I visited my friend Anne recently. She is the one who is such a good cook and has a spotless kitchen. We talked about our school years and the things we loved best about those long ago days. She said she liked Chemistry. Ah, so that explains it. No wonder she likes cooking, it is all the same package…a few ounces of this, a cup of that, heat it up and what have you got…chemistry in the kitchen. Needless to say chemistry was not my bag at school and neither is chemistry in the kitchen. I can whip up a good batch of scrambled eggs and peppers but that is it!
It has taken me years to accept the fact I can’t cook. I used to be so embarrassed about it but as a youngster I was not allowed in the kitchen except to peel potatoes. My job was to clean the house, and that’s what I loved to do best and still do.
But words, now that is a different story. I love words and I delight to use them verbally but mostly in sentences, poetry and in stories. I love how they paint pictures, show emotion and create action. Just shout “look out” and watch what happens.
I have a friend who knits. I gave up knitting when my girls no longer wanted mittens…learning to put a thumb in a mitten was a real stretch for me but I did learn and their little hands stayed warm all winter. My friend can knit up a pair of socks right before your eyes. To me it is a bit of a miracle.
My friend Ron is a whiz with numbers and when I hand him my ‘taxes’ file, he makes sense of all those receipts and understands what goes on what line on his computer. He too performs miracles with numbers.
Today I met a man in an office who had only part of one arm and yet he was working quite competently at a computer. Amazing! I do know a little bit about handicaps as I am quite short and have been known to grab a chair and stand on it, to be better heard (and seen) at church functions.
Scripture says that the body has many parts, each having its own value. I am glad I don’t have to be all things to all people. The church has known for years that I will bring sandwiches but don’t ask me for cake.
And I know exactly whom I can ask to help with projects, or services, or music…or just someone to listen when I am having a bad day. God has supplied people with all those gifts…and often they are sitting in the pew right ahead of you. God is not stingy in his gifts. Just ask Him for help when you are in a bind, and take a good look around your church family. They are plum full of God’s gracious gifts.
