The Lessons from a Failed Attempt at Pie Baking

Church picnics are fun. Believe it or not, I've only been to three or four of them in my lifetime. Over the weekend I had picked up some fresh organic blackberries for 50 cents a pint. "A blackberry pie!" was what I was going to contribute for it, since there was little else I could fix or bring.

Saturday was a very busy day of errands, work, and a lovely outdoor wedding and reception of a friend of mine. The only time to bake the pie was shortly before midnight. It smelled heavenly and looked divine as I pulled it out of the oven. I went to bed content and happy that it seemed to have turn out just fine after baking some not-so-fine pies in the recent past.

Sunday afternoon came around, and as I quickly returned home to change, grabbed an old quilt, and the pie, there was gasp of displeasure and disappointment as I opened the Tupperware container. A knife was timidly inserted into the pie and my nightmare had come true.

The inside resembled some kind of an attempt of soup.

Several years ago I could make pies not to far from Grandma's perfect quality, (this side of heaven, that is) and then about three years ago there was one evening of a ruined cherry pie (same soupy results) which has repeated itself nearly a half a dozen times. Yesterday I was struck with the doom of coming to face the fact: Cheri cannot make good pies.

Leaving the disaster at home, I arrived at the park where the church picnic was held empty handed. My discouraged mind was somewhat relieved when the dessert table was covered with all sorts of good things, and the pie would not have been needed after all.

But I was not satisfied with just accepting the title of a disastrous pie baker - I want to know why they aren't turning out. Grandma will be consulted this very day, and hopefully then she can point out the error in which I can learn from. A spiritual lesson can be learned from this, too, as God brought to my attention last night.

Just like my pie, my life can look "perfect" on the outside: I can do all the the right things, say all of the right things, go to all of the right places. It can be so easily to "look the part" of a good Christian woman. I can even follow or obey the Word of God, just as I followed the pie recipe, to the tee - but if I'm doing everything in my own strength or my own wisdom, or follow man's ideas or wisdom, my life will be a complete failure. We need Christ. We need to be Holy Spirit filled and controlled. The verse in John 15:5 comes to mind: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." (emphasis mine)

May this spiritual lesson continue to ring in my heart, and may Grandma have some insight into the failures of my pie baking!