Recognizing God’s Comfort

Can God surprise us?

Does he see our weariness

and slip us a treat?

Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest…

Matthew 11: 28

When you get weary, where do you go for comfort?

Let me guess. You wrap up in a big, soft, fluffy blanket. Perhaps you run to the cupboard for something sweet or salty. Maybe you phone a friend or take a nap.

It could be that you pray, call your mom, or go to your best friend’s house.

Or possibly you run to your journal and write it out, ALL IN CAPS!

The possibilities are endless!

Our family has needed comfort recently.

My husband has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, and the whole thing seems so unreal. Cancer, here at our house. It has always been somewhere else, in someone else. But now it is here.

We’ve known for several months now, but radiation just started this week, making it all the more real.

We’ve been moved by how people have shown their care for us. Friends have texted and asked, “How’s Brian doing?” We’ve received cards where people have offered their care for us. Our sons have called to talk with him in the evenings, and our in-town daughter has stopped by to check on him, offering a quick hug. Other times, after church, friends have chatted and asked how he’s feeling, always leaving with, “We’re praying for you!”

These are wonderfully simple moments to savor.

This past week, it was my turn to undergo a procedure that required me to drink only clear liquids the day before…I’m sure you know the one.

Because I hadn’t eaten for a day and a half, Brian asked me what I would like to eat. What sounded delicious as we headed home?

I thought for a minute, and then I knew.

A scone! I love scones, and this would be the perfect time to eat one!

My husband offered to run to Dash Coffee Roasters, a local coffee shop, and buy one of their scones that I always rave about. I thought it sounded like a good idea, but then I said, “No, I’ll just have coffee and a piece of toast.” That seemed a bit more practical for the situation.

But as we turned into our driveway, I heard a ding from my phone.

Opening it, I found a text from a friend, telling me that she had baked some oatmeal scones for us and had left them on our back porch.

Really? Scones?

Hadn’t I just moments before spoken out that I wanted a scone?

Stepping into our back porch, there they were. And let me tell you, they were delicious.

These scones were a simple comfort for both of us. Could it be that God encouraged our friend to bake, so we would know that his eyes are on us, eager to give us a little surprise to let us know he is near?

I know this is a little thing, but I also know that I will savor this memory for quite some time.

But even more than the scones, we gobbled up the encouragement that friendship brings.

We also wrapped up the idea and put it in our pocket for the next time another friend needs a bit of God’s comfort in the form of a scone, because 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 reminds us,

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,

who comforts us in all our troubles,

so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

So, in honor of my friend’s response to the whisper from God, I offer you the recipe.

Perhaps you will be able to gift someone like us, who needs the comfort of God, in the form of the sweetness of maple and the chewiness of oatmeal in the shape of a scone.

Gwen’s Maple Oatmeal Scones

Blend dry ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 cup quick oats, 2 Tbsp baking powder, 2 Tbsp sugar, 2 tsp salt

Add: 1 cup butter, diced, then blend (with fingers or pastry blender) until butter is pea-sized.

Stir in 4 eggs, 1/2 cup buttermilk, 1/2 cup maple syrup

Stir together lightly.

Turn out onto a floured surface and pat into two round, flat disks.

Cut each disk into 6-8 equal triangles.

Place on a greased baking sheet, spaced apart.

Bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes.

Cool for 5 minutes and glaze while still warm.

Glaze: Stir together 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 cup maple syrup, and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

I hope you will try these the next time you, your friend, or a neighbor needs a sweet taste of kindness and care.