Thankful for Leftovers

 

As a child, one of my favorite blessings of the Thanksgiving feast lasted well into the weekend – open-faced sandwiches made with leftover turkey, giblet gravy, stuffing and cranberry sauce. Not to mention leftover eggnog and pumpkin pie!

As an adult, I have been known to put leftovers to good use in a frittata, stir-fry, soup, or must-go stew. Often these repurposed creations taste better than their original components, and the time saved in not having to prepare a meal from scratch is an added bonus.

When God gives us “leftovers,” they are always first-rate, and never second-best, often accompanied by unexpected blessings. Six days of the week, He provided a daily portion of manna, or bread from heaven, for the Israelites to eat as they traveled through the wilderness (Exodus 16).

If they gathered more to hoard for the next day, it would rot, except for the day before the Sabbath. On that day, God provided a double portion of manna, so that they could save what was left over to eat on the Sabbath without having to work to gather it. Unlike the other days, God preserved the extra portion pristine without allowing it to spoil. These leftovers provided a fresh meal for the Sabbath, which the Israelites could enjoy as a day of rest, as He had commanded (Exodus 20:8-11).

Even God’s table scraps are a supreme blessing, not to be undervalued in any way. The Caananite woman who begged Jesus to heal her demon-possessed daughter was rebuked, as His earthly ministry was primarily to Israel. He gave her an analogy, saying that it was not suitable for the children’s bread to be fed to the dogs, but she reminded Him that even dogs could eat stray crumbs that landed on the floor. He then rewarded her great faith by healing her daughter (Matthew 15:22-28).

Food leftovers notwithstanding, mostly I find myself thankful for leftovers of a different sort – those blessings that remain after a trial or crisis takes away some of what I hold most dear. When I moved to Florida from New York, the U-Haul carrying everything I owned was stolen, including antique furniture inherited from my aunt, my computer, TV, and stereo. I felt overwhelmed by the loss of these heirlooms and modern-day essentials, especially in the midst of upheaval from a long distance move, leaving family and friends, and starting a new position.

And yet, some weeks later, the police found the U-Haul abandoned in a parking lot, where evidently the thieves had been interrupted while transferring their loot to another vehicle. Every stick of furniture and all my appliances and electronics were missing, but packed boxes remained. Long after I had given up hope of recovering anything, it was like Christmas morning as I opened these boxes to find precious family photos, videos and memorabilia, and even silver, figurines and artwork that had been in my family for several generations.

While the big ticket items were lost, the “leftovers” that were found were truly irreplaceable. I knew these were a special blessing from God even though I had not yet been saved by asking His Son to be my Lord and Savior. I had not yet trusted in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6), but I already believed that all good things come from God (James 1:17).

Although I did not yet know Scripture, I began to realize that God truly does work all things together for good (Romans 8:28), as the insurance settlement for the lost items paid for a fresh start in furnishing my new home as I began a new life.

We suffered material loss in Hurricane Ian at our beach home, but I am thankful that no storm can take away the beauty of God’s sunrises and sunsets over the beach, stars shining over a moonlit sea, and even a full rainbow arching through the sky (Genesis 9:13-16), seeming to originate from our damaged home! These “leftovers” remind me of God’s grace in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9), His mercy (Lamentations 3:22), protection, provision and infinite love (Philippians 4:19). I am even more grateful that none of our family or loved ones were injured or lost their homes in the hurricane.

Jesus is not only the Great Provider but a great steward of all He provides, and I believe He would have us to be likewise. When he fed a great multitude of 5,000 men and their families with only five loaves of bread and two small fish (John 6:1-15), everyone ate their fill, yet there were twelve large baskets of food left over! No doubt this helped feed the disciples on their journey, after a generous portion was given to the young boy who willingly donated his lunch to be used by the Master.

It reminds me of Baptist fellowships, where the hostess committee is always concerned that there will be enough food for all who attend to enjoy. Thanks to the generosity of church members, not only does everyone get to eat as much as they desire, but the leftovers are put to good use in making meals for shut-ins and homeless and feeding the visiting missionaries.

During a prolonged drought and famine, the prophet Elijah asked the widow to bake him a little cake using all of the pitiful amount of oil she had remaining. She did, and was rewarded with a cruse full of oil that never ran out until the drought had ended! Even better, God later used Elijah to revive her dead son (1 Kings 17).

We can’t outgive God. Whatever resource -- whether time, talent or treasure – we entrust to His service, He will bountifully return to us, beyond measure (Luke 6:38; Malachi 3:10-12), overflowing beyond the point that we can even hold onto it! I believe this is by His design, so that we become a channel through whom blessings flow to others.  

These blessings may not be in their original form, and He may reward us in spiritual rather than tangible blessings, but we will never be disappointed. These “leftovers” represent God’s abundant provision for us according to His riches in glory (Philippians 4:19), answering our prayers exceedingly abundantly beyond whatever we could ask or think! (Ephesians 3:20).

Note that God provides for us "according to" and not just "out of," His riches in glory. An analogy I like to imagine is that of someone desperately needing $100 for a car repair. He happens to run into Bill Gates on the street, so he timidly asks him if he could spare $100.

If Bill Gates were to give him $100, it would be "out of" his riches, because it would be a mere pittance for one of the wealthiest men on earth. But imagine instead that Bill Gates answered the request "according to" his riches. In that scenario, he would give the stranger unlimited access to his bank accounts and credit cards, adopt him as a son, make him a joint-heir with his natural born children, let him live in his mansion, and even invite him to break bread at his family table.

Yet once we trust Jesus as our Lord, that is exactly how God treats us, only infinitely better! We once were His enemies, but now we are His children and joint-heirs with Christ. That inheritance includes eternal life and a forever home in one of His many mansions! 

As we who celebrate Thanksgiving praise God for all the gifts He has given us, may we also remember to thank Him for the leftovers He generously provides, and ask Him to empower us to be good stewards, using these for His glory!

© 2022 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives, edited and expanded

Tenacity

 

                                                                                

photo by Laurie Collett 2024

Experts in child development have said that very young children do not particularly enjoy magic tricks because they view everything around them as magical. The sun appears every morning, only to disappear every evening, replacing the golden gleam of the day with the black velvet of the night sky, bejeweled with countless tiny diamonds.

Adults, on the other hand, can become jaded, failing to see the miracles occurring in our daily lives, or dismissing them as merely the predictable outcome of scientific principles, and of reactions involving matter and energy. We therefore are more likely to appreciate magic shows, in which our beliefs about reality seem to be challenged in ways that surprise and amaze us.

I enjoy a good magic show as one of many forms of entertainment, particularly if it is performed with artistry and storytelling. But when I want to see a miracle evolving before my eyes, I am blessed that I don’t have to fly to Las Vegas and pay top dollar to see a first-rate magician. Rather, I can just make a quick visit to the hydroponic garden in our laundry room!

God’s creation is miraculous indeed, far surpassing any illusion or sleight-of-hand we might experience in a theatre! How a tiny seed can contain the genetic blueprint for a complex plant, and then quickly develop into that plant when exposed to water, light, and a few nutrients, baffles the imagination. But with God, all things are possible! (Matthew 19:26).

The Lord Jesus Christ created plants and all things by the Word of His mouth (Genesis 1). He is the Living Water (John 4:10), the Light of the world (John 8:12; 9:5), and the Bread of Life (John 6:35,48), providing all that plants need to grow, and all that we need to grow as Christians, who have trusted in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6).

My most recent planting includes cucumbers, which astound me with their tenacity in accomplishing their God-given purpose. They germinate quickly, even when planted upside down! In that case, the young shoot still pushes up defiantly from its porous support, often sporting the remains of the seed coating like a jaunty cap!

They develop rapidly, first two undifferentiated primary leaves, then two secondary leaves that grow into mature, prickly cucumber leaves. Then lovely yellow flowers tilt their faces toward the light, and as these dry up, a green, fuzzy bump appears and soon elongates into an immature cucumber.

Meanwhile, thin tendrils spiral outward from the main stem, fanning out in all directions looking for something to support them. In my hydroponic garden, where various plants occupy neighboring pods, the cucumbers need constant close supervision!

Left unchecked, the curly, sticky ends of the tendrils loop themselves around whatever happens to be nearby – a lettuce leaf, a radish stem, the electric cords supplying the lights, or even the lights themselves. I marvel at their tenacity in wrapping so tightly around their neighbors, but I have to step in and untangle them, freeing the other plants and training the cucumber tendrils around a more suitable support, such as the pipes housing the hydroponic pods.

Such tenacity is widespread throughout God’s creation. In the two years since Hurricane Ian, it is reassuring to see the destroyed vegetation rebounding at our favorite beach getaway. Tall, lush Norfolk Island pine trees that once seemed to brush against the ceiling of heaven were felled to the ground by nearly 200 mph gales, leaving only jagged, ugly stumps. But these have gradually started to grow again, not nearly as tall, but at least graced with pine boughs.

A pair of osprey had nested there for many years, only to disappear after Ian when their home was destroyed. But recently, I have heard their plaintive cry near their former nest, and on our most recent trip, I saw a female perched near the top of the regrowing tree, while her mate circled lazily in the skies above. Thanks to their resilience and tenacity, chicks will follow soon, in the same neighborhood, if not the same nest that Ian destroyed.

It reminds me that God also endowed each of His children with a resolve to accomplish His unique purpose for their lives. Like the cucumbers, we too can be tenacious in clinging to various supports, some of which are more suitable than others. Do we attempt to succeed by being overly reliant on our neighbors, like the lettuce and radishes planted near the cucumbers? If so, are we perhaps inadvertently choking off their growth and not advancing our own?    

What happens when our comfort zone suddenly disappears, like the osprey nest washed away in the storm? Or even worse, when our entire support system crumbles, like the pine trees razed to the ground? Do we turn away from God and blame Him for our upheaval, or do we draw closer to Him in prayer and in His Word, relying on Him to sustain us no matter what our external circumstances?

Sometimes God removes not only our blessings, but what we believe we need to survive. Job lost his wealth, family, and health, all in short order, yet he never cursed God (Job 2:9-10). In turn, God rewarded His faithfulness by restoring to him what he had lost and doubling his material wealth (Job 42:10).

Noah preached to mockers for nearly a century, following God’s command to build an ark to withstand a global flood coming to an earth that had never experienced rain, and God rewarded him and his family by saving them from the deluge and appointing them to restart the human race (Genesis 5:32-10:1).

Moses graciously accepted God’s “time out,” spending years tending sheep in the desert until God used him to lead His people out of Egypt (Exodus 3) and to the Promised Land – a journey that would take four decades of governing a stubborn, rebellious, complaining people (Joshua 5:6).

David also spent his youth tending sheep, perhaps wondering if God would ever use the gifts He gave him of courage, leadership, music and poetry. Not only did God make David chief musician to King Saul and ultimately King himself (1 Samuel 16), but He allowed him to establish his house as perpetual ruler over Israel (Jeremiah 33:17; 1 Kings 2:45), which in the Millennial Kingdom will culminate in the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (Luke 1:32).

The tenacity of all these heroes of the faith (Hebrews 11) is surpassed only by that of our Lord and Savior, Who left His heavenly throne and came to earth as human flesh (John 1:14), knowing that He was born to die to be the perfect sacrifice for our sins, reconciling sinful man to Holy God (John 1:29). He resisted every temptation that humanity has ever encountered, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). He endured rejection by His own people, mockery from the religious leaders of His day, betrayal by His closest friends, and humiliation and physical suffering at the hands of those He came to save (Matthew 26-27).

Worst of all, Jesus Christ endured momentary separation from His Holy Father as He became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21). He tenaciously set His face like a flint (Isaiah 50:7) as He viewed Jerusalem, where He would be sacrificed as a Lamb led to the slaughter (Isaiah 53:7). He endured the cross, despising the shame, for the joy of bringing salvation and eternal life to all who trusted Him (Hebrews 12:2). 

May we follow His example of tenacity, clinging not to our possessions, status, or power, or even to our health and relationships, but in putting our complete faith in and reliance on Almighty God, Who alone can save, sustain, restore and redeem us!

© 2024 Laurie Collett

Thankful for Leftovers

As a child, one of my favorite blessings of the Thanksgiving feast lasted well into the weekend – open-faced sandwiches made with leftover turkey, giblet gravy, stuffing and cranberry sauce. Not to mention leftover eggnog and pumpkin pie!

As an adult, I have been known to put leftovers to good use in a frittata, stir-fry, soup, or must-go stew. Often these repurposed creations taste better than their original components, and the time saved in not having to prepare a meal from scratch is an added bonus.

When God gives us “leftovers,” they are always first-rate, and never second-best, often accompanied by unexpected blessings. Six days of the week, He provided a daily portion of manna, or bread from heaven, for the Israelites to eat as they traveled through the wilderness (Exodus 16).

If they gathered more to hoard for the next day, it would rot, except for the day before the Sabbath. On that day, God provided a double portion of manna, so that they could save what was left over to eat on the Sabbath without having to work to gather it. Unlike the other days, God preserved the extra portion pristine without allowing it to spoil. These leftovers provided a fresh meal for the Sabbath, which the Israelites could enjoy as a day of rest, as He had commanded (Exodus 20:8-11).

Even God’s table scraps are a supreme blessing, not to be undervalued in any way. The Caananite woman who begged Jesus to heal her demon-possessed daughter was rebuked, as His earthly ministry was primarily to Israel. He gave her an analogy, saying that it was not suitable for the children’s bread to be fed to the dogs, but she reminded Him that even dogs could eat stray crumbs that landed on the floor. He then rewarded her great faith by healing her daughter (Matthew 15:22-28).

Food leftovers notwithstanding, mostly I find myself thankful for leftovers of a different sort – those blessings that remain after a trial or crisis takes away some of what I hold most dear. When I moved to Florida from New York, the U-Haul carrying everything I owned was stolen, including antique furniture inherited from my aunt, my computer, TV, and stereo. I felt overwhelmed by the loss of these heirlooms and modern-day essentials, especially in the midst of upheaval from a long distance move, leaving family and friends, and starting a new position.

And yet, some weeks later, the police found the U-Haul abandoned in a parking lot, where evidently the thieves had been interrupted while transferring their loot to another vehicle. Every stick of furniture and all my appliances and electronics were missing, but packed boxes remained. Long after I had given up hope of recovering anything, it was like Christmas morning as I opened these boxes to find precious family photos, videos and memorabilia, and even silver, figurines and artwork that had been in my family for several generations.

While the big ticket items were lost, the “leftovers” that were found were truly irreplaceable. I knew these were a special blessing from God even though I had not yet been saved by asking His Son to be my Lord and Savior. I had not yet trusted in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6), but I already believed that all good things come from God (James 1:17).

Although I did not yet know Scripture, I began to realize that God truly does work all things together for good (Romans 8:28), as the insurance settlement for the lost items paid for a fresh start in furnishing my new home as I began a new life.

Recently, we have suffered material loss in Hurricane Ian at our beach home, but I am thankful that no storm can take away the beauty of God’s sunrises and sunsets over the beach, stars shining over a moonlit sea, and even a full rainbow arching through the sky (Genesis 9:13-16), seeming to originate from our damaged home! These “leftovers” remind me of God’s grace in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9), His mercy (Lamentations 3:22), protection, provision and infinite love (Philippians 4:19). I am even more grateful that none of our family or loved ones were injured or lost their homes in the hurricane.

Jesus is not only the Great Provider but a great steward of all He provides, and I believe He would have us to be likewise. When he fed a great multitude of 5,000 men and their families with only five loaves of bread and two small fish (John 6:1-15), everyone ate their fill, yet there were twelve large baskets of food left over! No doubt this helped feed the disciples on their journey, after a generous portion was given to the young boy who willingly donated his lunch to be used by the Master.

It reminds me of Baptist fellowships, where the hostess committee is always concerned that there will be enough food for all who attend to enjoy. Thanks to the generosity of church members, not only does everyone get to eat as much as they desire, but the leftovers are put to good use in making meals for shut-ins and homeless and feeding the visiting missionaries.

During a prolonged drought and famine, the prophet Elijah asked the widow to bake him a little cake using all of the pitiful amount of oil she had remaining. She did, and was rewarded with a cruse full of oil that never ran out until the drought had ended! Even better, God later used Elijah to revive her dead son (1 Kings 17).

We can’t outgive God. Whatever resource -- whether time, talent or treasure – we entrust to His service, He will bountifully return to us, beyond measure (Luke 6:38; Malachi 3:10-12), overflowing beyond the point that we can even hold onto it! I believe this is by His design, so that we become a channel through whom blessings flow to others.  

These blessings may not be in their original form, and He may reward us in spiritual rather than tangible blessings, but we will never be disappointed. These “leftovers” represent God’s abundant provision for us according to His riches in glory (Philippians 4:19), answering our prayers exceedingly abundantly beyond whatever we could ask or think! (Ephesians 3:20).

As we who celebrate Thanksgiving praise God for all the gifts He has given us, may we also remember to thank Him for the leftovers He generously provides, and ask Him to empower us to be good stewards, using these for His glory!

© 2022 Laurie Collett