The Graceline

I grew up in a church where every year we would have “Homecoming.” It was a like a reunion where all the people came back together to catch up with those who had moved away over the years. There would be a sermon followed by “dinner on the grounds,” which meant gluttonous over-indulgence of homemade delights that was so good it would make you smack your mama.

We had this lady in our church named Ollie Bagwell. She used make a chocolate layer cake that if there was anything better on earth, God must have kept it for Himself. It was to die for. The cake was so moist, it had little golden beads of sweetness in every bite.

All the ladies in the church would bring their food and put it in the gym before the service started. Some of us would watch to see when Ollie brought her cake in so we could hide us a big old slice before the crowd came and scoffed it all up.

Whenever we would ask Ollie for the recipe, she would say, “I just put a little bit of this and a little bit of that. It’s no big deal.” She never told anyone her recipe. I told her on many occasions that it would be an unpardonable sin for her to go to heaven without letting someone know how she made that cake. Lo and behold, she went Home and took her recipe with her. I suppose the Lord still let her in. Why wouldn’t He, especially if she’s up there making cakes for Him.

Ollie had a recipe. I’m sure it included flour, sugar, eggs, flavoring, etc. I’m sure she mixed them in proper amounts. But what made Ollie’s cakes so wonderfully different was the special touch she added to it. Oh, she could have given me the recipe, and I could have baked the cake, but it would not have come close to Ollie’s masterpiece. Her cakes were uniquely Ollie.

I see Scripture as the recipe for life. I see Jesus making the recipe delicious. Scripture without Life doesn’t cut it. We were never meant to worship the recipe. We were created to live life… His Life. The recipe directs us to Jesus. Whenever we trust Him, He makes life deliciously wonderful. I can follow the recipe to the letter, but if Jesus does not make it come alive thru me, then it’s just another imitation of the real thing. Kinda like a cake mix in a box.

God made everyone of us unique and special. The recipe, the Word of God, is the same for all of us, but God creates each of us with a special touch that makes our life one-of-a-kind delicious. There are many people who know a lot about “the recipe,” but they have never tasted the Cake. Maybe that’s why the Bible says, “Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who trust in Him!” (Psalm 34:8 NLT).

Whenever Ollie would walk into a room with her cake, the sweet fragrance would make your mouth water with anticipation. You just couldn’t resist it. The Bible tells us that when we trust the Lord, the fragrance of His presence irresistibly draws people to Him. “Through us, He brings knowledge of Christ. Everywhere we go, people breathe in the exquisite fragrance” (2 Corinthians 2:14 MSG).

Beloved, is your mouth watering?