The Fragrance of Love: Family
by Cathy Baker
Families are like fudge… mostly sweet with a few nuts. Author Unknown
I LOVE my family.
No naming names here Uncle Jim but I find this quote to be quite true, at least in my family—and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
My dad’s mom (Ma-Ma) was a master-maker of that particular type of chocolate concoction, offering up a butter-like consistency with an ever so slight crunch of sugar.
I remember Ma-Ma’s arthritic fingers carefully stirring chocolate chips, vanilla, marshmallows, and nuts in her white Pyrex bowl.
When God handcrafted our family He melded together a unique blend of personalities, strengths and weaknesses, much like He did with yours.
Growing up, the dreaded part of the fudge-making process was the constant stirring of sugar and milk until it came to a rolling boil. If not carefully monitored, liquids quickly scorched, leaving behind wasted ingredients.
The Waltons and other idealistic family shows left many craving that type of harmonic setting for their own families. Truth is, God has used the rolling-boil point of familial situations to teach me deeper aspects of my walk with Him, producing a peace that far surpasses that found on Walton’s mountain. In Him, nothing we experience as a family is truly wasted.
After pouring the warm sugar mixture over the dry ingredients, the fudge is blended, poured into a prepared pan, and refrigerated.
The baking process involves a variety of steps, and this final one reminds me of another family…God’s. I don’t need a village. I need a kingdom. People led by the living God who pour out truth, even if it means getting messy. We need not belong to the same denomination, worship the same way, or wear the same thing. When our desire is to put the Gospel on display, we blend beautifully.
Of course, I can’t close out a post on loving my family without sharing pictures of my favorite three-wee family members. (Soon to be four via international adoption but we can’t share pictures quite yet. Stay tuned!)
Oh yes, I LOVE my family. (Especially my Uncle Jim who has rarely failed to make us smile over the years. He’s my kind of nut!)
Your turn! Would you care to share one favorite thing you LOVE about your family?
fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children– Psalm 103:17
