To Whom Are You Giving Your Best?

One of the ways that God has gifted me is with the ability to bake. Over the years, I have viewed baking as part of my ministry. I have spent countless hours crafting cakes, cookies, and crumbles, all with the intent to gift them to others. I believe there is something powerful about sharing something handmade from scratch. It makes the recipient feel seen, cared for, and loved. And when the dessert is packaged in this manner, I’m positive it tastes better.

The Art of Baking Cakes

Of all the desserts, cakes are my specialty. It’s funny, considering I didn’t even like cake growing up. That was just because I’d never experienced good cake. In my years of baking, I’ve grown to love cake, as long as it’s made well. Part of why I love making cakes is for the pure art of it. As a natural-born perfectionist, I struggle with permanent art forms, such as painting. My eyes will always be drawn to the mistakes I made. But edible art is different. I can give myself allowances for mistakes because I know that the purpose is for consumption. Minor mistakes don’t matter. It releases me from the need for perfection. It teaches me grace.

The Importance of Leveling Cakes

One of the essential steps in making any layer cake is to level off each cake round. This means cutting away any mound that may have formed during the baking process. If someone neglects this, their cake will end up lopsided, looking like a leaning tower rather than a level cylinder. Sometimes, the amount of cake you have to sacrifice for a level surface is substantial, depending on how evenly the cake rose in the oven. But it’s necessary if you want cake perfection.

The other day, I was making a layer cake for a co-worker’s birthday. I set aside a plate of these cake scraps for my family to enjoy. This is usually what I do so that my family can taste what I’m making. I rarely make them full cakes. My justification is that there are only three of us at home. With dietary restrictions, there are so many things I can’t eat. Therefore, it seems wasteful to bake cakes for home unless it’s for special occasions. So I compromise by giving them the scraps.

A Metaphor for Life

As I was laying aside this plate of cake shavings, I contemplated how this habit was a metaphor for life. How often do we go through life giving extensive energy creating metaphorical cake showstoppers for others, but reserve only the scraps of ourselves for the people who care about us the most? We give the best of ourselves to our work, hobbies, and causes, then come home empty-handed or with a doggy bag of leftovers. No wonder we see relationships floundering. Sure, there’s still nutritional value in the leftovers. It may taste the same, but when it’s not packaged in the same loving way, the effect is definitely not equal. Have you found yourself doing this? I know I certainly have.

Giving Our Best to God

The deeper question to consider is whether we also fall into this pattern with God. In your day-to-day life, what type of energy are you devoting to your Creator? Are you giving God your best—the first fruits of your labors, the times of day when you are at your peak, the premium of your efforts? Or is He an afterthought, squeezed in only where and if there is time? Is He getting your showstopper, or your scraps?

God desires for our lives to be in balance, with Him at the helm. The very first commandment is that “You shall have no other gods before me” (Deuteronomy 5:7). When the commandments were given to the Israelites, they were also encouraged to “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with your strength” (Deuteronomy 6:5). Jesus says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Many things can supplant God as the pinnacle of our priorities, keeping us from living wholeheartedly for Him. Many of these things are even inherently good. However, God desires our allegiance and our hearts first, not our leftovers. When we begin to put our best efforts for God, giving Him the best of ourselves, the rest of our lives can begin to fall into balance as well.

The Importance of Self-Care

There is one other place where it’s common to give only the scraps where perhaps we ought to occasionally devote an entire cake—that is to ourselves. I acutely thought of this when I literally ate leftover cake on my birthday (by choice—no disrespect to my family). In our society of striving and glorifying busy, sometimes in the name of God and serving others, self-care goes by the wayside. It’s easy to fall into the martyr mentality, where we work ourselves to exhaustion caring for everyone else’s needs at the expense of our own. However, serving from a place of emptiness is never beneficial. The Bible implores us to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). This statement implies equality, not self-neglect. If we don’t know how to care for ourselves properly, how can we extend the same level to our neighbor?

What is important to remember is that we are all infinitely valued by God. When we begin to devote the energy needed to care for ourselves, as well as our neighbor, that honors the value that God places on us too.

Eating leftover cake for my birthday

Reflecting on Our Priorities

So, friends, I encourage you to examine if there are places in your life that are receiving only scraps that could benefit from the full cake. Ask God to reveal your priorities to see if there is something that may need changing. Remember that it’s okay to give yourself more than the scraps of your energy and well-being, as that will help you better serve others in the long run.

Most of all, remember that the God of the Universe loves you with an infinite love that is independent of what we do for Him. Because of that great love, He is the one that deserves the very best of ourselves—not out of obligation, but out of thanksgiving. When we present ourselves to Him in this manner, He will use that offering to bless our lives for His glory and for our benefit and those around us. The beauty of our God is that He can turn even our scraps into the most magnificent showstopper possible.