RHG Magazine & TV Guide TM - February 2020 © All rights reserved.
Stepping into Grace
Shannon S. McKee is communicator at heart. She is a writer, editor, and speaker. She writes at www.shannonsmckee.com. She coordinates the Women's Ministry at Redemption Chapel in Stow, Ohio, where she is a regular teacher and mentor. She is passionate about helping women thrive from the inside out. Her other titles include: Grace-dweller. Lover of Rick. Momma to 2. Tea Drinker. Entrepreneur. Putterer. Consumer of Dark Chocolate.
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I made four loaves of banana bread this weekend. I love homemade bread and the way the smell of it wafts through the house. What is about baking that is so warm and inviting? That draws us into a place?
My Madison came home from a friend’s to it and was drawn immediately into the kitchen – mesmerized. “Banana bread,” she mouthed. Her face was awash with delight as she breathed it in, peeking in the oven to see when it would be finished. And hope did not disappoint as I sliced the still-steaming loaf and slathered on a bit of butter for her. As she savored the first bite, everything about her said “contentment.”And that is precisely why we Mama’s do it. Why it’s worth it to take the time…
But the thing I love most about making banana bread is the way that it makes me like Jesus. Yes. Just like Him. (For a moment at least.)
You see, when I make banana bread, I get to take old, nobody-is-ever-going-to-eat-these bananas and turn them into something beautiful. The browner and less-appetizing the banana, the better the bread. When I’m smooshing them up and putting them into bowl, it’s down-right gross – especially if I had to freeze the bananas until I had a chance to bake. Ick.
But somehow, out of that mashed-up mess, I create a golden loaf of warm banana bread that delights the senses. And isn’t that just like Jesus? He’s always taking the broken, dead places and turning them into something amazing. Strengthening the bruised reed. Creating beauty from ashes. I hear stories of it all the time. How He brings good stuff out of the junk and the bad decisions in our lives.
Certainly you know about the dead stuff. Maybe you’ve come face to face with the carnage that your own sin leaves behind. Maybe you have a dream that hides in a dead place in your heart because it was just easier that way. The hoping was too painful. Perhaps it’s a relationship that has grown cold. Or an injustice that you can’t forgive. Maybe your New Year’s resolve has already bit the dust and you’re just tired of the fight.
It’s a smooshed-up mess, isn’t it? But, wait. Maybe there’s another way. Maybe, could we give it to Jesus and ask Him to make banana bread? And that my friends is grace. Beautiful grace.