Most of us are aware of a service called Hello Fresh. We sign up for this service, we pay a fee, and at our front door a box shows up with specific ingredients for a specific meal … along with a recipe card with instructions for how to prepare the sent meal. The ingredients are already measured and portioned out to the correct amount. All that is required is for us to chop, dice, stir, and combine. And voila … a tasty fresh meal!
Just as we need fresh healthy meals to fuel our physical bodies, so also the same thing is true when it comes to fueling our spiritual lives.
And just as the Hello Fresh box shows up at our front door with ingredients with which to prepare a fresh healthy meal, so also the same thing is true when it comes to our spiritual lives. God has good “ingredients” which He wants to deliver fresh to the door of our heart each day.
So … how do we get “signed up” for this service??
Well, to start out with, the Hello Fresh service requires us to pay a fee. However, when it comes to God’s good “ingredients” and His daily delivery service for our life … Jesus Christ has already paid the fee! How cool is that! God’s gift of salvation totally free! Jesus already paid the price for us.
Thank you Jesus! That’s pretty awesome!
When we accept Jesus’s free gift of salvation, we are instantly “signed up for the service” to be on Team Jesus.
Right away, at the door of our heart a box shows up with God’s good “ingredients” (aka: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, etc.).
Not only that, God has included in the box a “recipe card” (aka: the Bible … God’s very Word to us) … to help show us what to do with those “ingredients.”
And not only that … God has given us the Chef Himself! (aka: the Holy Spirit) to come be with us and show us how to combine the ingredients.
How cool is that!!
In today’s background photo you can see a collection of basic ingredients. For the sake of our illustration, let’s pretend these are God’s good “ingredients” which have shown up in the box at the door of our heart: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, etc.
There are many different ways these ingredients can be combined to make an endless number of recipes.
For example, I can combine each of these ingredients in certain proportions and quantities to make Chocolate-Chip Cookies. In this instance, the sugar and butter are used in higher proportion.
And yet again, I can combine each of these ingredients in completely different proportions and quantities to make Blueberry Pancakes. In this instance, the milk is used in higher proportion.
These ingredients can be combined yet again in completely different proportions to make Banana Muffins. In this instance, the flour is used in higher proportion.
This is what God does in our spiritual lives.
Each day God knows what we will face. Even before we head out the door in the morning, God knows what we will be needing to sustain us spiritually. And God provides the exact “ingredients” for exactly what we will be needing that day.
Not only that, the Chef Himself is with us to help us know how to combine those ingredients for whatever situations we face.
Some situations we face will require a greater proportion of the “ingredient” of patience! For sure, the other ingredients of love, joy, and peace are still there … just in smaller proportions.
Other situations we face will require greater proportions of the “ingredients” of kindness and gentleness.
Each situation we face will be different … requiring different proportions … and resulting in a completely different “recipe.”
God provides the good “ingredients” … God provides the “recipe card” … God provides the Chef Himself to be with us and give us guidance and direction. But it won’t do any good if we don’t open up the box.
It won’t do any good if we leave all those good “ingredients” right where they are, expecting the Chef Himself to do all the work for us.
No … we must do some of the work. We need to chop, dice, stir, and combine.
We have to go out and face the world each day. We have to endure that brutal commute. We have to interact and deal with those mean, hateful people. And in the process, pick up the “ingredients” God has provided, and “mix together” (with the Chef’s help) something wonderful out of each day.
