You Can Trust God Even In The Casserole! …Hello Hump Day readers. Yes, this devotion includes a casserole and I love the story about this casserole because it reminds me of myself. So, hang on, get a good laugh, and then dive into the real part of the story—we can trust God, always and everywhere! Here is the true story about a youngster and his dad. Enjoy!

A young boy and his dad were seated at the dining room table, while mom put the finishing touches on their Sunday dinner. While waiting, the father asked his son if he would say the prayer for their meal. Quite surprisingly, he said yes and nodded his head excitedly, but that excitement ended very quickly when his mother brought the food out. His enthusiasm faded. Why? Read on…

He paused for a moment and stared at the bubbling casserole his mom set before him. He tried his best to hide his sad face and then he shrugged his shoulders and prayed: “God, I’m really not sure what it is but I hope there aren’t any peas in it. Well, thanks anyway God for my food. I’ll still eat it but I hope you won’t be upset if I pick out the peas. Amen.”

I chuckled at this cute story because that was me. I love just about any fruit or vegetable except for peas, ugh. I don’t like the flavor one bit. My grandmother loved to make her homemade pasta in a casserole but no matter what the meat or gravy was in it, it always had peas—and they were big peas. Yep, I picked them out otherwise I wouldn’t eat them. Of course I got the statement each time: “What God puts in front of you is always for your good.” At that age I just stared at my grandmother and kept picking out the peas!

There is a good lesson in this however, and as I grew up I realized it even though I still didn’t like peas. Let’s face it, one of the hardest things for us Jesus-followers is to trust that God knows what He’s doing in your life; and we need to believe that whatever God sets in front of us is for our good—and that includes peas!

Sadly we often grow angry or afraid when God allows something into our lives that we don’t expect, recognize or like. But you can exchange that anger and fear for joy when you learn to pray like Jesus and trust in God’s will over your own. Using the Message translation, let’s read Matthew 6:9-13 which includes the Lord’s Prayer: “The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are. Set the world right. Do what’s best—as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything you want! You’re ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes!’”

Talk about the Lord’s Prayer with vigor and joy—Eugene Peterson’s version of the Message is just what we need! Not just a prayer we know and easily can say by rote, but a living prayer that Jesus has given us to trust in the Lord and live by the words of this powerful prayer.

Our world is quick to deny real truth; after all, it’s easy to make up your own. But that is what gets us in trouble. The truth is and always has been: God is in complete control—even when we can’t make sense of what’s going on.

In closing, always remember how much God loves you—even if what God puts before you is not something you imagined or wanted. Trust God instead of your choices. If you do, you will experience the peace of God’s presence like never before—with or without peas! AMEN.