Cookie Exchange

On Wednesday mornings I teach a Bible Study.  I love doing this, these women mean…..well, I can’t think of anything that doesn’t sound cliché (like “the world to me”).  Let's just say I am very attached to these women and our time together.  The last year and a half has been special to us, we’ve grown and changed and persevered and learned so much together.  Over the years we’ve studied Beth Moore and many other Bible Study gurus together.  We’ve studied Philippians and Hosea and Galatians and 1 and 2 Peter and Proverbs just to mention a few…..we just finished 1 Samuel.  We study and we share and we question and we comfort and visit and eat and pray.  The key word for this group is the “together” part. 

I’m a big believer in community – I think it's part of God’s design for us, and this group practices community very well.  They know one another and share life together. 

For our second year in a row we’ve celebrated Christmas by having a Cookie Exchange.  We each make a batch of our favorites.  Actually many of us try something new, this is a very forgiving  clan and a great place to test new recipes.  We all bring our recipes, copy them while we eat and then take home a few of everyone’s cookies and all the recipes.  It’s fun.  The goal is to have a holiday cookie assortment to use in whatever entertaining commitments we have, but honestly most of the cookies barely make it to the parking lot. 

I have a new cake plate that I really like, so as soon as I got home I set the cookies that were left from the trip to the parking lot on top and took some pictures.  I really wanted to take a picture of this cake plate upside down, because it's also a chip and dipper.  But I'm seriously afraid that's the kind of thing that makes people roll their eyes and vow never to come back to your blog again...so I restrained.  But it's really cute, and was only 10 bucks.

I kinda feel like this is a class picture, it' makes me smile because each of these cookies represent a dear one.  I may be the sappiest Bible Study teacher in the world, but I'm OK with that.  I need this time each week, we need each other.

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love;

Give preference to one another in honor;

Not lagging behind in diligence,

Fervent in spirit,

Serving the Lord." 

Romans 12:10-11