Thirty-Six Pounds of Honey, God’s Love and One Sweet Lenten Lesson

(Photo provided)

It was a quiet Sunday evening, and I was making a cup of my favorite before-bed tea.

My fellow missionaries had just gone on a tea tour the day before, and I’d picked up tea in bulk to share with the community.

As I was steeping my cuppa in the rare moment of tranquility in a house of 40 people, I thought, “I really wish we had some honey…”

Missionaries serving the poor, we often went without unnecessary creature comforts to practice solidarity with those whom we served.

But before I knew it, I found myself sending up a quick prayer:

“You know, Lord, it would be really great if we got honey tomorrow when the food truck comes… I know it’s silly; I don’t even know why I’m praying this prayer, but I never ask for stuff like this and it really would be nice… But I don’t need it. Anyway… Amen.”

The next morning, in a series of unexpected events, I ended up swapping places with a fellow missionary to unload the weekly delivery of donated food. This usually included perishables that were on the verge of perishing at grocery stores in the area. Rather than throw the food away, they would donate them. We never received nonperishables.

My type A personality had few better places to shine than on the food truck team. A man on a mission, I was tearing through boxes to unload, organize and arrange. Within minutes, I had made it through a tower of boxes five-high.

I opened the last box and paused, confused.

“Who put windshield wiper fluid in the pantry?” I asked.

Inside the box, there were three large containers resembling the jugs that the fluid usually came in, but the color was off. It was a little too dark to match the typically neon blue fluid for driving.

Reaching into the box, I picked one of the jugs up and noticed it was much heavier than I expected. I was only more confused. What is this?

Turning the jug to find the label, I saw a miraculous series of letters: 100% Natural Raw Honey.

“You’re KIDDING me!” I exclaimed, jaw on the ground.

My eyes darted to the net weight — 12 pounds. And there were three identical jugs in the container I’d just furiously unfastened.

“You’re KIDDING me!”

That fateful final box held within it an overwhelming answer to a simple, innocent prayer. I’d asked for a teaspoon of honey while making my nightly cuppa only to receive 36 POUNDS the next day.

God Wants to Provide for You

In the sweet miracle that sprung upon us that day, my community and I learned a simple truth: God delights in the small things, and he wants to be present in our lives.

I thought I was making a throwaway prayer. Meaningless. Unimportant. Frivolous. Silly.

Why would I, why should I ask the God of the universe for a teaspoon of honey?? Seems like he might have bigger fish to fry…

Sheepishly, I made the prayer anyway. And boy, did God show up in a huge — yet little — way.

Nothing is too small for God. He loves us with a love greater than we can imagine, and he wants to be present in our lives.

The more we practice gratitude, seeing and recognizing how God is active and present in our lives — in big and small ways — the more we see just how radical his love is for us, even answering a “throwaway” prayer with buckets of grace as sweet as honey.

A Lenten Lesson

I’m not sure I would have noticed the blessing before me if it hadn’t been framed against the backdrop of sacrifice.

My community and I had committed to living simply and foregoing unnecessary privileges to live in solidarity with those whom we serve. It wasn’t always fun, but it was our group resolution. I wasn’t going to just go out and buy the honey I wanted.

By saying no to a little good, we left room for God to give us a greater good.

By sacrificing in a small way, we allowed God to work in a big way.

As we begin the “campaign of Christian service” characterized by prayer, fasting and almsgiving, we’re probably thinking a lot about the things we’ve given up. It’s easy to feel the lack, to feel the desire for those things more acutely.

In those moments of difficulty this Lent, as we struggle with our resolutions and sacrifices, it’s important to remember the why behind the sacrifice.

When we freely choose to forego a good for a holy purpose, offering it to God as a small act of love, we clear more room for him in our hearts by removing worldly attachments big and small. We lean more heavily on him whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light.

As easy or difficult as it may be, we can go without a teaspoon of honey or a bite of dessert this season, all because this Lent, God might just have something sweeter in store for us.