Leftovers. We don’t eat a lot of them, so I learned to prepare meals in smaller or broken portions in order not to waste. However, some meals, you have left overs no matter what. That is what the freezer is for- as long as you remember to pull them back out and use again before it gets freezer burn.
I love to cook, I love to bake, I love to be what my husband calls me, Mrs. Betty Crocker. I learned most of this from my mother. As a mother of 7 children, she cooked, canned, froze, and baked almost everything we ate. She even ground the flour from whole wheat. I may not have appreciated all the work back then, but I do appreciate all that I learned now, and get to use in my own home.
Do I have time for this, no, not really. It just means I don’t sit until everyone is in bed. Is it worth it? If I could get my seven-year-old to eat and enjoy what I make, YES! In the meantime, I am rewarded by the “mmmm”s from my eldest son and his dad- who may have a little competition of who can say “Thanks for supper” first.
We had a friend over for supper the other night who, when I tried to send the leftovers home with him, was shocked that we didn’t eat left overs. “You are to blessed” that’s what” were the words he used. I just grinned and agreed, but my mind started going in overdrive. He’s right! I know of people that will eat one casserole for 5 days straight- and I can’t hardly eat last night’s dinner tonight.
“Count your blessings name them one by one, count your blessings see what God has done”
We are a pretty average family. Not a whole lot of extra beyond paying the bills and maybe a little fun. We are clothed well, partly thanks to Nana, and a little Dutch shopping, and we have food on the table. We are ‘rich’ in the worlds standards, so rich in fact that we don’t eat the leftovers. ( Part of it is diet planning! We drink meal shakes for lunch, then a bigger meal for supper.) There are weekends though that I clean out the fridge and have to throw a lot of food away.
When I go to a concert and hear the artist describe what they have seen in the countries, that have touched their hearts so much that they try to find sponsorships for the children, its easy to shrug your shoulders and think, “I don’t go to Starbucks everyday- I don’t have extra money laying around” but then we go to the movies and eat popcorn that we would pay for eight of those days. It honestly is amazing when you put that ‘$/day’ child in your budget, how the money always seems to be there and then some.
So often we give God our “leftovers.” The change left in our pockets from Saturday night events, or a few minutes to quick say a prayer, praying for a good day, and running out the door. We falter to create a feast for our God-the time He asks us to spend with Him or what we give to Him. Instead, we think of God’s food by saying “We’ll eat it later” with every good intention, then we get busy and get Pizza Ranch instead- or a good book. Psalm 1:2-3; “But his delight is in the law off the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leave does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.” The time spent in God’s word will return two-fold.
Whether you love leftovers, or tolerate them, the next time you are deciding what to do with them, do a check. Are you giving God your leftovers, or do you ‘Feast’ with Him?