How do you like your coffee?

I’m not a coffee connoisseur. In fact, on any given day, you might find me brewing coffee any number of ways. One day, I’ll use the barista-style machine. Another day, I’ll pull out the French press. Sometimes, I’ll use the percolator.

Each method produces its own distinct flavor, and I enjoy them all.
And, as I said, I’m certainly no coffee connoisseur, so you might even stop by one morning and catch me scooping a teaspoon of instant coffee into my cup.
​Please don’t judge me. And I surely won’t judge you.
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Of course, coffee is a rather silly thing to judge someone over. Or is it?
We human beings have an interesting habit of turning our preferences into standards.
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I like my coffee this way, so obviously this is the right way.

Last night, I made a pizza using homemade pizza dough. I had never realized how easy it could be, and the pizza was more delicious than any pizza I had ever made at home. After tasting it, I thought, I don't think I will ever use store-bought pizza dough again.

I enjoy cooking Italian meals because I have discovered that Italian cooking can be a surprisingly precise endeavor. Ingredients are introduced in a certain order, combined in particular ways, and sometimes cooked for very specific amounts of time.

If a traditional recipe calls for ricotta cheese, for example, you had best use ricotta cheese. You can certainly substitute something else, and you may even end up with something delicious, but it won't necessarily be the dish the recipe was designed to produce.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with personalizing a recipe. That's part of the joy of cooking. But the more ingredients we substitute and the more instructions we ignore, the further we move away from the original recipe.

As I thought about that, I realized there is a spiritual lesson here.

Sometimes we do the same thing with God's instructions.
God gives us His Word and shows us how He desires us to live. He teaches us to love, forgive, trust, serve, show mercy, walk humbly, and seek Him for direction. Yet sometimes, when His instructions don't fit what we want to do, we begin making substitutions.

We replace forgiveness with resentment. We replace patience with our own timetable. We replace prayer with worry. We replace God's wisdom with what seems reasonable to us. And then we wonder why things aren't turning out the way we expected.

Proverbs 3:5–6 gives us a wonderfully simple recipe for walking with God:
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” -- Proverbs 3:5–6 (KJV)

There it is: Trust Him. Don't depend entirely on your own understanding. Acknowledge Him. Let Him direct you.

That doesn't mean that following God guarantees that everything in life will turn out exactly the way we want. Christianity isn't a recipe for a trouble-free life. Sometimes we can faithfully follow God and still encounter disappointment, loss, hardship, and circumstances we don't understand.

But following His Word keeps us aligned with the One who sees what we cannot see.

Perhaps that is why I enjoy the precision of Italian cooking so much. When I follow a well-tested recipe, I don't have to stand over the bowl wondering whether I should reinvent everything. Someone has already shown me the way.

There are times in my spiritual life when I need that same reminder.

I don't have to have everything figured out. I don't have to rewrite God's instructions. I don't have to substitute my wisdom for His. I simply need to trust the One who gave me the recipe.

So, the next time I'm standing in my kitchen making homemade pizza dough, I hope I'll remember something more important than how much flour, yeast, or olive oil to use.
I'll remember this:

When God gives the instructions, trust the recipe, and trust the One who wrote it.
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Forgiveness is a complex and deeply personal journey. It's a topic intertwined with various beliefs, values, and perspectives. One common notion that often surfaces in discussions about forgiveness is whether or not forgetting is a necessary component of the process. Some argue that it's possible to forgive without forgetting, while others believe that true forgiveness entails letting go of the memory of the wrongdoing altogether.

​I've encountered individuals, including devout Christian counselors, who adamantly advocate for the idea that forgetting is not essential in forgiveness. Their stance, often conveyed with sternness, is that one can extend forgiveness while retaining the offense's memory. But this notion begs a deeper exploration.

​In conversations about forgiveness, I'm often reminded of Isaiah 43:25, a verse from the Bible that speaks volumes about the nature of forgiveness: "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more." This verse highlights a profound aspect of forgiveness—the act of forgetting. If even God chooses to forget our transgressions once forgiven in His infinite grace and mercy, shouldn't we strive to do the same for others?

It's a compelling argument. If we're called to emulate the divine example of forgiveness, then it stands to reason that we should endeavor to forget the wrongs done to us once we've extended forgiveness. This doesn't suggest that forgetting is easy or even possible in every circumstance. Memories can linger, and the pain inflicted by past offenses may not simply vanish from our minds at the snap of a finger. However, the essence of forgiveness lies in releasing the hold that those memories have over us, allowing healing and reconciliation to take place.

When we forgive someone, we're not just pardoning their actions; we're also releasing ourselves from the burden of carrying resentment and bitterness. But true forgiveness goes beyond mere words or gestures. It involves a fundamental shift in how we perceive and interact with the person who has wronged us. It means treating them as if they had never committed the offense in the first place, extending them the same grace and compassion that we ourselves have received.

This doesn't mean we're obligated to forget every detail of the offense or pretend it never happened. Instead, it's about choosing not to dwell on past grievances, not allowing them to poison our thoughts or relationships. It's about consciously reframing our perspective and focusing on the potential for growth, reconciliation, and restoration.

Of course, the journey toward forgiveness is rarely straightforward. It requires courage, humility, and vulnerability. It may involve confronting painful emotions, engaging in difficult conversations, and setting healthy boundaries. But amidst the challenges, profound liberation and healing can be found.

​In the end, forgiveness is as much about the art of forgetting as it is about the act of pardoning. It's about letting go of the past and embracing the possibility of a brighter, more peaceful future. So, let us strive to follow the divine example of forgiveness, extending grace and compassion to others and, in the process, experiencing the life-changing power of letting go.