The parable of the peanut butter. While serving as a missionary in Bangkok, Thailand, I learned to love Thai food. And I still love those spicy dishes! But there were a few American treats that I missed. One of those treats was peanut butter! While peanuts were readily available in Bangkok, peanut butter was not. An explanation is in order before we get to the parable of the peanut butter.
After horribly failing to make our own peanut butter, one of my companions requested a jar be sent from home. We dreamed of the arrival of the jar of creamy Jif peanut butter. This is not hyperbole, we dreamed of peanut butter! When the much-anticipated package arrived, we tore open the box and our excitement faded quickly. We discovered a #10 can of organic peanut butter with these instructions attached: “Open the can, stir thoroughly, enjoy.”
Stir and Enjoy
We opened the can and the reason for the instructions became very clear. An inch of pure peanut oil covered a thick peanut paste. With watering mouths, we plunged a knife into the center of the can and attempted to stir. We discovered that the process of mixing the oil and the paste together was very difficult at first. But the longer we worked at it, the smoother the result became. Our efforts finally produced the treat for which we had all been waiting.
I’ve thought about that process of stirring peanut butter many times over the years. Like many things in our lives, when we first start a process, it can be very difficult. But the longer we work at it, the easier it becomes. A parable forms from this experience. The more diligent and consistent the effort, the better the result.
Challenges and Roadblocks
Challenges or roadblocks are frequently placed in the paths of our mortal journeys. Some challenges are small, like small jars of creamy Jif peanut butter. And the “stirring process” is easy. Sometimes the roadblocks, like #10 cans of organic peanut butter, take great effort on our part to pass through. Then, for some, the cans seem to line up in row after row mocking the attempt to move forward.
At times in life, mountain-sized cans drop right in front of us. And we look to God, cry, and say, “Why God, why me, I’m not strong enough to stir this one, I just can’t do it.”. And amid those tears, we hear His voice whisper, “Child, I love you, and yes, you can do this. Take my hand, and I’ll help you get started. Keep stirring and before long, you’ll be stirring on your own”. God will never give you more peanut butter than you can stir, with His help!
Trust in the Lord
At the beginning of WWII, King George VI gave a Christmas Day broadcast and quoted the following poem:
“I said to the man who stood at the Gate of the Year, Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown. And he replied, Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.”
My brothers, my sisters, my friends, put your hand in the hand of God, trust in Him, and enjoy a spoonful of peanut butter for your efforts!
