Preserved for a Purpose

Irene Click is the best Christian mentor I could have ever been blessed with. I honestly believe she was the reason we moved to Alabama. I’m quite sure God had many plans and purposes when He allowed the Charleson Naval Shipyard to be closed in 1999, but sending our family to Enterprise, AL, was no doubt a huge part of His plan for my life.  Mrs. Click took me as well as my daughters under her wing and began mentoring us from the moment we moved in as neighbors (even before that). One of the many things she taught me was how to preserve (can) food. What you should know is that in everything we did, Ms. Click had a life lesson with a Biblical base for me. Oh, how I miss her- she is worshiping at Jesus's feet today.

Our first canning lesson was that of canning tomatoes. My vision was going to purchase beautiful tomatoes from the fields both for eating as well as canning. As we were choosing our tomatoes, Mrs. Click quickly made her way over to the “ugly tomatoes” buckets. She proudly announced to the owner that we’d take a 5-gallon bucket of “ugly tomatoes” and one bucket of beautiful tomatoes as well. I was smart enough not to question her until we got to the car. 😊 She began explaining that the “ugly tomatoes” were ½ price while the beautiful and would taste just as good as the full priced tomatoes. She picked just the right tomatoes for the job. In the same way, God has just the right job/ tasks to complete as you walk through life with Him.

We washed our tomatoes taking care to get any dried leaves and dirt off them and proceeded coring them. We were careful remove any impurities, any worms that we found were killed so that they didn’t invade other tomatoes. As we sat there cutting away impurities my sweet mentor began comparing our cutting out the bad parts of the tomatoes to God cutting away sinful impurities in our lives. Yes, He picks us individually, washes us by the blood of Christ and then works on getting sinful habits and tendencies out of our lives. The process isn’t a pretty process and indeed it is tedious and time consuming, but you will never buy tomatoes in the store that compare to fresh processed tomatoes.

As if washing, coring, cutting and cleaning wasn’t enough for those poor tomatoes to go through, it was time for our next phase. We put them in a huge pot full of boiling water and cooked them until they were tender and falling apart. Does this remind you of any circumstances that you have faced? Just when it seemed as it they would be mush, we either filled our jars with these beauties or pressed them through a food mill or sieve in order to get tomato juice. The jars were then sealed and processed so that they would last.

Why go through this preserving process? We may want to use these tomatoes at another time, for a different reason, to keep them from spoiling or even as gifts to bless others with. Isn’t that just like our lives? God tenderly takes us through these same steps as he perfects us for His desires. God formed us, chose us, fashions us, perfects us and will finish us according to His plans. Mrs. Click and I had a vision of why we wanted to preserve those tomatoes while they were good for use, possibly for  chili, spaghetti, to eat with rice, grits or to use in recipes but we had a vision. Isn’t it so wonderful to bask in the love of God knowing that He has a plan for our lives! God does everything in order; steps just like we use in canning. We can’t skip ahead or get the steps out of order without having to go back and repeat that step again. Even Jesus had steps to take as He made His way to the cross. Moses, the deliverer was placed in a basket, snatched from the water, educated and prepared in Pharaoh’s courts. He was humbled and totally dependent on God as he wandered 40 years in the wilderness as He carried out God’s plan. Yes, we truly do know that, “All things work together” as in Romans 8:28.

Psalm 91 assures us that God knows everything about us. When we lay down, get up, our thoughts, where we are, and preserves us by His loving power! Jeremiah 29:10-14 says that “Before He formed me in my mother’s womb, He knew me.” Sister, do you understand that God is always preparing us for a purpose and coping with life’s setbacks is easier when we accept That God has a plan for us- even when we do not always understand. Change can be hard, painful and it may bring us to our knees BUT… change can be a beautiful thing, especially when it is God who is changing our lives. In August 2020 I was an ER nurse and loved it but God had another plan. Through a series of events, I hung up my ER hat and began a journey as school nurse. There isn’t time for all that took place, but God used this new schedule to grow and work in ministry in ways that I could not have if I had continued with the schedule at the hospital. As we have just relocated back in the states from Germany, there has been much change and growth again. I’m not sure exactly where the coming years will take me but this one thing I know: I am preserved (and being preserved) by Christ for a purpose and the promise is this: “It is God who is at work in you (me), both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil 2:13), and “He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). Praise God for His steps in preserving us even during the tough times. Sister, Jesus purchased us with His own blood, cleanses, cores out the sin in our lives, and processes us through daily refining so that we can be opened up and poured out at just the right time, to just the right person for His plans. Oh the joy we bring both Him and those around us when he chooses to use us. Just like those tomatoes when we opened them up- sweet to the soul.

Next time God is preserving you, coring you, and putting you through the "cooker" remember that He has a purpose for your creation and for your life. Praise Him, grow and watch Him use you in the lives of others.

Verse to Meditate on: Lamentations 3:22-33; Psalm 91; Jeremiah 29:11-14; Romans 8:28;  Ephesians 2:10; Philippians 1:6, 2:13

~Live Sent