Learning to lick the bowl....

There are a few things that make us distinctly "Banks": how we all cheer for different EPL teams, the way we have a passion for music, the way we love all things Aloha, and the way we eat zucchini bread.

Yes. In our family, it's an art form. Once a week, for almost two years, I have made 2 loaves of zucchini bread (or "ZZ Bread" as it's called around here). Usually, one loaf is devoured in the first 24 hours, the second lingers for a few days, but only until the beginning of the next week, when two more arrive. I was looking for a way to pack in healthy goodness (all organic, full of veggies, fruit, protein, etc.) but without making my family eat something less than savory. After much testing in the kitchen, I came up with a recipe that my kids and husband adore... and they don't even mind that it's packed with more veggies, fruit and protein than most people eat all week. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack - ZZ bread is innately "Banks". Ethan has learned home school math and science making it, Brody has learned the art of "helping mommy" and Greg has learned precisely how long it takes for the loaf to cool to the perfect temperature so he can dive into the first piece.

Tonight, while Brody was helping me make this week's batch, the Lord began speaking to me. I was pouring the batter into the loaf pans and had already planned to give my little helper an opportunity to have, by far, the best part of the baking experience - a chance to lick the bowl - when this scene started playing out.

You see, he had spilled a bit of flour on the counter and was busy poking his pudgy little finger in his little mess when he asked me if he could eat it. I answered, "Sure, but it's not going to be as yummy as you think." Brody's little nose wrinkled up after tasting the flour and he tried to muster a "mmm" sound, as he wanted to pretend he had made the right decision. I laughed, because it was just so precious, and handed him a huge spoon and the batter bowl. He scraped the bowl clean in a matter of seconds, said, "Thank you, Mommy!" and climbed down from his kitchen chair perch... with the remnants of the batter all over his face.

And that's when it hit me. How much is that like us with the Lord? He has these amazing plans and dreams for us and instead we're asking him, as we poke our pudgy little fingers in our own messes, "Can I have this?", meanwhile, he's got an AMAZING, YUMMY concoction of a plan just inches away that would be so much better than we could ever imagine if we would only wait on Him for the better thing. He's saying to us, in love and with a heaping cup full of mercy, "Sure, Beloved, you can have your little mess, but it's not going to be as yummy as you think...." Then, when we come away from the experience feeling less than satisfied, he never fails to offer us the better plan, the easier way, His highest will for our lives.... all in love, mercy, and without condemnation.

Precious, gracious Father, how I long to be like my batter-covered boy: having all over me the remnants of your blessings for my life ... and learning not to settle for the mess, but to be willing to wait for the chance to lick the bowl of all You've got for me.

Jeremiah 29:11