Using Food as a Ministry, Part 2

Here is the second of the two interview blogposts that I have been able to do. Jenny Fink has had a huge impact on the college students who attend our church. She and her husband have often had the college students over for meals on Sunday afternoons and she is always more than willing to provide food for others. Through the many challenges that she and her family have faced, namely that of losing their newborn son Carl a few years ago, Jenny has still been a wonderful blessing to those around her with the gifts God has given her.

• Q: What is some background that has been instrumental in your ministry of providing food for other?
• A: My dad always loved to cook, I remember us always having people over, and cooking for church functions. My husband’s parents also love to cook and have people over. Combine Kim and I both growing up that way and our love for talking and being with people makes it a pretty easy job of ministry. God has given us houses since marriage that are very good for having crowds. (I also love to have people over because it pushes me to clean my house really good) :-) When we lost Carl, food being brought to us was a great comfort also.
  

• Q: What is your life verse?
• A: I have changed my life verse recently. It used to be Psalms 19:14, which is still a great verse. But one that I cling to now is Habakkuk 3: 18-19 "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high place."

• Q: How have you used food as a ministry?
• A: "Whatsoever you have done onto the least of these you have done unto me.” It really is not hard to cook for a few more. Anytime there is a sign up for meals, my name is on it. If I go to a funeral, I bring a dish. If someone needs a Sunday meal, (college students, evangelists, missionaries) we try and do it. Taking a meal ministers to a person’s basic needs. We would not have survived without people ministry to us with food. I could not think far enough out for a whole month to think about food for my family when we lost Carl. I was in shock and it was the last thing. I will never forget the thoughtfulness of people in that way. So, bringing a meal to a family in the time of loss is a great ministry.
  We also try to have church members over once in a while just to get a little one on one with each family. It is also fun to see people’s reaction to a dessert that you have made. They may say that the meal is good, but they always rave about the dessert.

• Q: Do you have personal goals in serving others through the ministry of food/hospitality?
• A: My goal is to be in God's will. I need to listen to his bidding when it comes to having people over. There are times I don’t want to have people over and that is when I know I need to. Also, just to be any encouragement to others I am around. By nature I am not a good verbal encourager face to face. It is easy for me to send cards and cook and have people over.

• Q: What is your motivation for ministry?
• A: "What you have done to the least of these, you have done unto me." You never know what is going on in a person life, and what a simple meal can do for that person. It says you care without actually having to say it. It puts feet to your words. Christ is the perfect example in hospitality. The feeding of the large crowds is quite the example.

• Q: Advice (spiritual/practical) that you have for others?
• A: Don't be afraid that what you make won't be good enough or that people won't like it. Move out of your comfort zone. Be hospitable. It is the thought that counts. Mary and Martha were two very different people but still opened up their home for others. Use the home that God gave you for his glory and this is one way that you can do it.
  

• Q: Favorite dessert?
• A: I have many favorite desserts, but if I get to request one it is cheesecake, preferably one that has chocolate in it.

One of the most important areas that I have learned to be a light for Christ is through the basic necessities such as food. Our church, Bible Baptist Church of Utica, has been a wonderful blessing to Andrew and I, as well as all the other college students, through their ministry of providing food. Jenny, as well as many others, has had a huge impact on my life as I seek to be hospitable in my ministry in the future.

Using Food as a Ministry, Part 1

The next two blogposts are interviews that I have done, one with a friend whose mother uses food as a ministry and another from a friend at our church who has personally blessed Andrew and I with her food ministry.

The first of the two interviews I did was with Jackie Shoemaker, whose mother, Nancy Shoemaker, has used food and her cooking skills in an unexpected ministry. The following questions are what I asked Jackie about her mother’s ministry.

• Q: Tell me a little background about your mother and her ministry in your church?

A: My mom knew she wanted to help in the church in any way she could, but felt like she didn’t have other talents, so being to make food for everything. Whenever there was a function with food, she would always have made the best food there.

Soon everyone was asking her to make food for numerous activities. She began talking with people and was asked to do a breakfast for the community to share the Gospel weekly. It was so professional and she spent hours on it weekly. We have had tons of people getting saved every week from her ministry.

• Q: What would you say your mom’s motivation to serve others?

A: She has been doing this for many years. If there has been anyone who needs a meal, she will make food without being asked. She just wants to serve. Her motivation for ministry was because she wasn’t focused completely on the food (other than making appealing), but she was more focused on the point and the people.

• Q: From your perspective what is some advice she would want to give?

A: For cooking: use whole ingredients and don’t skip steps or take short cuts. Always practice! I always expected that my mom would say that to me as I made food! But, more importantly, in ministry: look at the talents the Lord has given and use them. Even if I’s not a typical talent, you can use it in or out of the church.

• Q: Favorite dessert?

A: Peanut butter bars with chocolate on the top. They are soo good!

Nancy Shoemaker has used her talents for making food as a ministry in their church. Not only has the ministry grown to be a help for people’s basic necessities, but also been a great avenue for providing for the spiritual needs of others. As Jackie said, many people have come for food and left having been introduced to Christ. Providing for the physical needs of others is a wonderful way to share Christ’s love and help them know where they will spend eternity.

Temptations

Today my husband locked his keys in the car. I woke up to his phone call at 11:00am, saying that I would need to a find a way to get across town, where he was reffing soccer, and get his keys and wallet out of the car. After this stressful episode today, I decided to feature my husband’s favorite dessert. It actually isn’t a dessert – it’s candy, but I made it into a dessert.

 

Andrew will do nearly anything to get any dessert that includes a Reese’s peanut butter cup. And so, I made one of my Grandma’s most common desserts. It is simple, really. Chocolate chip cookie dough with a Reese’s peanut butter cup. Our family refers to this wonderful dessert as “Temptations”.

Directions:

1. Make your favorite chocolate chip cookie dough recipe
2. Fill a cupcake pan with dough
3. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges begin to brown
4. Take pan out of the oven and insert Reese’s peanut butter cups in the center
5. Bake for another 3-4 minutes.

Thankfully, Andrew loved this tempting dessert. I think was a good ending to a stressful day. And I was also able to give some as a thank-you to the helper who broke into our car and retrieved Andrew’s keys. J

If you ever have some Reese’s on hand, give this recipe a try. I am sure you will love it!

Easy Cream Cheese Danish

Some of the most delicious desserts are breakfast desserts. I have every intention of doing an entire section of breakfast desserts, but in the mean time I will just give you my favorite. :)

This is a recipe that my grandma gave my mom and I. My family loved it, so my mom started making it for breakfast for nearly every visitor we had over for breakfast. The first time my mother-in-law came to visit my family, she had this danish for breakfast. And, of course, loved it just as much as we did. My husband (fiance at the time) asked her to get the recipe and she also started making it as a breakfast dessert for various people. Needless to say, this recipe has made its way around - and quickly! Everyone loves it!

Danish:
2 eight oz. cans refrigerated crescent rolls
2 eight oz packages cream cheese, diced
¾ cups white sugar
1 ½ tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp sour cream
 
Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk
1 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan. Line bottom of pan with 1 can of crescent rolls and pinch all seams together to seal. In large bowl, mix cream cheese, white sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and sour cream. Spread on top of rolls and place second can of rolls on top of filling. Bake in preheated oven for 20-30 minutes.

In a small bowl, stir powdered sugar, butter, and milk together. After Danish has cooled, drizzle with icing.

Egg-less Cookie Dough

Who doesn’t love to snitch some cookie dough?? I have discovered that cookie dough is much more delectable than the cookies after they are baked, so this recipe has come in handy many times. This is a great recipe to try with kids because it is easy and can be eaten right away, although it is less messy after is has been refrigerated. It also is a hit because it has no eggs! Woohoo for sweetened condensed milk, instead. J  

1 stick butter
¾ cup brown sugar
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups flour
1 tsp vanilla
Half bag semisweet chocolate chips

Melt butter and brown sugar together. Mix into a large bowl with sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, and flour. Add chocolate chips. Leave in refrigerator until cookie dough hardens and then roll into bite-sized cookie dough balls.

No Bake Eclair Cake

This recipe caught my eye from the get-go. I was so excited to try it that I ran out to get the few ingredients I still needed at nine o'clock at night. I even forgot one item and had my poor husband go back to get the final ingredient.

I made this delicious dessert because we were going to a friend's house for dinner and I wanted to be the best-looking dessert maker I could be. But, of course, humble pie was actually what was going to be on the menu.

Not only did I have too much milk, not enough whipped topping, and the wrong sized graham crackers, but I also over-filled the 9x13 pan and had milk running down the sides and into the back seat of my car on the way to our dinner date. Moral of the story: do not try a new recipe when it is for an event where others will have to eat it.

Overall, though, I do love this recipe. Hopefully next time I attempt it for a special occasion it will work right. :-)

http://www.screencast.com/users/JessicaSolarek/folders/Default/media/942c4601-b908-4f51-9792-89e6af809107

Ingredients:

For the cake:
1 box graham crackers
2 (3 ounces) packages instant vanilla pudding
3 cups milk
8 oz. container whipped topping, thawed

For the chocolate frosting:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Line bottom of a 9x 13 pan with graham crackers. Combine pudding mix and milk. Stir in whipped topping to pudding mixture. Spread half of mixture over graham cracker layer. Top with another layer of graham crackers and the remaining pudding. Top with a final layer of graham crackers and prepare frosting.

For the frosting, melt the butter with the cocoa powder in a saucepan. Bring to a light simmer over low heat and let it boil for one minute. Whisk in milk and cook for three more minutes, letting the mixture bubble up around the edges. Remove from heat and beat in the confectioners’ sugar with a whisk. When the mixture is smooth, add vanilla. While the frosting is still hot, pour it over the top layer of graham crackers and smooth with a spatula that has been dipped in hot water. Refrigerate until ready to serve.