By Katy Mariotti

Even When the Future Is Unknown

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19 English Standard Version

Not long ago I had the joy of taking a cooking class with my husband.  I say “joy” now, but to be honest, I was nervous to do it. You see, I don’t cook. While there are some things I can make, my husband is the main chef in our family. When he asked me if I wanted to take this cooking class with him, I said yes because I wanted to spend time with him and because I like to learn. But I worried that I would feel stupid from my lack of skills. My husband reassured me that it was a class; the whole purpose of being there was to learn!

When the class started, it became clear that this was not a class for beginners. It wasn’t a class where everyone made the same thing at the same time while the teacher showed us how to do it.  Each individual or couple made a different dish, and we were expected to begin while the teacher came around to help and give us tips.  Everyone around us started getting ingredients and chopping, and I felt overwhelmed standing there reading the recipe.

But as we jumped in, something cool happened. One of the first things the recipe called for was to chop onions, which I already know how to do.  This built my confidence, and as we took the recipe one step at a time, my husband and I figured it out together, with help from the teacher along the way. I noticed that even though my husband already cooks, he was learning too. And the other students in the class made mistakes just like I did. Our last step was to use a deep fryer, which intimidated me, but it turned out to be really fun, and none of our papas rellenas that we were making fell apart, as we were warned might happen.

In the end, the food was delicious, I got to spend time with my husband, and it DID bring me joy. Things can look daunting when we are unsure of ourselves, and when the future is unknown. But we have a God who provides for our needs every step of the way. As we head into Thanksgiving tomorrow, let’s remember not only to be thankful for what God HAS provided for us, but also thankful for what he WILL provide for us tomorrow and all the days of our lives. We can trust His promises, and we can trust that while the future may be unknown, we know it is with Him!

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado.