Pantries and Peanut Butter Cups

A friend who is coming on a volunteer trip next month wrote, “What can we bring for you?” What a great question! All missionaries have a Wish List of items that they can’t get in their country. Each of our children also has a favorite candy or snack that cannot be bought here. If you looked in my pantry, you would see my stockpile of canned pumpkin, Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning, maple flavoring, salad dressing mix, cocoa powder, cookie sprinkles, and other special supplies. Other treasures are stored in our chest freezer. There, you would find pecans, chocolate chips, and the most important thing, peanut butter cups. I love peanut butter cups, but no store in Ecuador sells them!

Our son, John Mark, is in college in New Orleans, where he can get all the US treats that he can afford. However, he misses the Ecuadorian snacks. Every chance we have, we send him a package with plantain chips, mango-flavored drink mix, local cookies and other special items.

While we were living in Honduras, a friend came for a visit and brought a large wholesale-size box of peanut butter cups. I was thrilled! However, before I began eating them, my sensible husband intervened. He counted the number of weeks left before we would travel to the US, and divided it into the number of peanut butter cups. “If you ration them weekly, they’ll last until we leave”, he said. I wasn’t happy, but like a good wife, I submitted. After about a month, I reached into the box to get my allowed peanut butter cup. When I opened it, it was covered with mold! Every cup left was moldy and had to be thrown out. If Johnny had let me eat them all in the first week, then they would not have been wasted!

The real lesson learned from this traumatic experience 20 years ago was that peanut butter cups are perishable. Now, I keep my stash in the freezer! I even prefer them frozen now. The texture is different and I enjoy it. Try a frozen peanut butter cup and see if you like it.

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:19-21

Puppies

Nine weeks ago, our Siberian Husky gave birth to seven puppies. We were fascinated as we watched the mother, who had never had puppies before or gone through childbirth classes, take perfect care of each baby as it was born. She cleaned each one thoroughly and bit the cord. The little blind puppies knew exactly what to do also, and squirmed toward their mom and found a food source. We were amazed at God’s design.

Over the next weeks, we enjoyed having 7 puppies. They grew to be healthy, playful creatures. When they were 7 weeks old, we began to sell them. We went to Maria Elena’s baby clothing store and put a sign in her window. She saw the pictures of the puppies on the sign and said, “We need a dog. Our dog died this week of a tumor. He was 15 years old.” Her husband and sons came to our house that afternoon and took home a puppy. We had given each puppy a name and that one was Brees, after the Saints quarterback. They kept the name as they understood it. The puppy is now called Breex.

Maria Elena and her husband Carlos have been attending church on Sunday morning since Easter. The puppy has given us a common point with their sons. This past Sunday, the entire family attended a church picnic. We are praying for an opportunity to clearly share the gospel with them.

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation---if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. I Peter 2:2-3 (ESV)