Juicy Oven Baked Garlic Chicken with Cheese

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit,  
but in humility count others more significance 
than yourselves."   Philippians 2:3

Food for the Palate
Ingredients:
4 Chicken breast, boneless & skinless

1 cup of mayonnaise
6 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp of fresh basil, chopped

1 can tomatoes, diced

1 tsp of dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded.

Instructions: Preheat oven to 375F

Put all of your ingredients except for chicken and cheese in a bowl and mix well. Pour your diced tomatoes on the bottom of your baking dish. Arrange your chicken breasts in an oven proof dish on top of the tomatoes and cover the top of your chicken with the mayo mixture. Bake for 30-40 minutes, then take out of oven and top with your cheese. Bake for 15 more minutes or until your meat temperature reads 165 degrees.  Sprinkle with basil or parsley and serve with your favorite Pasta. 

Tasty to the Palate!

Food for the Soul

It is time for a Chicken joke! "Why was the chicken so rude? Answer: Because it was a jerk chicken!" Ok, that was stretch for bringing chicken into my devotion, but I have heard of people calling Christians jerks. And while we humans can all be jerks sometimes, there is no excuse for a Christian acting like one, and not changing their behavior.

Now, one must define what they would consider to be a jerk. I realize that for some, being a jerk can mean different things. So, let's just go to Merriam-Websters Dictionary for what they say about this; "Jerk, a person whose behavior is offensive to others." In other words, "RUDE!" 

I have asked myself more than once, "Why can Christians be so rude, and think it's ok?" There is no excuse for a rude Christian. In fact, being rude is a sin in God's eyes. I would venture to say that all Christians have been rude at one time or another, after all, we are sinners!  But some seem to behave more rudely than others and have no desire to change their rude behavior, let alone acknowledge it. And some can be condescending, abrupt, impolite and arrogant not only with non-believers, but with fellow Christians as well. The Bible often defines someone who is acting like a jerk or being rude as "a mean-spirited person."

As Christians, I think we all have "pet-peeves" about behaviors that are less than Christ-like and can hurt others. This happens to be one of mine. I have unfortunately known a few "jerk" Christians. You know what I mean, right? A person that is a part of God's family but does really hurtful and mean-spirited things to make others look bad. I can only assume that a person that tends to be rude to others is thinking that they are trying to look or feel better about themselves. Unfortunately, they do the opposite when they are mean-spirited and can't control their tongues, actions or attitudes. 

Rude people are not pleasant to be around, which is why we (hopefully) learn at an early age to control some of our selfish impulses.  But there are those who don't care what anyone thinks, and they keep their mean-spirited actions on public display for all to see. Rudeness is also becoming more accepted in today's culture. Thanks to social media, it has become common place for people to lash out at others and air their dislikes without any regard to their feelings. Public actions and words (especially some four-letter ones) that were once unthinkable not that long ago, have become mainstream behavior.

For the Christian, it is this simple; "Rudeness is rooted in selfishness." In other words, those that have a tendency to be rude are wanting everyone to know (some even shout) that it is all about them. Philippians 2:3 says, "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significance than yourselves."  Being rude will destroy a Christian's witness for Jesus Christ. How can someone take you seriously in your faith, if you are always being unkind, arrogant, abrupt, and disrespectful to others? They can't and they won't!  1 Corinthians 13:4-5a says, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others; it is not self-seeking...." 

It is so important that as a follower of Jesus Christ, we do all we can to not be rude Christians. And it is also important that the less we respond to rude, critical, argumentative people...the more peaceful our life will become. So remember, you won't look like a chicken or a jerk if you love others the way Jesus loves you! Amen!    Satisfying to the Soul!