How many of us would say we always truly believed in faith that God would respond to our prayers? I sure can't say that. How many times have I prayed for something only to wait on an answer that never seems to come?
I think because I am learning to pray in a way that is honoring to God, using the Word in my prayers, and staking my claim on faith, God is finally "proving" to me that He really does hear our prayers.
After all in 1 Peter 3:12 it says that "His eyes are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayers."
Now...righteous simply means that you are in right standing with God. Not that you are perfect, or never make mistakes, or hold yourself above others. Simply that because you love and wish to honor God, you make right choices to please Him. That's all.
Once I figured out that for most of my life I haven't really been righteous, I decided to be open to a response from God in my prayer life now. It was like...click! "Oh...yeah. Um, I feel like I've only been 'righteous' for maybe a year. That may be why I seem to be noticing more leading from the Spirit and more tangible answers to prayers."
Since I've been in college here, my mind has been opened to the possibility that God really does tangibly move in everyday life- and a few of my nudges from the Spirit have even been validated by other people who have had the same nudge! Pretty cool stuff for a Methodist.
God is breaking down my dis-trust in Him. He's totally proving to me that He hears my prayers, and He wants me to know He's going to take care of me.
For example,two nights ago I decided, after prayer, that I should pay my tuition for January semester. I didn't have the money yet and wasn't planning on paying it until January after I saved up from my job. But unfortunately, the USD dropped in value and the AUS dollar will be worth more than the greenback soon (so say the experts). Because I'm paying tuition out of my American savings account, if I wait until January, I may be paying more in greenbacks than I had budgeted because $2600 AUS dollars will no longer equal $2200 USD but maybe up to $2800 USD. Right now they're about equal, so I just decided to go ahead and pay up.
I paid tuition on Tuesday. Monday night, after I made the decision, realizing that I'd only have a few hundred dollars to my name if I did it, I prayed to God, thanking Him that He was Jehovah Jireh (God our Provider) and that He had me in his hand (Isaiah 49:16) and that He would work all things for my Good (Romans 8:28) and left it at that.
The next day, I paid my tuition and went to Spirit Filled Living class. We talked about divine healing that day. After class, we laid hands on classmates who needed healing in any area of life: physical, emotional, relational, financial...I didn't raise my hand because I didn't feel a move to do so.
After we were done praying, a girl named Beth that I've only spent time with once here came up to me with a strange look on her face. She started asking me a bunch of questions like, did I have a job? How often was I working and was it enough? I was answering her, thinking..there's got to be something else going on here. I told her how I had just paid my tuition that day and was sort of nervous about finances.
She started to get teary eyed, saying she wasn't sure if she'd heard correctly, and since I hadn't raised my hand she hadn't known- but that after talking to me she was validated. Apparently God had put my name on her heart the night before (right when I'd been praying for provision!) and she reached into her wallet and handed me a $50 bill. That's a lot to give up for a student- I don't know if I would have done it!
$50 isn't going to pay my way here, but it will pay for me to get to and from work for 2 days using public transit. That typically comes out of my pay, so to be able to hang on to that money will be such a blessing. And if she hadn't been open to God's voice during her own prayer time, I would have never had the $50.
God basically answered a prayer the morning after I prayed it with reassurance that He was going to take care of me- bit by bit, giving me just what I needed at the moment, like when He sent manna from heaven to the Hebrews. Just enough for the day.
That's only one of the examples of things that have happened either to me or to a close friend here. I may be really low on funds, but I'm actually not worried about it anymore. I have taken it to God in prayer and petition, thanked Him for what He's done- and now I know He is going to take care of it.
Brothers and Sisters- I think that prayer and God's answers or lack thereof is one of the main reasons we fall away from God. We don't hear what we want to hear; or we miss the answer. OR we're not righteous perhaps. Maybe we're just not truly believing that God can and will hear and take care of us.
I want to encourage everyone that He will- simple as that. I am someone who never really believed it before I started making a conscious effort to trust, obey and align my life to God's values, which have become mine.
God will answer the prayers he chooses to answer- so am I saying that if you are in a place of mis-trust and uncertainty He won't help you? No. What I AM saying is that once you put forth the effort and gain the desire to live in honor of God, you'll see His blessings in a much more frequent and obvious way.
Be blessed!
~Aislinn
A few friends have told me I should start writing down a weekly recipe for good, cheap meals that are nutritious and can be made in bulk. I'm not saying I'm that great at cooking on a budget- but I definitely learned a few tricks when I got here and had a food budget of $150/ month ( and, for example, four chicken breasts will cost around $14.00 pre-packaged like we're used to in the States)!
First though, let me share the things I've learned while grocery shopping here.
#1: ALL the food is going to be 1.5-3 times more expensive than in the United States and it doesn't help to complain- so adjusting the grocery list and learning to use the local, cheaper items is the best option.
#2: Buying non-refrigerated eggs is less expensive ( at first it grossed me out, but apparently the USA is one of the few countries that only sells eggs in the refrigerated section).
#3: Long life milk. It's $1.00 per liter and yes, it's not cold. BUT before you drink it, just pop it in the fridge for a day and it tastes like the normal thing- especially when you consider that regular cold milk can be around $3/ liter.
#4: Canned veggies and huge packages of ground beef or chicken are your best friend. Get the meat that's on price cut- if you freeze it it will last for a long time; and if you mix some canned veggies, meat and rice w/ chicken stock, you have 3 days worth of stew/ soup for cheap.
#5: Speaking of rice, it's my best friend here. That and $0.59 spaghetti.
#6: Buy Coles/ Woolworths brand. Don't be too proud to buy the store brand. It will save your life.
#7: Bread is always on sale. So buy it in bulk and freeze it.
#8: SALE SALE SALE~ every day, the stores have things on sale- including staple items. I always buy things with the yellow price cut sticker on them. It takes some time to go through the store and plan a menu around what's on sale but it's worth it. You can also keep the coupons that come in the mail for the weekly sales and plan menus around those.
#9: Buy Aussie brands. I know we love Ritz and Oreo, but Jatz and TimTams are way cheaper because they don't have to be imported...so get over it and try a new product.
#10: Produce. Only buy what you can eat that week so it doesn't spoil; that's just wasted money.
10 Things that are always in my pantry:
Flour
Eggs
Oil
Rice
Spaghetti
Cans of 4 bean mix
Diced tomatoes
Sugar
Cereal
Peanut Butter
Essential/ versatile spices and other materials:
Baking powder and soda
Cinnamon
Italian Herbs
Salt
Pepper
Garlic (powder's good but I buy a huge jar of minced- it's the size of Jelly jar and actually less expensive than minced in the US)
Ginger (root is cheap but dried is good too)
Onion powder
Cayenne pepper
lemon juice
Of course at the beginning of the month there are other things in the pantry. But if I only had those things, I could survive until the next paycheck.
Here's the recipe. I made it tonight and have calculated the cost. It made 4 servings, so I think I'm getting a good deal.
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts $6.00 ( around $10/ kilo from the deli but tonight I had to buy pre-packed)
1 green pepper $0.80
2 ears of corn $2.00 ( the package of 4 was on sale the other day for around $4.00)
1 ginger root $1.00
Spoonful of minced garlic ...minimal
Salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste
Bake the chicken breasts at 180 C (350 F) for 30 minutes. Put them in a shallow pan with a little water in the bottom; cover with foil
Dice the whole green pepper. Shuck the ears of corn; put them in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Slice the kernals of corn off the cobs.
Put the green pepper and the corn in a stir fry pan.
Peel the ginger root and grate about half of it over the pepper and corn. You can put the rest in the fridge and use it in other asian dishes or even in pancakes, tea, cookies or on sandwiches.
When the chicken is done, take the breasts out of the pan and use 2 forks to gently shred the meat. Then pour the chicken into the stir fry pan and turn the heat on medium high.
Once the veggies and chicken have started to cook, add about a tablespoon of minced garlic.
Let the chicken become golden, then remove from heat. Let cool.
Once cool, add lemon juice and salt to taste.
I also added a little Cayenne pepper because I like spicy.
This makes a really good lunch salad. I'll be eating it for a while because it makes about 3 cups of salad and I don't need that much at once.
I would also like to add that I still had 2 ears of corn and 2 chicken breasts after I made this, so you can easily make a whole mess more.
And for 4 meals the total cost would be: $9.80 (let's round it to $10 to include the spices)
So for each serving, the cost is $2.50.
Not bad!
It's really good with some fresh fruit too. It's also better to let it chill overnight and then eat it. It's kind of ucky warm. :)
Enjoy!
<3
First though, let me share the things I've learned while grocery shopping here.
#1: ALL the food is going to be 1.5-3 times more expensive than in the United States and it doesn't help to complain- so adjusting the grocery list and learning to use the local, cheaper items is the best option.
#2: Buying non-refrigerated eggs is less expensive ( at first it grossed me out, but apparently the USA is one of the few countries that only sells eggs in the refrigerated section).
#3: Long life milk. It's $1.00 per liter and yes, it's not cold. BUT before you drink it, just pop it in the fridge for a day and it tastes like the normal thing- especially when you consider that regular cold milk can be around $3/ liter.
#4: Canned veggies and huge packages of ground beef or chicken are your best friend. Get the meat that's on price cut- if you freeze it it will last for a long time; and if you mix some canned veggies, meat and rice w/ chicken stock, you have 3 days worth of stew/ soup for cheap.
#5: Speaking of rice, it's my best friend here. That and $0.59 spaghetti.
#6: Buy Coles/ Woolworths brand. Don't be too proud to buy the store brand. It will save your life.
#7: Bread is always on sale. So buy it in bulk and freeze it.
#8: SALE SALE SALE~ every day, the stores have things on sale- including staple items. I always buy things with the yellow price cut sticker on them. It takes some time to go through the store and plan a menu around what's on sale but it's worth it. You can also keep the coupons that come in the mail for the weekly sales and plan menus around those.
#9: Buy Aussie brands. I know we love Ritz and Oreo, but Jatz and TimTams are way cheaper because they don't have to be imported...so get over it and try a new product.
#10: Produce. Only buy what you can eat that week so it doesn't spoil; that's just wasted money.
10 Things that are always in my pantry:
Flour
Eggs
Oil
Rice
Spaghetti
Cans of 4 bean mix
Diced tomatoes
Sugar
Cereal
Peanut Butter
Essential/ versatile spices and other materials:
Baking powder and soda
Cinnamon
Italian Herbs
Salt
Pepper
Garlic (powder's good but I buy a huge jar of minced- it's the size of Jelly jar and actually less expensive than minced in the US)
Ginger (root is cheap but dried is good too)
Onion powder
Cayenne pepper
lemon juice
Of course at the beginning of the month there are other things in the pantry. But if I only had those things, I could survive until the next paycheck.
Here's the recipe. I made it tonight and have calculated the cost. It made 4 servings, so I think I'm getting a good deal.
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts $6.00 ( around $10/ kilo from the deli but tonight I had to buy pre-packed)
1 green pepper $0.80
2 ears of corn $2.00 ( the package of 4 was on sale the other day for around $4.00)
1 ginger root $1.00
Spoonful of minced garlic ...minimal
Salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste
Bake the chicken breasts at 180 C (350 F) for 30 minutes. Put them in a shallow pan with a little water in the bottom; cover with foil
Dice the whole green pepper. Shuck the ears of corn; put them in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Slice the kernals of corn off the cobs.
Put the green pepper and the corn in a stir fry pan.
Peel the ginger root and grate about half of it over the pepper and corn. You can put the rest in the fridge and use it in other asian dishes or even in pancakes, tea, cookies or on sandwiches.
When the chicken is done, take the breasts out of the pan and use 2 forks to gently shred the meat. Then pour the chicken into the stir fry pan and turn the heat on medium high.
Once the veggies and chicken have started to cook, add about a tablespoon of minced garlic.
Let the chicken become golden, then remove from heat. Let cool.
Once cool, add lemon juice and salt to taste.
I also added a little Cayenne pepper because I like spicy.
This makes a really good lunch salad. I'll be eating it for a while because it makes about 3 cups of salad and I don't need that much at once.
I would also like to add that I still had 2 ears of corn and 2 chicken breasts after I made this, so you can easily make a whole mess more.
And for 4 meals the total cost would be: $9.80 (let's round it to $10 to include the spices)
So for each serving, the cost is $2.50.
Not bad!
It's really good with some fresh fruit too. It's also better to let it chill overnight and then eat it. It's kind of ucky warm. :)
Enjoy!
<3
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