Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Recipe for Upside Down Cake


Often in our church we have baby dedications during our Sunday morning services. It’s an important event in the life of our church. New parents, along with their families and friends, show up in their Sunday best and make a statement to the world by publicly dedicating their baby to the Lord. 

We believe that children, up until a certain age, are too young to make a decision to be baptized because they don’t yet understand enough about why we are commanded by Jesus to be baptized and what it means to their Christian walk. Therefore, we encourage parents to dedicate their baby to the Lord until he or she is old enough to decide on their own to be baptized. It’s always a beautiful and moving part of our service.

One Sunday morning we were having a baby dedication in our service. The young family arrived early and they were shown to their seats. A host walked them through the process of what would take place that morning. They were very excited. As part of the celebration, a beautifully decorated cake was specially ordered to share after the service. When the cake arrived, my sister, Robbie, just happened to be in the lobby. Since there was no one else around at the time, the caterer handed the cake to Robbie and asked her to take care of it. Panic suddenly struck Robbie as she carefully held the cake in her hands. It was a gorgeous cake with white frosting and pink roses. Robbie finally found out that the celebration was to take place in a back room and so she was told to take the cake there and leave it on one of the tables.

When Robbie arrived in the room there was a small table sitting in the corner. Robbie carefully placed the cake down on the table and started to walk away. She was so relieved to get the cake out of her hands and safely on the table. However, as she was walking out of the room she heard a weird sound, kind of like a creaking sound. As she turned around to look at the cake, she could see the table was leaning to one side. Robbie felt like she was moving in slow motion as she tried to get back to the table to save the cake, but just as she was about to grab the cake, the table collapsed and the cake along with it. Of course, the cake fell icing side down onto the floor. Robbie’s heart sank. What should she do?

Fortunately, a friend, Donna, heard the commotion and came running into the room. She saw Robbie down on the floor, trying to scrape the cake up with her hands.

“Please, help me!” Robbie shouted to the Donna. “We can still save the cake. No one will know! Help me!” As she began picking up pieces of the cake, it just crumbled in her hands. This was a disaster! The cake was completely ruined. As they examined the table, they discovered that it only had three legs and someone had propped it up against the wall. It was very deceiving. It looked like a solid foundation for the cake, but things are not always as they appear.

Donna quickly pulled Robbie up from the floor, away from the cake. She knew the cake could not be served, but apparently she had to convince Robbie to give up on her rescue mission. Thinking quickly on her feet, Donna called a nearby market and ordered a brand new cake. It would not be as beautiful as the original cake, but at least it would be free of dirt and dust from the floor. Donna told Robbie to just leave it to her and to go into the service. She would take care of everything from there.

Robbie entered the service looking like she was in shock. When she told me what happened, I have to confess, I spent the rest of the service laughing until I cried. Robbie didn’t see the humor in the situation. Me? I always see the humor, right or wrong.

The baby dedication went off without a hitch after that. The family and friends gathered in the room for cake and punch. None them were wise to what had taken place just an hour before the celebration. The day was saved.

Unfortunately, the foundation Robbie chose was unstable, even though it appeared to be solid and safe. It’s so important that we choose the right foundation on which to build our life.

“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 (NIV)

In this world there are so many people building their lives on an unstable foundation because they made a choice not to build Christ into their lives. Make sure you start with the right foundation, Jesus Christ. No other foundation will do. Don’t run the risk of building everything on a foundation that will, without a doubt, eventually crumble and topple over. You will find yourself down on the floor scraping up the remaining bits and pieces of your life. Jesus is the only solid foundation to build on. Start there and you will be sure of a successful life here and in the hereafter.

“He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.” Isaiah 33:6 (NIV)

Life can be shaky at times; leaving you feeling like everything might fall right out from under you at any moment. But if you have built your life on the sure foundation of Jesus, you will have an unlimited source of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. Build on the fear of the Lord. This fear doesn’t mean being afraid of what God might do to you, but it means respecting and acknowledging God in every area of life. Acknowledging Him as your source for all you need for an exciting and successful life, even in the middle of difficult seasons, will ensure you will make it through anything life may throw at you. Your foundation will stand strong in the face of storms and uncertain times. Stay away from the three-legged tables that the world offers you. They may look solid, but they cannot stand the test of time. That's a sure recipe for upside down cake.

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