Lentil, Tomato, and Potato Stew
Yield:6 main-dish servings
Great with crusty bread!!
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp dry sherry
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups vegetable stock
1 cup dried lentils
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp dried basil
1 can (16oz) whole tomatoes, chopped with juice
1/2 cup minced fresh Italian parsley
1/2 tsp salt
several grinds black pepper
1 tbsp fresh-squeezed lemon juice
6 lemon wedges
In a large stockpot, heat the oil and sherry over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, stir to coat, and cook for several minutes, until the onion is translucent. Add the stock, lentils, bay leaves, and basil. Increase the heat to high, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-high and cook for 30 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, along with their liquid, and the potatoes. Continue to cook for about 15 minutes,until the potatoes and lentils are tender. Stir in the parsley, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Serve piping hot, with lemon wedges on the side.
February Presidency Message
The Holy Ghost is the greatest gift God has given us to go through this earthly experience.
The prophet Joseph Fielding Smith gives us a great description of the 3rd member of the Godhead. ”The Holy Ghost is a Personage of Spirit who is in the likeness of God the Father and His Son. His mission is to instruct and enlighten the minds of those who, through their faithfulness have obeyed the commandments of the Father and the Son. He bears witness of the truth, quickens the minds of those who have made covenants and reveals to them the mysteries of the kingdom of God. He is a special messenger from the Father and the Son and carries out their will."
The Holy Ghost brings us to our fullest potential.
“The gift of the Holy Ghost adapts itself to all these organs or attributes. It quickens all the intellectual faculties, it increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections; and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires ,develops, cultivates sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings and affections. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and features. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feeling. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being. In the presence of such a person one feels to enjoy the light of their countenance. Their very atmosphere diffuses a thrill, a warm glow of pure gladness and sympathy to the heart and nerves of others who have kindred feelings, or likeness of spirit.” The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles pg. 167
What must we do to qualify for and keep companionship of the Holy Ghost?
1- Have Faith, Repentance, Baptism by Immersion, Laying on of Hands for the gift of the Gift of the Holy Ghost.
2-Keep the commandments and live worthy.
3-Have a burning desire to have the gift.
4-Pray for that spirit to be with you, plead with God for it daily.
5-Ponder and Feast upon the words of Christ.
6-Discern the voice of the spirit. Be still and listen.
7-Act upon the Promptings.
As the challenges in the world around us increase, we must commit to do more to qualify for the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Casual prayer won’t be enough. Reading a few verses of the scriptures won’t be enough. Doing the minimum of what the Lord asks of us won’t be enough. Hoping that we will perhaps feel the influence of the Holy Ghost won’t be enough. We must set the bar higher. Only steady, ever-increasing effort will allow the Lord to take us higher.
The prophet Joseph Fielding Smith gives us a great description of the 3rd member of the Godhead. ”The Holy Ghost is a Personage of Spirit who is in the likeness of God the Father and His Son. His mission is to instruct and enlighten the minds of those who, through their faithfulness have obeyed the commandments of the Father and the Son. He bears witness of the truth, quickens the minds of those who have made covenants and reveals to them the mysteries of the kingdom of God. He is a special messenger from the Father and the Son and carries out their will."
The Holy Ghost brings us to our fullest potential.
“The gift of the Holy Ghost adapts itself to all these organs or attributes. It quickens all the intellectual faculties, it increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections; and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires ,develops, cultivates sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings and affections. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and features. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feeling. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being. In the presence of such a person one feels to enjoy the light of their countenance. Their very atmosphere diffuses a thrill, a warm glow of pure gladness and sympathy to the heart and nerves of others who have kindred feelings, or likeness of spirit.” The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles pg. 167
What must we do to qualify for and keep companionship of the Holy Ghost?
1- Have Faith, Repentance, Baptism by Immersion, Laying on of Hands for the gift of the Gift of the Holy Ghost.
2-Keep the commandments and live worthy.
3-Have a burning desire to have the gift.
4-Pray for that spirit to be with you, plead with God for it daily.
5-Ponder and Feast upon the words of Christ.
6-Discern the voice of the spirit. Be still and listen.
7-Act upon the Promptings.
As the challenges in the world around us increase, we must commit to do more to qualify for the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Casual prayer won’t be enough. Reading a few verses of the scriptures won’t be enough. Doing the minimum of what the Lord asks of us won’t be enough. Hoping that we will perhaps feel the influence of the Holy Ghost won’t be enough. We must set the bar higher. Only steady, ever-increasing effort will allow the Lord to take us higher.
February Spotlight
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(Click on picture to enlarge)
The three pictures are: Me as a cheerleader my junior year of highschool, celebrating Lynn’s 80th birthday on May 15, 2007, and our wedding day in the Salt Lake Temple on October 15, 1946.
We will have our 63rd Wedding Anniversary this fall so I can tell a Valentine love story here – and it has all happened is Salem, UT.
To spotlight myself I must include Lynn for he has been my life all these years.
After our marriage we were given four wonderful, bright, ambitious children. All who continue to bring joy and happiness to us. We love how they have chosen to live their lives and to raise our 20 grandchildren and our 20 (plus, plus) great grand children.
All of our children and Lynn even, went to BYU. They all graduated from the Y and even higher education. Lynn just got a year of the Y when his father so needed him to be a full time farmer. So…when our four were all in school I attended BYU in their nursing program. I worked in nursing for 25 years, retiring from IHC Hospital Clinic. My education in nursing has been used daily since.
Lynn and I served a 1 ½ year mission at the Orlando Temple. We loved it! We had spent some 5-6 years at the Provo Temple and loved that. Orlando Temple required for us to learn the ordinances in Spanish which was like a miracle, but it happened! We loved the people and the near 30 other missionaries there with us. They come to our home each year and we are surprised by others that come like our Mission President and his wife who come often from Georgia. Also dear friends from Florida. After coming back home we served one year at the MTC in the Interpretation Service. It was so beautiful working with and being around about 4,000 missionaries daily. I worked with the Asian missionaries and Lynn was with those from the European countries.
It was in 2000 that Lynn was thrown down with a bad heart problem and then Parkinsons disease followed. So for the last two plus years we are home 24/7 and loving every minute of it, that we can be here with each other.
When our children were away in college or away on missions Lynn and I had other children that came to live with us. Our Stake President some years before had asked for homes where children who had come from Nicaragua with their mothers, who couldn’t afford a place large enough to keep the whole family, could place a child. We took in a 16 year old boy who stayed with us for the school year. He never spoke a word of English but he loved being in America. A mother who had cancer and went through an operation that kept her down for weeks had three children ages 5, 7 and 9. They lived with us for about two months. They were not LDS and they loved family home evening each Monday. A lovely elderly lady whose only son lived so far away that she came to live with us. I met her at the ‘family extraction center’ (genealogy center). She lived with us until her death. A high school teacher came to us and asked, “Would you like another daughter?” A 16 year old in rehab at Payson Hospital. The state refused to let her live at home…we took her. She was into drugs and smoking. She told us she couldn’t even remember her sophomore year at school. She was a sweet heart. She quit her smoking when she entered our home and has been free from it since. She loved having Lynn for a father. She helped in the home. She studied hard. She graduated from high school and continued her education to become a forest ranger. The last visit from her she was happy and working hard. (It’s a long story.)
To sum it all up, when I was 15 years old I met this quiet, intelligent, dry witted, fun personality who was one foot taller that I and near 100 lbs heavier but Oh! So good looking that my younger years were filled with happiness. Lynn was active in the church and he honored his priesthood. I loved that about him. Yes! 63 years together soon but there were four years before even the marriage that were so enjoyed plus all the eternities to come!
We’ve traveled the world over thanks to our daughter who was with Delta Airlines. We traveled free and mostly first class if the seats were available otherwise…back to the back of the plane, but free!
Lynn wants for me to tell that I was a cheerleader in high school. Our skirts (no slacks or shorts) were below the knee—no dancing and no acting. We were just to lead the excited crowd in our different cheers. We were for sure “cheer” leaders and it was great to get the crowd cheering for our winning team. I loved it!