fbpx Top

Renee Swope

Encouraging and equipping moms to parent with God's grace and confidence.

Read An Excerpt: Chapter 1 & 2

Lessons from an Oreo Cookie

I love it when God takes an ordinary moment and shows me an extraordinary truth about His heart towards me. Sometimes I pass it onto to my kids right then, but other times I let it sink into my heart for a while. That’s how my friend Wendy felt when God used an Oreo cookie to teach her about his wholeness offered for our brokenness. Here is how Wendy describes it in her book, “Out of the Mouths of Babes.“

It was another normal lunchtime of peanut butter sandwiches, chips, and apples for my children and me. We had all finished our lunch and in our home this means “treat time.” A “treat” is usually our family favorite: Oreo cookies.

Eating an Oreo is an art to each individual. Some dunk the cookie in milk; some eat it all at once; others take the cookie apart to eat each part separately. I have perfected my own way of eating these mouth-watering morsels. I twist the cookies apart and scrape the crème filling off with my teeth. This leaves my most favorite part of the cookie: the wafer. Eating the wafer is almost sacred to me. I never want to be interrupted. Delightfully savoring each bite, I slowly eat each wafer, being careful not to break either one; somehow the experience is not the same if a wafer gets broken.

Without my knowledge, my children have begun to eat their Oreos the same way. I had never noticed their ability to scrape the crème without breaking the wafer. (It must be in the genes.) On this particular day, I noticed my son, three at the time, finishing his last wafer at the very same time I was finishing mine. That is when it happened: his wafer broke. It was heartbreaking to him, and because I had broken my wafers before, I knew just how he felt. He brought his broken wafer to me, and as I looked at my whole wafer, I gladly exchanged it with him.

It was that moment God reminded me of His love for us. His desire is to take the broken pieces of our lives and exchange them with His wholeness. He does not want us to wait. He wants us to come just as we are. God came to heal the broken hearted. Luke 4:18 says, “He (God) has sent me(Jesus) to heal the broken hearted and to announce that captives shall be released. (TLB)This scripture is quoted from Isaiah 61:1, where the word “bind” is used instead of heal. In the original Hebrew the word bind means “to wrap firmly, govern, healer, or wrap about.”

Will you take the broken pieces of your heart to the Healer and let Him wrap His arms firmly around you today? He loves you and came to give you abundant life (John 10:10). You cannot experience the abundant life until you give your brokenness over to the only one who can make you whole-Jesus.

Wendy Pope is a wife, a mom, a P31 speaker, an author, our development coordinator and the inspiration behind over a thousand women reading through the Chronological Bible in a Year with Proverbs 31 Ministries.

Copyright 2009, Wendy Pope – All rights reserved.

Wendy, thank you for sharing that story with us today. I don’t think I’ll ever have another Oreo cookie without remembering that Jesus came to heal my broken places and make me whole again! And what a greatD6 moment to pass on this spiritual truth to our kids.

*******************************************
Today’s Mom Give-Aways

A copy of Wendy’s book, “Out of the Mouths of Babes, a D6 Mom Tshirt, and a year’s worth of Family Devotional Magazines from D6.

To be part of today’s give-away, click on “comments” below. PLEASE include your email so we can get in touch if you win. Thank you D6 and Proverbs 31 Ministries for all the great give-aways!

Comments

  2. It may just be today, or it could be this week, but I never thought a story about oreos could make me cry. I just wanted to say thanks.

    Melissa

  3. It may just be today, or it could be this week, but I never thought a story about oreos could make me cry. I just wanted to say thanks.

    Melissa

  5. Wow. How amazing is it that God gives us these lessons through such simple things. I pray that I will always be open to hearing God speaking to me through everyday things. And Oreos are my favorites!
    [email protected]

  7. What a wonderful example you portrayed with the Oreo. This is something that I can share with my sons and I appreciate that so much.

    Blessings,

    Caroline

    thegrossmans at carolina.rr.com

  9. I love to see God in the everday moments of life around me!! I will be needing me some Oreo cookies to apply this lesson!!

    Thank you,
    Nichole

  11. What a great lesson from Wendy’s kitchen table! Sometimes as an adult I tend to forget just how very much God wants to give us “wholeness” in our lives! This was a powerful illustration!

    Marilyn

  12. i really like this one! it shows us that even though we may be broken, God can make us whole again! then, we can use the circumstances that broke us to learn and grow.

    many blessings!
    melissa
    [email protected]

  15. I love analagies that involve food amd this one was great for me right now as many things in my life feel broken. Thanks for reminding me that they don’t have to stay that way!

    [email protected]

  16. What a delicious story, Renee! I just bought some oreos and am now looking forward to eating them for more than one reason! And really, anything involving God AND chocolate is just a good, good thing. 😉

  17. Thank you for sharing your wonderful story. I think I needed to be reminded to bring my brokeness to the Lord and He will love and comfort me.

    It also reminded me that we love because He first loved us! ~1 John 4:19~

    Peace,

    Dina

  19. This is so great! I love a tangible reminder of God’s love for us and that He heals our wounds. My son LOVES Oreos.

  20. Great illustration! Those moments where God reveals Himself to us in the midst of the ordinary is the heart of what I call “RefreshMoments.” Thanks for sharing this one.

  21. Who knew biblical messages could come from an Oreo?? What a beautiful everyday thing God used to impart spiritual truth into the lives of those He loves! 🙂

    Rebecca
    [email protected]

  22. What a wonderful example of how the Lord should be an our mind and lips at all times, especially when enjoying our favorite treats in life! I pray that I can start using those same kinds of moments with my own children. Thanks again for the encouragement!

    [email protected]

  23. thanks for this post Renee – I was feeling a little broken this morning and unworthy of God’s love and this is just what I needed to read.

  24. I so needed to hear this today-

    “Will you take the broken pieces of your heart to the Healer and let Him wrap His arms firmly around you today? He loves you and came to give you abundant life (John 10:10). You cannot experience the abundant life until you give your brokenness over to the only one who can make you whole-Jesus.”

  25. I saw the word “Oreo” in the title of this post – and I got all excited 🙂 I guess being pregnant will do that to you..ha! 🙂

    Thanks so much for sharing this! What a sweet lesson 🙂

    Have a wonderful week, Renee!

    Blessings,
    Kate
    [email protected]

  27. Joy you are so right. Renee, thanks for continuing this. These messages are so wonderful for me.

    – Wendi

  28. Someone else just shared recently a story very similar to this, with a lesson from a cookie! Isn't it great how God continues to speak parables into our lives with objects and lessons familiar to our day.

    So thankful that He takes the broken pieces of my life and puts me back together again.

    Love & prayers,
    Joy

  31. What a wonderful example of how the Lord should be an our mind and lips at all times, especially when enjoying our favorite treats in life! I pray that I can start using those same kinds of moments with my own children. Thanks again for the encouragement!

    [email protected]

  32. thanks for this post Renee – I was feeling a little broken this morning and unworthy of God’s love and this is just what I needed to read.

  33. I so needed to hear this today-

    “Will you take the broken pieces of your heart to the Healer and let Him wrap His arms firmly around you today? He loves you and came to give you abundant life (John 10:10). You cannot experience the abundant life until you give your brokenness over to the only one who can make you whole-Jesus.”