Ahhhh, apple season is upon us. While I hate that summer has come to an end…I am happy it is apple season. So many good things can be made with this fruit. Jam, pie, apple butter, applesauce, muffins…and I could go on and on. All delicious concoctions which usually bring a smile to my face.
Today I’m sharing with you a picture of a caramel apple pie that I made one day. I enjoy making all different kinds of pie, but if I’m honest, this is one of my favorites. As we all know, caramel and apples make such a great combo and throw them in a pie and well…a little bit of heaven occurs
But I must confess…while I made this pie and many other pies from scratch, there is one component that was purchased. There is one part of a pie where it doesn’t matter what recipe I try (and I have tried many of them) I just can’t make successfully. I’ve even tried recipes which have the words “No Fail” in the title…but I still manage to make it fail. No matter what I do or how hard I try…I can’t make a pie crust to save my life.
Because of this, I bought my pie crusts for years and always kept a supply of them on hand. But, a couple years ago, I decided that surely after all these years, I could be successful in making my own. So, the search began, once again, for a recipe I could master. I even went so far as to go to a pie crust making class! Now I wish I could tell you that, after all that effort, I was finally victorious…but I wasn’t. It didn’t matter what recipe I tried, even if it had great reviews, mine was awful.
I was frustrated. For pete’s sake…it’s not rocket science…it’s just a pie crust. Lots of my friends make great crust; why in the world can’t I? I consider myself a fairly decent cook, so if I can follow lots of other recipes and they turn out fine, what is different with this? What is wrong with me that is keeping me from making this simple crust?
After all those attempts, I found myself whining about this one day to my husband, telling him how I felt like such a failure and he said, “Oh well…you are good at a lot of other things”. Simple statement…powerful words. At that moment I realized I was doing something I have taught others that they should never do. I was comparing a weakness of mine to other people’s strengths…and I guarantee you, I will lose every time I do that.
Now I realize that a pie crust is a pretty minor thing in life, but I know I’ve done this comparison game before. Why can’t I sing like she can? Why don’t I have athletic ability like they have? Why does my metabolism run like a turtle but hers seems to run like a cheetah? Yep, I could go on and on.
I wonder how often I make Jesus sad because I wish I was someone else, instead of being thankful that I was created to be me. I was made, with my strengths and weaknesses, to bring glory to Him and that isn’t possible if I’m whining and complaining. Yes, I have weaknesses which I can work on improving, but I think there are times when He wants us to use our weaknesses to help others. Sometimes, people need to see our shortcomings, to realize Jesus can use everyone to touch the lives of others. Sometimes others need to see that we are human…definitely not perfect…and through our imperfections He can bring beauty.
I don’t know what your weaknesses are, but I hope you aren’t dwelling on them today wishing you were someone else. You, my friend, were created in God’s image and He loves you just the way you are. Can He help you improve in some areas? Of course He can. But He is much more interested in you having a willing spirit to be used for Him regardless of what you see as your imperfections.
So, this is a fair warning that if you eat a piece of pie made by me…it won’t include a crust made by me. But, trust me on this, you should consider that a blessing! I’m back to using store bought pie crusts and I hate to brag…but they are quite good!
“For the Lord is the Spirit,
and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom. So all of us who
have had that veil removed
can see and reflect the glory of the Lord.
And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us
more and more like him as we are
changed into his glorious image.”
2 Corinthians 3:17-18
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