“From Scratch”

“I will give you back your health and heal your wounds,” says the LORD.” Jeremiah 30:17

Some of my favorite memories as a little girl have been spent in the kitchen. I still love spending time here. My sisters and I always loved going to my Aunt Tricia’s house. We always knew what to expect. You see, my aunt is the most scheduled person I know. She always had snack time at 10:00 AM and lunch time at 12. She always put her daughter, Nikki down for a nap at the same time. We played outside between snack time and lunch. You get the picture. This was the total opposite of my mom. We did not have anything remotely close to a schedule with Brenda. She was the “whatever works” mom. I absolutely loved both sides of these worlds.

“Christmas Cookies”

Each year, in early December, my Aunt Tricia would schedule it with my mom for my sister and I to come over and make Christmas Cookies. My aunt’s recipe for these sugar cookies was a “from scratch” recipe. It was very detailed, lots of fun, and a lengthy process. It was the best of times! These cookies were the best cookies I had ever eaten. They still are to this day. I think the reason they were the best cookies was because of how much harder they were to make than regular box or premade dough cookies. There was a great deal of time involved in making the Christmas Cookies, so we anticipated them and worked them up in our heads all day. Then we got to decorate them!

“Life’s From Scratch”

I have done so many things in my life “from scratch.” Things that were certainly not easy and took way more time than I hoped they would. Doing life’s “from scratch” version isn’t as much fun and it doesn’t taste as sweet in the middle. I remember looking at Jacob when he woke up from his coma. He couldn’t talk, walk, eat, drink, or anything else. He just laid there on a ventilator with his eyes peeking through the most slender peep hole. Each day the doctors came in, I was hoping this was the day he was strong enough to get the ventilator removed. These days just kept going by and the one positive doctor we had used words I will never forget. She said, “I want to give Jacob a chance.” One more day and I think he has a chance to survive. He isn’t strong enough today.

So the next day, this doctor came in and she told us it was today! As she took Jacob off the ventilator, I buried my head into Nicky’s chest. Moments later, Nicky patted me and I heard a very quiet, “he’s breathing.” The next words are the words that really stuck with me and drove me daily. The doctor went on to tell us that all TBI’s are different, but she was hopeful but stressed the words “relearn” and from “scratch to us”. She basically told us Jacob would have to learn everything all over again and start from scratch just like when he was a baby.

“The Most Difficult”

This “from scratch” was the most difficult recipe I have whipped up. It has been long and difficult, but rewarding. This process has given the phrase “one foot in front of the other” and “one day at a time” a new meaning for us. Jacob literally walked heel to toe and crawled on the floor like a baby every single day until he could lay down pathways in his brain to walk normally again. Fast forward six years later, he has relearned to do everything all over again from scratch. I have seen him suffer tremendously and I have witnessed God restoring and rebuilding Jacob from scratch.

I have done so many things in my life “from scratch.” Things that were certainly not easy and took way more time than I hoped they would.

1 Peter 5:10 (NLT)

In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

https://youtu.be/ABWnLjXer10  Spirit Lead Me by Michael Ketterer & Influence

Counting My Blessings,

Susan Browder