I
want to share a story that might be helpful the next time you wonder
if your little acts of kindness, like baking cookies for someone
else, really make a difference in the world.
This
story of cookies was shared today by a remarkable young business
woman here in China who learned of it directly from an LDS woman in
the United States who was involved in this story, namely, the busy
mom who baked the cookies.
That
LDS mom was home one morning tackling a variety of tasks to make it
through a busy day. In spite of having a lot to do, she felt a
distinct impression that she ignored at first: "Bake
some chocolate chip cookies."
She
thought that made no sense and went about her day. Then the
impression came again: "You
need to bake some chocolate chip cookies."
She
had experienced the promptings of the Spirit enough to recognize that
this was one of those moments. With a touch of faith, she realized
that the Lord wanted her to make cookies. Not just any cookies, but
specifically chocolate chip
cookies. OK, OK, she gave
in, interrupted her plans and made a batch of cookies.
There.
Now what?
She
had no idea why she was supposed to make them because to her
knowledge there was no event or person in need of cookies. Needing
someplace to take these piping hot goodies, she thought of a woman
down the street for whom she was the assigned visiting teacher, and
thought she would try to take them there.
Yes,
the woman was home and accepted the cookies. Task done. Now back to
her busy day. End of story —
for about a year, that is. Then
came an interesting piece of information.
On
a Sunday roughly one year later, in a fast and testimony meeting, a
woman came to the pulpit to share her thoughts. She was moving out of
the ward, and wanted to express her gratitude to the members and the
Lord for the kindness she had been shown. In particular, she shared a
moment that made a big difference in her life.
One
year ago, on a day when everything was seeming to go awry, with
problems in her family, with her car, with everything, it seemed, she
was at her wits' end and didn't know what to do. She got on her knees
and cried before the Lord.
She
told Him that she didn't even know why she was a member of this
Church and why she should keep trying. She said she was frustrated,
tired, hurting, and, well, Lord, right now, "I
just need a plate of chocolate chip cookies."
And
then, two hours later, there was a knock on the door and there was
her visiting teacher with a plate of freshly backed chocolate chip
cookies. Any doubt Who sent them? This was a major milestone in her
life.
I
love that story. I love the small ways the Lord guides us and helps
us. Never doubt the potential for small acts to make a difference,
even a life-changing difference, when we follow the Spirit. And never
doubt the importance of food, even food high in fat and sugar.
Somehow the story just wouldn't be the same if the visiting teacher
had brought over a fresh organic zucchini.
One
thing I love about China is that it's not considered silly to openly
recognize the importance of food. Food matters. Sharing food is part
of sharing culture and sharing lives. Food is a tool that can build
relationships, show love, and bring joy. Latter-day Saints learn in
our scriptures that the Gospel can bring us a fullness of joy.
Sadly,
in the West we often don't recognize how much good can be done with
food. Sometimes the work of stay-at-home mothers, for example, is
trivialized as just staying home and baking cookies instead of "real"
work. When the Lord asks you to bake or share whatever other talents
you may have, it's real work. Don't delay and don't doubt.
When
the time is right and the need is real, cookies matter. Mmm, I could
use a plate right now....
Jeff Lindsay has been defending the Church on the Internet since 1994, when he launched his
LDSFAQ website under JeffLindsay.com. He has also long been blogging about LDS matters on
the blog Mormanity (mormanity.blogspot.com). Jeff is a longtime resident of Appleton,
Wisconsin, who recently moved to Shanghai, China, with his wife, Kendra.
He works for an Asian corporation as head of intellectual property. Jeff and Kendra are the parents of 4 boys, 3 married and the the youngest on a mission.
He is a former innovation and IP consultant, a former professor, and former Corporate Patent
Strategist and Senior Research Fellow for a multinational corporation.
Jeff Lindsay, Cheryl Perkins and Mukund Karanjikar are authors of the book Conquering
Innovation Fatigue (John Wiley & Sons, 2009).
Jeff has a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Brigham Young University and is a registered US
patent agent. He has more than 100 granted US patents and is author of numerous publications.
Jeff's hobbies include photography, amateur magic, writing, and Mandarin Chinese.