A few years back, a close friend invited me to a gathering with other women at her home. It was called a Cooking Club -- an evening where everyone brings a dish of food based on a theme, and we all gather around the table and share our lives over the meal. I’ve been doing this once a month for five years now and I am so thankful for my friend, Vivian, who invited me to be part of this group. Years later, these ladies have brought me through many hard moments and some have become my dearest friends. Each cooking club, we share about a topic that one of us is working through as we process together and encourage each other through our own experiences. Other times, the host plans a topic to discuss to keep the conversation deeper than surface level. These times once a month have become sacred moments, and I am so thankful for each of the ladies I’ve met through the years.
You might not think a Cooking Club is your thing, but I share this concept with you because we are relational beings and we are meant to do life in community. In Philippians 1, Paul writes, “I thank my God every time I remember you.” All throughout the book, he emphasizes his adoration of and care for the Philippian church. Don’t we all want that in our life? To be cared for by a community and likewise encouraging one another in the Lord?
The other fun piece that comes with doing life over food is that you acquire lots of recipes! What is more fun than people and a good new recipe? Here are a few ideas to get you started. Just click on the links below.
Pie-themed Cooking Club
Fall-themed Cooking Club
Creamy Kale and Sausage Soup (Zuppa Toscana)
If this idea is something that you would like to do, I recommend reading Shauna Niequist’s “Bread and Wine: A love letter to life around the table with recipes.”
Right now, given the pandemic, your Cooking Club may look different, but there are ways to be creative! Here are just a few ideas that some friends and I shared:
Setting up a Zoom call to cook through a recipe together; everyone has the same recipe and ingredients on hand at the start of the call and with a recipe and each of the ingredients in hand, cook together.
Bless a friend by making a meal and doubling it. Drop it off to a friend that could use some extra love and include the recipe on a card for them to keep.
Call a friend and pour your heart out over a cup of coffee or tea. Put it in both of your calendars regularly so you know it will actually happen.
Find socially distanced and intentional activities that you can do to spend time with your people. Pore through God’s Word and share how God is working in your life. The encouragement of others goes a long way.
I’ve personally found that being isolated indoors for this pandemic has made it more difficult to put myself out there with other people. And I’m an extrovert by nature! But, ladies, we need to do life with others. Isolation can cause loneliness and affect us in many ways emotionally. Ecclesiastes 4: 8-9 says:
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
If you need help finding community, reach out to Willowdale Chapel. There are groups you can be part of to study the Bible and there are people in the Care ministry to pray for you. If you want tips on starting a Cooking Club, ask the church for my contact information. I am happy to help get you started. We all need people reminding us of our Hope in Jesus Christ. I pray you’ll find those people and that you’ll love each other well.
ABOUT OUR BLOGGER
Susan Veenema has been in education for almost 20 years supporting children with disabilities and their families and currently works for the Department of Education. She and her husband, Jeremy, love exploring Chester County with their two older biological daughters and three foster children. People are her passion.
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