evaluate. Let the Lord show you areas in your own life that He wants to shift, cultivate and strengthen within you. He has so much in store for each of us every day whether we have a lot on our social agenda or not. Join in the journey with me of remaining open to His prompting and being willing to boldly step out into whatever He is leading you to do.

MY GO TO BOWL

I tell Ben all the time that if I was to create a cookbook everything would be in a bowl. There is something about combining all types of food together and placing it in a bowl that makes my heart happy. I frequently make mix up the ingredients and make a similar variation to this recipe. Over time I have learned that you can create just about any combination if you have a base, a protein, veggies, and your favorite sauce. With this foundation you can add so many different things together and make an awesome meal. 

Ingredients:
Makes 2 bowls
-2 Cups Spinach
-1/2 Pound Ground Turkey Cooked
-1 Delicata Squash Roasted
-1/2 Cup Carrots Chopped
-1 Cup Cooked Quinoa
-1 Recipe of Lemon Tahini Dressing (Adapted from Oh She Glows)   

Lemon Tahini Dressing:
-1/4 Cup Tahini
-1 Clove Garlic
-3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
-1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
-3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
-1 Tablespoon Water
-1/2 Teaspoon Salt
-1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
-Combine all these ingredients in a dressing bottle and shake together

Directions:
-Place a cup of spinach into each bowl
-Add the cooked ground turkey to each bowl (I usually cook this meat in a cast iron skillet on the stove top and I use a variety of seasonings...cumin, herbs de provence, salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, and whatever else sounds good)
-Add 1/2 cup of quinoa to each bowl
-Once the squash is roasted and ready add to the bowl 
-Add 1/4 cup of raw carrots to each bowl
-Top with Lemon Tahini Dressing