Pepper Stew....Tacos Greek Style...Weary and Burdened

Kairos Cheesy Chicken Baked Ziti

What's Up Guys,

It has been a pretty hectic time around Kairos, but in a good way. We are on the final stages of the Gardendale opening, and it seems that the anticipation in that community is building in a very neat way. As I meet more and more of the people I know that this location is gonna be incredible on many levels. We are also experiencing an incredible amount of growth at the Birmingham location, and it is very humbling to hear some of the words that people say to me everyday. This has been my dream for many years and it’s neat to see it all coming together!

The Greek Tacos went over incredibly well last week so we are running them on Special again this week. I think we are ready to have fun with this recipe, and I see many others coming out of it as we continue to experiment with this idea. The spicy grilled chicken in the tacos are offset by the creamy coolness of our Greek sauce that really makes these tacos and experience that you will want to take advantage of! I have heard rave reviews this week. The Fish is also filled with delicious goodness and it’s also good for you, grilled Tilapia enclosed in our savory lemon butter sauce with green onions. One of the soups is Kairos Pepper Stew, a delicious concoction that I actually came up with while messing around in the kitchen at home. After my doctor tried to sell me a 30-day supply of vitamins made from peppers for the low-low price of $90 I found out that all peppers were packed with vitamin C and boost your immune system, and also increase your metabolism. I thought that was neat but I know I won’t pay that much for vitamins, so I decided to take advantage of the health benefits the old fashioned way....just by eating them! Imagine that. I created this Pepper stew that has beans, ground beef, incredible seasonings, and five different kinds of peppers (Jalapeno, Sweet, Bell, Poblano, and Anaheim) and I must say its delicious as well as nutritious! The Dessert is a big crowd pleaser too, our Coconut Kobbler that is my version of Coconut Cream Pie but in a Kobbler form! Its flavor is well worth the few extra calories! I hope to see you this week in Kairos!

A little over 16 years ago I was at my lowest point in life... broken, hopeless, lonesome, and in the dark... I was searching for something and I didn’t know what it was... all that changed when Jesus drew me to Himself after I picked up a random book laying on top of a TV in the Montgomery County Jail...

“Come unto me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest…” These words just penetrated and stabbed me deep in my heart. It was weird. I looked at the book, which turned out to be a ripped up Bible and I thought “Well, I sure am weary…and I sure am burdened…” so I took it back to my mat and looked at it for a little while. When I realized it was a Bible I thought “Oh no…” but for some reason I kept thinking about those words… then I could hear the voice of one of the old people that used to visit sometimes when I was in jail in Florida. He was a sweet old man, and I never could find it in my heart to tell him that I didn’t care about what he was saying, so I would just let him talk, and I would say okay and then forget everything he had to say… this day however I remembered his words… “Young man when you begin to read God’s Word start in the New Testament. It is the story of all that Jesus has done for you and it is what you need to know…”

I opened up the Bible to the Book of Matthew and I began to read… this Bible was different though. I actually understood the words. It was not full of “Thees” and “Thous” and all that other ancient Shakespeare English that I could never comprehend. It was different for me so I continued reading… as I read the Words of Jesus I was amazed to find out that he wasn’t a religious person at all. It actually seemed that this Dude had the same view of Church and all that I had witnessed in my lifetime that concerned Religion, God, and all that other stuff. I felt myself getting excited. I liked what He was saying, and I just soaked it all in…

Later that day as I was sitting there trying to make sense out of all of this my words were “Okay, well, what do I do now?” I was a little confused, and here I was in a place that I never even believed existed and it was as if God was speaking to me very directly, and yet at the same time very gently. This was wacky. I just knew that this was not happening to me. Not me. How could it be? I didn’t believe in any of that stuff. It was about that time I heard the words “All you have to do is give up and let me in…” I remember trying with all my might to resist, and as I sat there I was doggedly determined to hold on to my belief that none of this following Jesus stuff was for real. I thought about it until my head hurt. There was a very real battle going on inside of me and I didn’t really know what to do with all these things that were turning my belief system upside down.

For some reason though all this was bringing me an incredible amount of peace, and it was a peace that I had never known before. At some point later on in the night I found myself saying, “Okay, if you are for real, and if this is for real, then I give up. Come on in…” When I finally got to that place and could say those words and mean them, then what happened next was absolutely incredible. It was as if everything that was inside of me, every fear, every burden, was just lifted. It wasn’t like I saw any fireworks or anything like that. There was no big fanfare, but at that moment something changed on the inside of me, and it was so incredible I could not describe it, but I know when it happened just like I know that my hands are connected to the ends of my arms. There was no denying it.

This week I was reminded again of that experience so long ago and during this very stressful time of my life how Jesus wants me to continue to come to him and give up every little thing that makes me weary and allow him to carry my burdens... Good Stuff... and He is always faithful when I trust Him.

May we all be a people who will daily allow Him to take our “stuff” that keeps us weighed down and hinders us from enjoying the life he has provided for us (John 10:10) God Bless you guys! Thank You for supporting Kairos, and have a wonderful week!

James K Jones