It’s the night before the night before. The stockings aren’t hung by the
chimney with care, but I
really was
hoping that Saint Nicholas would have been “there” to help with the
potato filling tonight. I never complain
about cooking, but my legs are heavy this evening. It must be all of that other bustle that goes along with
Christmas. There were more than a
few last minute items to take care of today.
If you’ve read the
potato filling post, you know that making
it is a multi-step process. So, I had pots and pans lined up all across my kitchen counter. In
addition, I made a “mega batch” of
tomato soup for those who have to stay at church between
Christmas Eve services. To make the white
sauce faster I decided to divide the roux and milk mixture between two saucepans. Not a creature was stirring? Oh, I was stirring all right! It worked, but was really a
dumb idea.
In the interest of keeping it simple, I’m offering
a recipe for a simple side dish…a relish.
It’s so easy to make, the ingredients are simple, and you get to use a
tool! It’s “There’s a Dad in the
Kitchen” at its finest!
Cranberry Relish has graced our Thanksgiving and Christmas
tables since I can remember. No
one remembers where the recipe came from, but my mother thinks it may have been
Virginia High. It’s different than
most cranberries you’ve had in the past, and certainly an improvement on the
jiggly blob that comes out of the can. Plus, you don’t have to cook it!
At the end of this post, I’m also "serving" this year’s
Christmas meditation. Each year,
for more years than I can count, I’ve written a Christmas devotional. I’ve often given it at
the Christmas Eve service at
Parker Ford Church, but always share it with
friends and family, enclosing it in Christmas cards. This year’s meditation is entitled, “Ready and Waiting,” and
appears below.
You have my best wishes for a joyous holiday, filled with
the true meaning of the season.
I’m praying that you’ll be able to push aside all of the extraneous
stuff that truly has nothing to do with Christmas, so that the miracle of
Christ’s birth would become real to you.
Merry Christmas!
CRANBERRY RELISH
Ingredients:
1 lb. bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed
1 navel orange
¼ to ½ cup sugar
Directions:
To do this right, you’re going to need an old-fashioned meat
grinder. They’re the heavy kitchen
tools that your grandmother fastened to her countertop and would crank to
operate. I have to fasten mine on
a cutting board, as the bracket would ruin my kitchen countertops. It helps to position a damp towel or
dish cloth under the cutting board to keep it from sliding around.
After rinsing the cranberries, cull out any that are
questionable. The old rule of
thumb, if it doesn’t bounce, it’s not
good, works! Prep the orange
in advance, too. Cut off just the
very ends, and quarter the orange.
Cut each of those wedges in half across the wedge. You’re ready to start grinding.
I usually grind the cranberries first. Position a medium bowl under the
“output” end of the meat grinder to catch the ground cranberries.
Next, grind the orange pieces, skin and
all. You’ve heard of zest? This relish has a boatload of zest!
After grinding, add about ¼ cup of sugar and stir. You’re probably going to add another
3-4 Tablespoons of sugar, but a half cup usually makes the cranberry relish too
sweet.
Refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. It’s best to make this at least 24
hours in advance. Stir it several
times and taste test to see if you need to add more sugar. As it marinates the relish will turn a dark red, (cranberry red, of course!) This is a great accompaniment to turkey,
but also goes well with chicken and other fowl dishes.
2011 Christmas Meditation: “Ready and Waiting”
When you stop and think about it, Jesus’ birth
went largely unnoticed. His place
of birth was totally obscure. Not
only was Bethlehem a hick town, but having a child in a cave filled with
animals made his birth even less of an event. Sure, there were the shepherds who “came with haste,” but it was only a handful. Shepherds, after all, were seldom
viewed as model citizens. They
were held in low regard. They
couldn’t leave their flocks to observe the Sabbath. Even if they could have, it wouldn’t have mattered any way. Because of their living conditions,
they were regarded as “unclean,” unable to take part in religious ceremonies. People probably heard the rumors about
what they had seen on their hillside outside of Bethlehem, but most would have
dismissed this without a second thought.
And the wise men didn’t arrive for another year or two. Scripture tells us that Jesus’ family
was living in a house by then.
It was no surprise that after about six weeks,
when the time came for Joseph and Mary and the baby to go to Jerusalem for the
required ceremonies, they were able to do so without drawing any
attention. They went to the temple
for the required purification of Mary as the mother of a newborn baby. The young family didn’t have the means
for the preferred burnt offering of a lamb, so they took advantage of the
allowance the law provided, offering two pigeons instead; one for the burnt
offering and one for the sin offering.
As further prescribed by the law they took the required contribution of
five shekels for the temple treasury.
This was for the redemption of the first-born. All first-born males belonged to God. In essence, the five shekels enabled
them to buy their son back from God.
Isn’t it interesting that while they had to redeem their son, Jesus
himself would become the redemption of not only the nation of Israel, but of
all of mankind?
It would appear that the long-awaited Messiah
had arrived largely unnoticed. He,
whose coming had been prophesied hundreds of years before, came in largely under the radar. No one was ready and waiting…with the
exception of two senior citizens.
Anna had been a widow for almost 60 of her 84
years. She lived in the
temple. We read that she spent all
of her time worshipping, fasting, and praying. Night and day, she devoted herself to seeking God.
Simeon, was probably old as well. He, too, was
no stranger to the temple. Simeon
was a godly man who was righteous and devout. He was also acquainted with the Holy Spirit, and it was
God’s Spirit who had revealed to him that he would not see death until he saw
the Messiah. What an incredible
promise!
Moved by the same Spirit who had given him this
blessed assurance, Simeon entered the temple courts. It was there he came face-to-face with his Redeemer.
“Sovereign
Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to
the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”
“…in
the sight of all nations…” Isn’t it
curious that everyone missed it; everyone, with the exception of a handful of
shepherds and two old people? Even
those milling about the temple precincts were blind to what was going on. Anna affirmed what Simeon had said, and
she spoke to anyone who would listen…especially those who, like herself, were
expectantly watching and waiting.
Almost everyone missed it; even those who were
looking forward to Israel’s redemption.
It makes you wonder: Why did God choose to come to earth in this way? To the world, it wasn’t memorable. It wasn’t impressive. And yet, it fulfilled the prophecies of
so many scriptures.
The people had what they needed in order to be
prepared to receive the Messiah.
The prophecies were widely known and discussed. Not only did the Scriptures inform
them, but God’s Spirit was at work.
The Spirit’s full power would not be released until the end of Jesus’
earthly ministry, but for Simeon and Anna its work was effective.
We can’t be too hard on those in Jesus’ day who
missed his coming. We have
everything that we need in order to find him, too…in fact more than they
had. And yet, how many times do we
miss him? It’s not just a casual,
distracted slight. Often, we are
oblivious…inebriated by our cares and concerns, our wants and our desires, we
miss him totally and completely.
Above all, we have to be ready for God to
surprise us. He doesn’t color
inside the lines. He doesn’t have
to play by the “rules.” He makes
the rules.
Think about it. Jesus was always catching people by surprise. It wasn’t only his birth that caught
people unaware. His life, his
teachings, and his ministry were shocking. He said things that upended what had been thought to be
rock-solid foundations. He
challenged the status quo, while at the same time fulfilling prophecy and
revealing the true mind of God. “You have heard it said…but I tell
you…”
What he said didn’t bring relief. On the contrary, it raised the bar. He made it clear that God has a
standard for us to live up to, and that standard is perfection. Good deeds and effort will never be
enough. The need for a Savior, the
necessity of a Redeemer, cannot be argued.
And then he surprised us again. He laid down his life as the ultimate
sacrifice. His blood, his perfect
blood, shed to once and for all blot out our sins, enabling all who accept him
and believe to become the perfect beings God demands.
There was still one surprise. He rose from the dead to prove that
death has been conquered, and that while we will continue to fight the battles
of living in this world, the war has been won and the victory is assured.
The question this Christmas is: Are you ready and waiting to receive
Jesus, this little baby who showed the world that he was just full of
surprises?
