Skip to main content

Oatmeal Cookies Produce Perseverance



Climbing-Mountain

Today was a lesson in perseverance, keeping on when I want to quit.   My daughter and I decided to make oatmeal cookies.  Oatmeal raisin cookies to be exact.  My husband loves them so I thought I would make them as a treat. for him.  This would be a quick and easy treat.  We went on the "net" and found a recipe that looked promising. As we were mixing the ingredients, I told Abby to get the brown sugar.  She went to the cupboard and brought over a bag, looked and then said, "Wait, these are beans not sugar.  Back she went to correct the mistake.  A few moments later, I opened a can of milk, only to discover that the milk was sauerkraut.  I caught the mistake before I dumped the sauerkraut in the mix.  We moved on to adding the oatmeal.  I mean, you HAVE to have oatmeal in a oatmeal cookie.  I needed six cups.  I measured four cups and the oatmeal well was dry.  Yikes!! I searched and found some flavored oatmeal packets and started opening them. I managed to get the six cups I needed. By now we were both questioning the idea of baking cookies. The final straw was  as we were putting the cookies on the cookie sheet and I asked my daughter if she put in the baking soda.   Her look said it all.  If you are thinking that there was no baking soda in the cookies, you are right.   The first batch was in the oven and  they were not going to rise.  We quickly added the baking soda to the rest of the cookies.  Amid all the mistakes we kept going.  We never once considered giving up on the cookies.  I wonder how many times in our like we give up on a project, or a person, or a dream because it gets hard and it feels like nothing is going right.   My mind went to many of the people in the Bible, but Abraham, in particular.  He waited the fulfillment of the promise.  Even though he waited, he never saw the completion of the promise.  He believed God, and kept on believing even though it looked impossible.  He persevered when it was hopeless.  James says that trials produce perseverance and perseverance  makes us mature.   I know that the easiest thing to do when trouble comes is give up, but the reward goes to the ones who hang on and keep going in the midst of the storms of life.  Friends, if God has given you a dream, don't give up because things get hard.  Keep going because God is faithful.  By the way, the cookies were delicious, even the first batch that had no baking soda.  They were dense like a no bake  but they were good.  The second batch was heavenly and definitely worth the trouble we had making them.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What’s That Smell?

To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. 2Corinthians 2:16 Last break!  The shift was almost over. Then the unthinkable happened, this man appeared out of nowhere wanting to know where the flashlights were kept.  As we were on our way to the flashlights, I noticed that this man had a very strong odor.  I thought perhaps I could get in front of him so that the smell would not be as strong.   That, however, was not to be either since; he insisted on keeping pace and walking right beside me. By the time we got to where the flashlights were; I was practically running just to keep ahead of him.  I showed him the flashlights and made a hasty exit.  If you’re like me, you shower and even put on perfume or cologne so that you will not stink.  We are concerned that the smell coming from our body is not offensive to others.  As I write this, I wonder if we are as concerned with our spiritual aroma as ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Grow Old Gracefully

I’d like to tell you about a lady I visited yesterday.   She is ninety-five years young.  She recently moved into nursing home.  She asked one of the workers how many times she would have to walk around the outside of the building in order to walk a mile.  She said the person told her about ten.   Then she leaned in really close and whispered, “I walked around twelve just to be sure I walked a mile.”  Hahahaha! What a lady!  She loves to keep active, even in a nursing home.  As we talked, I saw no anger or bitterness in her speech or actions. There was only a love for God, a heart of compassion, and a sense of humor. She has befriended the one "prickly pear" at the home because as she said, “I have to love her, so she knows Jesus loves her too.”  Wow!!! I need to live like that!  I want to show that much compassion for those around me that need Jesus.  She loved to talk about God and what he was teaching her. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thank You God For Turning Our Ashes into Beauty

There are tragedy and sadness in everyone's life, No one is exempt. Yet, in the midst of the hurt and pain, God is there. He takes the things that hurt us and make us sad and turns them into things are beautiful. The death of my mother  was a tragedy to my dad. However, because of that tragedy, my dad began to see his need for God. In his brokenness, he found a God that could make him whole.  God turned his ashes into beauty. My dad, in turn, taught me to love God.   I am blessed to know God as my savior because of my dad. God also blessed me with a lovely step-mom Life is harsh at times, and many things are sad,  Yet, if we let him, he will take our ashes and make them into a work of art.   He delights in making the ash heaps of our life beautiful.   When we are broken, God is near, and where there is sorrow, he will turn it into dancing.   Thank you, God, F...
Post a Comment
Read more