Are Christians Really Chocolate Chip Cookies? by Dawn White

Are Christians Really Chocolate Chip Cookies?

Scripture:  Romans 8:28

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

As I was on the treadmill this week, I was reflecting back on different seasons of my life.  Some were so fun and exciting and some were not.  Some were actually very painful. And since I’m not a person who enjoys pain, I began to ponder the difficult seasons in life.  Everyone has them and I believe that the vast majority occur because we live in a fallen world. 

This led me to wonder how those who have not accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior make it through the difficult seasons.  When times get tough for me, I spend much time crying out to my Savior.  I know that He will get me through.  He is my Hope.  But what hope is there for those who don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior?  

You see, as Christians, we know the end of the story.  The Bible has a promise for every situation you’ll ever face.  Find your promise and cling to it – that’s your hope and assurance.  The promised ending is an encouragement to me and one that keeps me going through the difficult season.  

Here’s what the Lord showed me.  When we’re making chocolate chip cookies, we know the ending is going to be good.   But, when we’re making the cookies, each of those ingredients individually is not real tasty.  Raw eggs and a stick of butter are not something that is appealing to most of us.  Or how about baking soda?  I don’t even like toothpaste that has baking soda in it; I’m confident a spoonful of baking soda wouldn’t go down well.  

As we’re putting each of those ingredients in, one would wonder how the end result would be positive.   But, we keep adding the ingredients, because we know if we are persistent, the end result is good.

Friends, that is the Christian life in a nutshell.  Those painful events or circumstances seem useless by themselves.  But, in the scripture above, God promises that all things work for the good for those who love Him.  Don’t miss that – it says ALL things.  All means all.  God uses all those painful and unsavory life events to make us into something beautiful for His Kingdom.  

In Galatians 5:22-23, the fruit of the Spirit is listed as follows:  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”  These are all manifestations of the Spirit living in us, but the reality is that many are developed.  It’s easy to be joyful when things are going well, but what about when they’re not.  You only get to practice being joyful in all seasons if you have varying seasons.  You only get to develop self-control if you’re faced with temptations to be out of control.  You only come to know the peace and assurance of God when He’s all you have to rely on.  

I’ve been in a season for a while now where God is developing my trust in Him.  There have been occasions where I’ve just had to say, “God if you don’t move, it ain’t happenin’.  I’m not sure how you’re gonna do it, but I’m trusting you.”  When I fully turn things over to Him, I have much peace.  Otherwise, I’m tormented and analyzing every possible solution and outcome.  I’m an analysis person, so for me to completely let things go has been a stretch.  But, I’ve come to truly know that peace that passes all understanding that is mentioned in Phil. 4:7.  However, that peace has only come as a result of the trials of this life.  

And, it is exciting to see how God will move.  He is not bound by our natural means, so He’ll cause things to happen that you never thought possible.  A few years ago I had taken a trip with a church to speak against some controversial issues within the denomination.  When we first began discussing the trip, each individual was going to be given about $200 from the church to put toward the trip.  Well, sometime during the trip, I found out that the plan had changed and we wouldn’t be getting any money.  This was not intentional; it was just a miscommunication.  At any rate, I was out $200 that I had not planned for.  I began praying about it when I returned and asked the Lord to reimburse us for that expense.  A month or so later, my husband got a bonus from his employer – you know the amount already – it was $200.  He had never received that bonus before and he never got it again in all the years he worked there.  That event was disappointing to me at the time, but had it not happened, I would have missed an important lesson about God as my provider.

Those painful threads in our lives may be the result of the schemes of the enemy.  But God uses those to make a beautiful tapestry with your life.  You will emerge stronger and wiser.  You truly are the savory chocolate chip cookie in the making….the ending is good!