Life Lessons from Legumes

Life lessons from legumes

Dan and Erin Holcomb practice a week of Rice & Beans

It's been exciting to see the momentum gaining during the past couple months! My wife and I tried out a test week of rice and beans in December. We learned some pretty valuable lessons about life during the week and are eager to experience the full month of the meals.

The first thing we were aware of was how simple meals can be extremely satisfying. In the United States we are influenced by a barrage of consumerism in our lives that tells us that we should be unsatisfied and keep "upgrading." The apostle Paul writes that "godliness with contentment is great gain," and that "if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." The meals were nutritious and weren't full of processed ingredients, so our bodies felt healthy through the week.

We also sensed a oneness with our vulnerable brothers and sisters through the week. Each bite meant a connection and a choice to sacrifice for those in need. During the day when I would get hungry and think about my next meal, I'd think about the kids in East Africa. When John the Baptizer was announcing the Kingdom of God, he told the crowd, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same." It felt good to use the extra food money we saved in order to share with others.

Finally, we found that eating simple meals left us with significantly less garbage at the end of the week. We bought bulk beans and rice and cooked with fresh vegetables, so our trash cans were a quarter-full and our recycle box was nearly empty! As a steward of God's creation it was refreshing to be less wasteful for the week.

From Rice & Beans Month Blog

You can check out a video of our week on this YouTube page