Aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands. I Thessalonians 4:11 (NKJV)
I spend most of my week at a computer screen, working with words. But on Saturdays I intentionally switch modes and work with my hands in a more tactile way. I look forward to cooking up a few dishes—old favorites or new recipes—from scratch.
In the morning at the grocery store, I linger in the produce section. Shall I make some guacamole? No, the avocados today are too hard and too expensive. A bunch of herbs for parsley soup? Yes, that would taste good. Apples for pie? Yes, but that means I need to buy shortening.
I return home and head for the kitchen. I get out my cutting board and chop; my paring knife and peel. With pastry cutter and rolling pin, I transform raw ingredients into tasty baked goods. The soup simmers. I pull a golden pie out of the oven. It looks good! Even before tasting or serving, I smile, expressing a joy that flows from deep within.
Ben Sira, an ancient Jewish writer, describes people whose “prayer shall be in the work of their craft.” He’s referring to farmers, artists, blacksmiths and potters, but I think also of cooks and tailors, builders and gardeners, musicians and machine makers. Whether it’s a vocation or avocation, any work can be performed as a prayer to God’s glory, a prayer that draws us close to our Creator’s heart.
Lord, draw me today to some project that I can complete as a working prayer.
