G – Grace, Good friends, Grass-fed, Ghee, Giving up Grains, Generosity

Let’s go backwards. Generosity is a change I’m trying to make friends with. With having our large family, I have been so used to having to pinch pennies, cut coupons, and shop at Goodwill, that I forget sometimes to be generous. Generosity is not always giving money; sometimes it is giving our attention or our time. Mostly I think generosity is changing my priority from saving money to making the people in my life first. Another way of saying this is to value people, even myself, more than money.

Giving up Grains was the first change I’ve made in my diet since I gave up dairy. My blood test didn’t show any intolerance to gluten, or wheat; but as I gave up all grains which are inflammatory foods, that’s when I noticed my fingers, wrists, ankles, and thighs becoming thinner. I must say this was a great challenge, but I have loved the results and feel great. I am now at the point where I allow myself to break the rules on occasion and I am satisfied with that.

I’ve discovered the wonderful world of Ghee. Ghee is simply clarified butter. It is also lactose-free, so I am not troubled by it. I can use it to fry my eggs. Of course you can use it in other things as well but it’s great for eggs or even steaks.

That leads to Grass-fed, grass-fed beef, butter, and ghee. I try to buy all my bovine products grass-fed, or pastured.

I have neglected my friends many times and I still find myself struggling in this area but for the sake of Good friends, I am willing to grovel, and apologize, and ask forgiveness, and be interrupted, and go out for tea or a movie. Good friends are so important. It’s not important how many you have just that you have at least one.

(On a side note, I didn’t list God here. To me God is a given. He is in all my changes and continues to change me into the image of Jesus. He is and always will be first in my life.)

So that brings me to Grace. You’ll notice my blog name: The Far Reaches of Grace, I also have a tattoo that says “grace”.

One of my first blogs was written about my tattoo, but I’ll give you the condensed version. Grace is multi-dimensional for me. I tried so hard in the early days of my faith to do all the right things; I ended up making a mess of everything. So the positive change I’ve made in my life is coming to understand the gift of grace, and in receiving grace to be able to extend it to others. Grace is also the first initials of my first four children in order of birth and the middle initial of my fifth. So I proudly wear my tattoo and kind-of wish I had it somewhere more visible to everyone.

Thank you, Father God, for loving this child so much that you sent your very own Son, that I might receive grace, so that we will forever be together.