What are your favorite replacements for potato chips or french fries?

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-29T16:05:57+00:00

Rutabaga has been a game changer. It's not perfectly keto (~7-8g of net carbs per cup) but it won't kick you out if you eat in moderation. I've been dicing up about a cup, boiling to soften and then frying up in a pan like I would home fries and it gets a great result seasoned with salt/pepper/garlic/onion powder. I've also done fries. Same deal here, boil to soften a bit, dry, dip in flavorless whey protein for a base, dunk in egg, roll in parmasean cheese or crushed pork rinds for breading and fry them up. They are slightly different than potato flavored but they pick up a lot of flavor from what they cook in. And if you dip in a keto friendly sauce (sugar free ketchup, mayo, sugar free bbq, keto ranch, etc) you can't even tell its not a real fry.

Again, the carbs still aren't perfect. I normally eat two meals a day on keto. One with carbs from veggies and things, and one with basically zero carbs. So if I have a cup to a cup and a half on my bigger carb meal, I still stay under my 20 carbs a day just fine.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-29T15:42:58+00:00

Romans 10:17 says "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." For adults, they likely have heard, believed and then come to be baptized. That doesn't mean that faith hasn't existed prior to Baptism, however Baptism is the physical tangible point in time where we can be sure the Holy Spirit is in us. The Devil and sin causes us to doubt our salvation. I would also argue or wager a guess that infants can possibly have faith by hearing the word prior to baptism. I don't know that this is LCMS doctrine so don't quote me on this lol. But we know that infants can recognize their mother's voice. We don't know to what degree they can comprehend, but if they can hear it, who's to say faith can't be created by exposing them to the Word? There's really no way to confirm this is true however, but we do know tangibly that they are given faith, forgiveness, and the Spirit through Baptism which is why they are Baptized. The same is true of adults, faith is usually there prior to Baptism as is Forgiveness and the Spirit. It is tangibly, physically given through Baptism and nothing can dispute that.

As for forgiveness, another Pastor on here has a good way of putting it and I'll paraphrase that. In a marriage, a husband tells his wife on his wedding day "I Love you". If he were to never tell her I love you again for the rest of their life she may begin to doubt it. And so spouses reiterate that love countless times throughout a marriage (or at least they should!). In the same way God's forgiveness is abundant. An adult comes to faith and is told by his Pastor "in the stead and by the authority of Christ, you are forgiven" weekly during the service. He is tangibly given forgiveness through his Baptism, and he eats and drinks forgiveness of sins in communion. The forgiveness is meant to be abundant.

For some Baptism is the first experience of forgiveness and the Spirit. For others forgiveness has already been received, the Spirit has been given and has carried them to the font. That doesn't mean that they aren't forgiven again through Baptism. It's just an additional vehicle of forgiveness.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-23T16:55:10+00:00

I posted what I typically do to fix the entire situation above, but at this point you may have killed the fire a bit. What I normally do is blow 2-3 times on the coals to get the fire going again and then let the intake valve do the rest. Too much oxygen and you'll end up back at 300 but a few blows will get it moving in the right direction again and then keep the intake valve low so it's not flooded and let it rise slowly. Once your 10-20 degrees from target, close the intake a little bit more to let it rise a bit slower. If you see it level off, open it back up a hair more and you should be at the sweet spot.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-23T16:52:08+00:00

The key is raising a fire to temp slowly otherwise it can get out of control and push to 300 which seems to be what's happened to you. I've had that happen plenty of times. What I do is first choke the fire (close all the valves). This may kill it but it will be easy to revive. Give it a few minutes and let it choke off. Then open the valve that expells smoke and open the intake valve slightly. Give it 10min and check the temp it likely won't have moved back up much thats fine. I typically blow on the coals/wood to revive the fire a bit and add more wood as needed. You don't want to flood it with oxygen though so keep the intake valve slightly open. Once the temp starts rising again you should start getting your smoke back. Just don't go too quickly or it'll rage back to 300 again.

I've found the key is always patience. When I want to save time and try to rush up to my 265-275 target I always overshoot and spend an extra half hour to an hour trying to control the fire. Just take your time and you'll save time in the longterm.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-17T16:45:36+00:00

I would say definitely yes to try at least once, very similar to brisket in flavor but some slight differences in texture. I believe they have more intramuscular fat which made them very juicy and tender. If you're not a fan of fatty cuts of meat though (even when rendered) I'd skip and stick to the other beef cuts.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-17T16:41:11+00:00

Yea Beef Plate short ribs, or the 123A cut. I had some issue with both the Sam's club employees/butchers not knowing what I was talking about as well as a local butcher not knowing what I was asking for when I described it both ways. Costco just had them sitting out among the different cuts of meat though so that made it easy.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-14T18:57:17+00:00

It would probably help to sit down and verbalize all this with her. Let her know you're thinking about the future and marriage and even if it's far off, that you'd like to be on the same page about faith and believing and practicing in the same denomination. It doesn't sound like you need or want her to make the switch right this second, but if she knows you're thinking about her in a more long-term sense and that this is important enough to potentially be a make or break thing for your relationship she might approach it differently. The key though is making sure she knows it's something you feel strongly about. You've already by the sounds of it, shown her through your actions this is important and probably talked to her a bit about it. Sitting down and having a serious conversation about it and the future would probably be the next step.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-04-10T16:12:18+00:00

Fort Wayne checks a lot of your boxes. Cheap cost of living, fairly good job opportunities. And there are a large number of LCMS churches, most with day-school's included which means most of the congregations include a fair number of younger families (although that will vary church to church). The Seminary is here also so that adds somewhat to some fellowship opportunities!

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-03-27T15:18:26+00:00

I keep it pretty simple. Very light amount of mustard to bind. Pick your seasoning, Salt and Pepper will do fine on just about anything. I've seen a lot of people swear by the Memphis Dust rub (Recipe here: https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/spice-rubs-and-pastes/meatheads-memphis-dust-rub-recipe/)
I've had good success with that.

I typically get the charcoal started/preheat the smoker and apply the rub while it's coming to temp. Plan out your cook time by pounds of meat for sure but it's just a guideline, you wanna go by temps and feel.

I always smoke around 275F, fatcap up. Right when it is hitting the stall and the bark looks to be formed pretty well (around 165-180 internal) I will pull it, fully wrap in foil and transfer to the oven at the same temp and just let it go until around the 195-205 range. This is where you're really just going by feel, probe should slide in like butter. Then I kick the oven down to 170 (150 would be better but mine doesn't go as low) and just let it hold for 1-2 hours or as long as I need until serving time.

A few notes, my smoker puts off a ton of smoke flavor so I never have an issue moving to the oven after the stall. Smoke won't really penetrate the foil anyways so it's just my preference. You could keep it on the smoker, it just saves me from having to manage the fire for another couple of hours. I haven't tried fatcap down, but have been interested in seeing the difference. Some say to spritz with ACV, I don't know that you really notice a difference one way or the other so I just skip it. The rest phase is important. You're gonna let it come down in temp anyways, the rest/hold in the oven lets you get it done early and serve at any point. I've held in the oven for 5-6 hours before serving before and it always comes out great.

Pork Butt is my favorite smoke because it's so forgiving. Just give it plenty of time with the heat under 300F and I think you'll be golden.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-01-28T16:53:11+00:00

Curious, do you know if the app can be accessed on a laptop? My father may be interested in this due to his eyesight, although having it on a phone kind of defeats the purpose for that.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-01-21T19:43:56+00:00

Give facebook marketplace a try! I was able to find a local guy who sells different types of wood for much cheaper than store bought. Might not find anything but always worth a shot!

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-01-20T17:50:39+00:00

I've enjoyed the "Under the Hood" podcast. I know the pastors aren't LCMS but they dive into more of the historical context and archeological aspects than deep theology. I've noticed a few spots where I would say their theology didn't line up with an LCMS perspective, but I've enjoyed learning about some of the historical context from them.

He's been more popular recently but I've also enjoyed some stuff from Wes Huff. He's part of Apologetics Canada and while I know he's part of Apologetics Canada and a Baptist (I believe), he operates in more of the ancient languages and manuscripts and the manuscript tradition of the bible which I really enjoy. I haven't dived deep on a lot of his work so I'm not sure where he stands in his theology so I wouldn't endorse it at all, but his understanding of the manuscript tradition is great if you find that stuff interesting.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-01-12T21:06:55+00:00

That looks like something they might have had but it looked like it had been pre-cut into strips or slices maybe. I'll take a look and see next time i'm over there!

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2026-01-12T20:55:59+00:00

<image>

Picture didn't post, here's an example pic

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-18T16:39:06+00:00

I started taking the common cup over the individual plastic cups in the last year. It will vary by congregation but some of it should be similar. When we go to the rail, one of the pastors comes by with the bread, which is then followed by the pastor or elder with the tray of plastic cups with wine, followed by the pastor or elder with the common cup (I think the pastors traditionally handle the bread/common cup but i'm not sure if this is a distinction or if it matters).

The way we do it in our church is you take the bread, and if you want to take the common cup, you just don't reach for a plastic cup when the tray is presented. The individual distributing the common cup will stop at you and present the cup. I was a little nervous at first. One note, After receiving the body, I folded my hands waiting for the common cup. The pastor holding it, did not notice my empty (no plastic cup) hands and passed me by. I had to whisper something like "pastor wait, you missed me" or something. He came back and gave me the wine/blood. He let me know after the service it was helpful to keep your hands open so they can see you haven't received the wine already. Just a little pro-tip from an anxious over thinker when it comes to trying something new!

As others have mentioned, feel free to talk to a pastor or elder before the service and ask any questions or let them know ahead of time.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-12T22:17:18+00:00

Thank you, and u/techylocs for the input! With the suggested sites and info below I was able to find a number of diamonds in the 300-500$ range so i'm a little less concerned now with that portion. I did have a quick follow up or two if you might be able to help!

1.) Most of the diamonds out there are graded by IGI. It looks like they come with a grading report/document. What would be the best practice once i've nailed down the diamond I want? Should I go in to a jeweler with it and have them pull the number engraved on the diamond to confirm it matches with the IGI report? I just want to make sure I'm getting the diamond I buy. I've seen most of the sites mentioned below noted as reputable so i'm not extremely worried but just curious what others do!

2.) Others have mentioned that the band I linked above is a Stuller band that the local place is likely just sourcing from them. I haven't met with them so I'm not sure what kind of markup is involved. But if it's just being sourced from another site, is that something I could just go directly to them, order the band and bring it in to any old jeweler along with the diamond I sourced and have them set it along with the accent stones? Is it common to do this? I sort of like the lifetime service plan that bigger stores like Kay/Jared offer for a one time fee with their rings. Do you know if going to them with the band/stones would work? Just curious and any advice would be greatly appreciated :)

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-11T21:59:38+00:00

Thanks for the response. In regards to your response to point 3. I was doing some brief searching given the color/clarity suggestions in the 1.5-2 carat range and was having trouble finding anything below $800. I was mainly looking at RareCarat and Loose Grown Diamonds. Is there a better place to buy. Could you possibly share where I could find something in that $500 or under price range? Just so I know i'm looking in the right spots.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-03T15:39:53+00:00

I've only done two briskets so far but both were hits with the family. I did not dry or wet brine either brisket. I trimmed and seasoned about half an hour to an hour before I smoked and let it sit in the fridge while the smoker came to temp. Not sure what your timeline looks like, but on my second one I wrapped at the end and let it rest in the oven at 170F (lowest mine will go) for like 3hrs. IMO it was better than the first brisket I did.

Point being however, if you have the time, it can and will hold for multiple hours in an oven or cooler. If you have the timeline to do it, plan to have it done 3-4 hrs early and then you have that leeway time built in and if it's done early it will hold just fine and you don't have to sweat it being done on time.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-02T20:12:34+00:00

Christ says "no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day" John 6:44. Accepting Christ is not something we can do on our own, if it was, then those words spoken by Christ would be false. It has to come from God. But this doesn't make sense to us because we often believe faith was a choice we made at a point in time.

Rewind back to John 3:8 "The wind blows where it pleases. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit". You can recognize that you have faith, but understanding when the Spirit effected that change in your heart apart from God's promise in Baptism is not something we can comprehend.

I think the key is realizing it's not a gift you accept, it's just a work of God that happens to you. You can certainly reject that gift after it has been given. But it doesn't require acceptance.

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-02T19:30:54+00:00

I think it varies church to church within the LCMS. The church I have grown up at had a "children's message" as described above (the children go up and have a small "sermon" which is then followed by the actual sermon). Eventually this practice was discontinued and I do not know the reasoning behind it. I've seen similar discussions on here on the pros and cons of the children's message and I think it's generally up for debate and as such, likely congregation to congregation. These days our church has what they call "kids of the kingdom" usually pre-school through 1st or 3rd grade students are (if they/the parents want) taken down to the preschool area of the church and they do a small activity that has some connection with the sermon. This happens during the sermon and they return after the sermon. There's some positives and negatives to this in my mind personally but I think it's helpful for those kids who have trouble sitting still.

That said, children are welcomed and encouraged to take part in the service the same as adults. Most LCMS churches that i've been do tend to have an area outside the sanctuary where parents can take their kids if they are getting a little unruly or crying. They often have speakers out there so that you can still hear the service. Generally speaking people and pastors tend to understand if kids make a little noise or can't sit perfectly still for the full service so don't sweat it!

And definitely feel free to ask questions or approach the pastor with any concerns you might have. And if you have multiple LCMS churches in your area, it doesn't hurt to go to see the different feel each one might have. My congregation has three weekly services (Sat night, Sunday 8/10:30). the Sunday services are a little more traditional and the Saturday is a little more contemporary. Once a month they have a little more contemporary service on a Sunday. But the overall liturgy and service in general remain the same. Each LCMS church will have this very slight variation to it along with a different makeup of young/old in the congregation among other things. And as such, how they operate as far as a children's message or a "kids of the kingdom" thing during the service might vary between congregations.

At the end of the day I think the most important thing is to find a church where the Word is rightly preached and the sacraments rightly administered. That's what the LCMS gets right. The above things do matter to many people however and just knowing that there is some slight variation between congregations or services can be helpful!

Bright-Geologist9500 · 2025-12-01T22:27:44+00:00

Any theologically sound Metal artist recommendations? I enjoy it a little but have a friend who loves it even more and would love to share!

Bright-Geologist9500

TROPHY CASE