“Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath.” Hebrews 6:17

The shrimp was already in the pan, sautéing with garlic, onions and spices, when the thought hit me… “am I doing this right?” Reaching for the creole seasoning, only to find we were out of it, I substituted cayenne pepper instead. The card called for red wine, and we didn’t have any of that either… but I found a can of beer in the back of the fridge, cracked it and poured some into the pan and the rest down the sink ( I hate beer). Setting down to eat with my wife, she made the comment, “it tastes different this time.” It ALWAYS does!

As a chef I make a great carpenter! Consistency it an issue in my culinary skills. That is why, when we have our men’s breakfast every other Saturday, we go to Perkins! I like Perkins. It meets all of our needs. It has room, a great atmosphere, good service, prices and FOOD CONSISTENCY! I order the same thing every time and every time it tastes the same! Which is EXACTLY what I count on.

When it comes to God, the Bible assures me that He NEVER changes. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” I have come to LOVE that about Him. Oh there have been times I have pressed, tested, pleaded and screamed for Him to break His consistency. ESPECIALLY in the area of discipline. But His love and actions toward me are ALWAYS in keeping with His loving promises.

1 John 4 repeatedly points to the fact that God is love. If you have spent any time with Him, testing and trying and growing, you know that His love is not a gushy, squishy feeling. But an action. He knows my sin, needs, wants and desires. And He never varies from His promised commitment to mold me into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. Sometimes thorough blessing… other times through discipline. But I can ALWAYS count on the fact that He will not change directions on me and will ALWAYS do what is best for my life.

Christ PROMISES me eternal life with Him in Heaven. But for NOW He promises to make me into a God-like person. I can count on that. So if you want GUARANTEED good shrimp and grits… don’t come to my house. If you want a guaranteed God you can count on… reach out to Jesus. He’s ready to make a masterpiece out of YOU. He NEVER fails.