Food: Generation to Generation

I am busy at work organizing and editing our church's cookbook as it gets ready to go to press. It's been fun to see the recipes coming in and know they are the contributors' favorites from among their collections (unless they're keeping those private!). A thought hit me--there is something special about recording your family favorite recipes. The foods you cook today will be what your family remembers about you when you're no longer here (hopefully many tomorrows from now). :) It allows your ancestors to connect with you in a very tangible way. There is something truly endearing about cooking a pan of cinnamon rolls and knowing it is your great-great-grandmother's recipe. You can't meet her personally this side of heaven, but you can feel like you know her from sharing her recipes.

It saddens me that because my family has not preserved our ancestor's recipes, I can't remember them in this way. I can almost taste my grandmother's chicken noodle soup and pork chop suey, but my own mother doesn't know how her mother made it. They are lost.

I don't want the same thing to happen to me. Call me selfish, but I would like my cherished recipes to be handed down to my grandchildren and great-grandchildren and beyond. The clothes I've worn will be destroyed by then, the pictures of me will fade; but our recipes will last.

Jesus Himself valued food. If He as God put a special emphasis on it, I can, too! I read once that many people in Jesus' day considered Him a glutton because He ate and drank with so many "sinners". When He reappeared to the disciples after the Resurrection, He cooked them fish on the beach. The Bible tells us we will feast in Heaven and eat fruit from the tree of life. There's something special about eating good food together.

Food is a gift. Great recipes are a gift. Knowing how to cook your ancestors' dishes is a gift. This side of heaven, let's record our favorite recipes. Let's pass them on.

What is your favorite? Do you have your ancestors' favorite recipes?