Our Stories
On the Importance of Labeling
By Char Forslund | posted 05/28/2009
"If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us." (1 John 4:15-16)
Almost exactly one month ago I got up one morning thinking about what to cook for dinner (I know, I need more in my life to keep me busy, NOT!). Anyway, I decided on lasagna ... home-cooked, from scratch lasagna! I knew I had a dab of taco meat in the freezer and a double dab of leftover spaghetti sauce there also. I had hamburger. I had grated mozzarella cheese, garlic, parmesan cheese, plus all the makings for the sauce. I even had lasagna noodles. All I needed was ricotta cheese. After talking Ron into a quick run to Safeway for that and a loaf of sourdough bread, I had all the ingredients ready. Oh yes, would my family love it! Home-cooked lasagna with a spinach salad and sourdough garlic bread.
I set about the cooking. Unthaw the dabs of leftover meat and spaghetti sauce and add to the "frizzled" pound of hamburger ... add the spices and sauce and simmer, simmer, simmer! As the simmering process continued the doorbell rang. Anticipating a scheduled appointment with a company to do some work on our house, I put the dogs in the utility room and answered the door. As the business person entered I heard a distinct sniff from her, followed by, "Oh my! Something smells really good." I smiled... "I'm cooking lasagna for dinner." "From scratch? When's dinner?"
As the afternoon progressed I laid out the cheeses, boiled the lasagna noodles and was ready to put the incredible, layered, edible into the oven by 4:00PM.
Pam spray (always!)
1 layer of noodles
1 layer of red sauce and meat
2nd layer of noodles
1 layer of mozzarella, parmesan and ricotta cheese blended together
3rd layer of noodles
Remainder of red sauce and a good sprinkle of mozzarella over the top
Oh the heavenly smell as it slow baked in the oven! Now, time to put together the spinach salad and warm the sourdough bread. The calls of "When's dinner?" changed to "Bring it on!" as I called the family to the table.
Taking the casserole out of the oven the delicious smell permeated the kitchen and family room. While they were dishing the salad and bread, I was looking at the lasagna. Hmmm, I thought. I hope I didn't leave that mozzarella in the freezer too long. (We buy the big double bags at Costco.) It doesn't seem to have completely melted. Even so I proceeded to cut large squares and put them on the dinner plates. The cheese question followed me as there were no stringy mozzarella cheese threads! I took a taste. NO! I took another taste. NO! NO! NO! I was eating shredded hash browns. Turning silently to the freezer I pulled out an identical Ziploc bag of what I had pulled out that morning, except the AM bag (unlabeled) was shredded hash browns and the PM bag (unlabeled) was shredded mozzarella cheese. Silence... anticipation... silence.
"Hey guys, there seems to be a problem with the lasagna."
"Do we have to wait longer?"
"Did you burn it?"
"I, ahem, I um, I. . ."
"What?" and that was a unanimous exclamation.
"I used the frozen hash brown shreds instead of mozzarella cheese."
SILENCE
GLANCES
DISBELEIVIG LOOKS AT ME and then guffaws the like of which you have never heard. They laughed. They ribbed me. They pursued my displeasure until I too laughed and became part of it. The situation certainly had all the ingredients for humor. It didn't taste that bad. Not good with no cheese, but edible.
As I ditched the rest of it the next day, I started thinking about having a brain and not using it. Why hadn't I taken the few short minutes with a maker to label the bags? And then I really started thinking! I have willingly and meaningfully taken on a label. My label says, "Charlotte, Christian woman." It is a label I was called to and chose. It is a label I am required to live by. He chose me and I chose, CHOOSE, Him. Some days I look more like shredded hash browns and I have to go to and acknowledgement and accept where I am. That has to lead to silence, and confession, and then renewal. Other days, I hope more often, I look like God's chosen child, trustworthy and true through all the layers of my life, living for him to be an encouragement and help bring forth His Kingdom.
Lasagna? Who cares?
Life? Who will be impacted by mine today? This is Galilee, where He promised to meet me... and you. It has nothing to do with mozzarella cheese and everything to do with living up to the label God and I have chosen for me... to live in the expectation and anticipation of the deliciousness of life lived in and for Him!
Love and Joy,
Char
To respond to this message, email Char at charforslund@comcast.net.
