Monday, October 26, 2009

Cast iron theology...

So I was cleaning the kitchen last night and God did that thing where he uses the practical to illustrate the spiritual for me.

I love cooking with cast iron. I do!

Did you know that when you get new cast iron there is this process of seasoning you do?
Did you know after your pan is seasoned you aren't supposed to use soap on it?
The pan, once seasoned, acts similarly to teflon...the soap strips those properties away, and soap will also get into the pores of your cast iron....anyway, I digress...

So I'm there, hot water pulsing, scrubbie poised, pouring on the salt.

Yes, salt.

Why? Because salt acts as an abrasive and it also purifies--without damaging or stripping the seasoning.

It was then I thought about our Christian walk.
There is a falacy in believing that following Jesus means sunshine and rainbows.
Sometimes it hurts.
Sometimes our growth in Christ is painful.

He is cleaning us, to make us holy before Him.
He is scrubbing away the stuck on stuffs.
Oh he purifies us.
The trials of our faith are abrasive, they are for our good.
But he never strips us.

3 comments:

Pattie said...

I like this analogy. Thank you for sharing it :)

Leila said...

Awesome Cheri! I use cast iron all the time and will smile now everytime I have to re-cure my pots after the kids scrubbed the "black stuff" off while doing chores! lol.

Heather said...

I love this. You could also use the metaphor of new transitions in life requiring time to season, the way a new piece of cast iron does. It starts out new, but it becomes YOURS.