Taking Stock

"the ways of her household"

Proverbs 31:27

I made stock the other day.  Chicken stock.

I love making chicken stock from scratch.  Every time I prepare a chicken, I put the bones in the freezer until I have enough to make a stock pot full of stock ~ hey!  I just got why it's called a "stock" pot!

Genius, aren't I?  Remind me someday to tell you what I know about the Nabisco Company...

Anyhow, for several hours I had the would-be stock simmering on the stove, as I puttered around my home, queen of all that surrounds me.  While some of the time dishes and laundry just seem like chores, there are times when the things I do around my home feel ~ rightly so ~ like a celebration of all that God has given me.

Making stock is one of those times.  It's so rewarding.  Stock is so useful in cooking, and I use a lot of it, so by making my own, I'm saving some money. 

Plus, I love the knowledge that I'm making full use of what God gave me ~ namely, those chickens.  A lot of TV chefs these days talk about "honoring the animal" or "honoring the protein".  And that's admirable.  Some of my Christian friends would call it "being a good steward".   It's part of my role as wife and mother to take what God has provided, and get every blessing I can out of it for my family. 

And then every time I look in my freezer and see all that He has provided, it gives me a feeling of peace.  I may not know what the future holds, but I can see all that He has done for me, and I can trust Him for the future. 

Yup.  I got all that out of chicken stock.  Just another case of me getting everything I can out of something!  :)

~ "She watches over the ways of her household,

and does not eat the bread of idleness...

a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised" ~

Proverbs 31:27,30

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