As my husband and I have gotten a little older and our metabolisms have slowed down to a grinding halt, we've become accustomed to doing everything we possibly can to trim the calories and fat grams from our diets. At first I balked at the idea of leaving off the creamy salad dressing from my tossed salad. I didn't even want to switch to a low fat version, thank you very much, but no. In my estimation, a good salad required a healthy coating of creamy, white dressing, and maybe even a sprinkling of cheese.
But, while I may still use a little dressing occasionally, I have finally learned the secret to going sans dressing...and loving it!
I'd like to challenge you to try my recipe for Sans Dressing Salad and see if you too enjoy the flavorful and varied texture of this colorful medley of ingredients. I think you'll find that, even if you still enjoy a hearty dose of your favorite ranch or blue cheese or thousand island dressing now and again, you'll also love this low fat, super low calorie meal on those days you just really need to trim all excess of either.
The secret's in the flavor quotient. I've filled this salad with only the most flavorful ingredients, so every bite packs a punch! Here are the ingredients I suggest you chop up for a stand alone salad:
Kay's Sans Dressing Salad
In a large salad bowl combine:
half a bunch of Romaine lettuce, chopped into small, bite size pieces
one entire large container of washed, stemmed arugula, chopped
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
10 black Kalamata olives, chopped
1 cucumber, peeled and chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped reduced fat feta cheese
a hearty dose of fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt, sprinkled over
Toss well and serve up a hearty plateful, sans dressing. If you need a little moisture, add a sprinkling of freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice. Each ingredient in this salad packs a powerful punch of flavor, however, so I think you'll find you love the taste of this salad just as it is.
Sans Dressing Scripture
Sometimes people ask me how I can positively assert that you can have a completely satisfied soul just by deepening your relationship with Jesus and eating His Word through scripture meditation.
"Sure, I meditate on my scriptures and try to memorize them, but I also need my relationships and my work and some good times to really feel satisfied," they say.
Well, I'm all for investing in our relationships and getting a sense of satisfaction from our work and enjoying a good time. I don't suggest a life of isolation or withdrawal, even if you're withdrawing into the Lord.
For one thing, He tells us to go into the world and be lights. We're to mingle with people, minister to them, and, according to God's reasons for ever creating Eve, we're to enjoy our relationships with people. We're to love people, for Pete's sake! Relationships, activities and even possessions are good things. They have a place in our lives.
But for the most part, we need to relate to each of those things, especially the people, in a giving way, not so much in a "taking" capacity. What we receive from the people in our lives, the activities with which we fill our days and the possessions we accumulate should only be the icing on the cake, the dessert, if you will. Just like my hearty, flavorful and healthy salad can fill you up and delight your taste buds without even a tablespoon of dressing, God's Word can indeed satisfy your hungry soul all...by...itself.
And here's my recipe for that!
Kay's Sans Dressing Scripture
- Select scriptures for meditation and memory from God's Word that speak to your current soul hungers. For this purpose, don't try to memorize salvation plan scriptures, the ten commandments, or Proverbs 31. Choose scriptures that take your breath away, ones that bring a tear to your eye, or ones that give you a great sense of relief or hope. These are the truths your soul hungers for.
- Put your chosen scripture in context. No need to memorize or even meditate on the whole chapter or book, of course. But it's a good idea to know "Why did Jesus say that?" and "Who was He talking to?" or "How did that person know that about God?" and "What made him say that about God?" When I put my selected scripture in context it gives it even more punch...or flavor.
- Choose a translation of the Bible verse that fits your tastes. Select from standard, reliable translations, of course, but choose the one that you can bite into easily. Here's a great resource for finding your scripture in words that "taste best to you."
- Eat it! Really bite in and savor the flavors. In other words, don't just read the scripture, but meditate on it. If you need a better explanation of how to meditate on scripture, you might want to invest in my Satisfied...at Last! CD set.
- Ask God to satisfy your hungry soul through His Word. He said in Deuteronomy 8:3 that we live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth. He wants to feed us life-sustaining truth and He wants it to delight us. "For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and the hungry soul He has filled with what is good." - Psalm 107:9
- Let it be enough. Jesus said in John 6:35, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst." When Jesus says for us to come to Him, He implies that we are to come only to Him. He wants sole responsibility for satisfying our souls. If we go elsewhere in addition, it's worse than insulting the cook by fixing ourselves a sandwich after eating a gourmet meal he prepared for us!
- Keep eating what He feeds you. I had to develop a taste for strong vegetables without the creamy cover-up the dressing provided. It required a shift in attitude and practice. In the same way, our souls, accustomed to being fed (to no avail or at least to no lasting satisfaction) with whatever we could ring out of other people, the activities of life, or the things we ran to, must develop a "taste for" the good food of God's Word. But hang in there! Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 15:16, "Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart...!" (emphasis on became, mine)
You know what? It won't bother me at all if you prefer to keep eating your salad with your favorite dressing. No big deal. And if your waist line doesn't mind either, more power to you. Dressing on!
But friend I want you to know the sweet life of having your every soul desire satisfied by the God of this universe, who loves you more than you know. When you allow Him, and Him alone, to feed your hungry soul, you deepen your relationship with Him by developing a sweet and enduring and trusting intimacy with Him. He becomes your all in all, something no one else was ever meant to be. And quite honestly, until you do begin to invest in this type of intimate soul-feeding relationship with Him, you're prone to idolatry...worshiping anything or anyone else you think can satisfy you.
If you'd like to know more about how to eat God's Word so that it satisfies your hungry soul, please email me at kay{at}kayharms{dot}com. I'd love to share with you how a relationship with God and His Word can change your life.
What soul satisfying scripture have you recently begun to eat through scripture meditation? I'd love to know?
Labels: meditation, memorization, recipe, Satisfied at Last, scripture memorization
