Bring Home the Bacon!

I love to get out of bed in the morning and eat breakfast!  I absolutely love the crunch of homemade granola with Greek yogurt and a drizzle of honey.  There's really nothing like it to wake me up and keep me full until lunch!  As for eggs, grits, bacon....well, I like those things, too, but I usually want a meal like that later in the day.  Breakfast food, in general, appeal to me.  I've been know to eat a waffle or two with my fried chicken at Rosco's Chicken 'n' Waffles in California.  It's an experience everyone should have at least once.

When it come to fried chicken or bacon?  Well, that's a conundrum!  How could I ever choose between the two?  They are both such mainstays in a well-rounded Southern diet!  But if the bacon's crispy, it will win out for me every time! 

When I was a child, the story of Jesus delivering the demon-possessed man from the Gerasenes region was always a puzzle to me. [see Luke 8:26-33]  I never could understand the "whys" of it.  I understood the part about him delivering the man and restoring his life to a more human state, but I couldn't get the part about all the pigs running off the cliff!  It just seemed so...useless!  I mean, that's a lot of bacon!  I'm sure that Jesus had very good reasons...unfortunately, we only know what is recorded.  I have, however, heard some speculation about the story. 

We know that pork was against the dietary laws of the Jewish people, as given by God Himself.  Some have speculated that the pig farmers in the region were owned by the Jews.  If that was the case, then our Lord knew exactly what He was doing.  Even if the farmers weren't eating the pork for themselves - selling it to the Gentiles, perhaps - they were making money on something that clearly was not ordained by God.  I don't know the facts about it, but that would make more sense to my feeble mind than mere pig demise.  The story continues that the people in the area were not too pleased by this and asked Jesus to leave.  I imagine that having their money source cut off was a true bother.  God always knows best, though.

Last year, we watched several close friends - and even ourselves - as things that we valued were slowly stripped away.  The economy took a dive, and our assets drowned.  Some friends were hit much harder than others.  A few of the families gathered together for regular prayer, and God began to reveal interesting correlations to us all.  He was OK with us losing our things.  In fact, in one sweet prayer meeting, the Lord specifically said that He was taking away the encumbrances that kept us from giving ourselves wholeheartedly to Him.  When we looked at it that way, there was more grace for the hardships that we were going through - loss of business, loss of home, loss of employment.  We were more able to wait on the Lord for his exact provision to be given, knowing that He had a plan that involved more of Him and less of our personal desires.  We often look at our circumstances through our very 2-D glasses.  We can't see all of the dimensions of our lives the way that the Master can.  He not only sees 3-D, but He sees the entirety of past, present and future.  He has vision that is interlaced with wisdom.  Sometimes our losses bring us in much better alignment with His purposes for our lives.  I'm praying these days to have God's vision for my circumstances instead of my own limited understanding.

Like I said, I hate the loss of so much bacon! But God is my source!  He won't let us be stripped bare without making provisions for us. Philippians 4:19 says, "And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus."  His promises are so much stronger than our situations.  God will supply all of your needs - even if you lose a little bacon in the meantime!

My absolute favorite bacon preparation:  Pig Candy.  This one requires a lot of prep work because it can be very messy.  I usually line a cookie sheet with foil and then build a little foil "wall" all the way around it (otherwise, the bacon grease splatters so much that you'll be cleaning your oven for days).  I put a raised rack in the cookie sheet, as well, so that the bacon gets really crispy.  Once that is done, put a generous amount of brown sugar in a plate and take your strips of bacon, pressing the sugar on both sides to coat.  lay the strips carefully across the rack and put in your pre-heated oven - 325 or so.  Cook for 12-15 mins (or to your desired crispiness.  The sugar that falls below the rack will inevitably burn first...turn on your vent and keep your eyes on the bacon itself.  Don't let your bacon burn, though!  What a waste that would be!  Let it cool a little before you devour it - otherwise, you'll burn your mouth!  Some recipes suggest adding things like cayenne or ginger to your brown sugar...it's up to you.