I’ve never been much of a recipe follower. Don’t get my wrong, I LOVE recipe books. But if I’m cooking a meal, I look at recipe books as ideas and suggestions rather than scientific formulas. I find that cooking is really pretty flexible. Baking, on the other hand, is a bit more set in stone.
The other night, I decided to make some flatbread to bring to a shared Indian meal. I was going to make it early and refrigerate it overnight. I didn’t think I had measuring spoons. So I estimated amounts of sugar, yeast, and salt. Oops…
I was rushing to get to an activity so I didn’t knead it long enough. I figured “this must be good enough… I’m tired of this.”
Almost everything I make turns out decently. Not the flatbread. It didn’t rise well, and when I baked it it was chewy and crunchy instead of soft. Oops. Thankfully, I had enough time and gave it another shot. I found my measuring spoons and kneaded for the prescribed time. It turned out beautifully!
Much of life doesn’t require a recipe. We know what to do and we do it. God gives us beautiful variety. But there are a few Biblical formulas that we shouldn’t forget.
James 4:8 – Come near to God and He will come near to you.
Hebrews 6:12 – Through faith and patience [they] inherited what had been promised.
John 15:5 – “If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.”
These recipes bring guaranteed success. Come near. Remain. Keep faith and pursue in patience.