The Starting Line

I was raised in a family where I was taught to pray. However, at the age of 14, I certainly did not have what I would consider to be a relationship with my Heavenly Father. It was an element of my life that I was still trying to understand what I believed in.

High school brought the opportunity to play on sports teams.  I loved playing volleyball and basketball with my friend and followed her onto the high school track team in the spring!

Our first four competitive meets were rained out. In week five, we were finally blessed with a sunny day with no threat of thunderstorms. Area coaches agreed to hold multiple large invitationals for the rest of the season to try and play catch-up and give the athletes an opportunity to compete against each other before regional and state meets. Thus, my first track meet was attended by eight area high schools. As we arrived at the stadium I was completely awestruck. There were SO many people. We were immediately given two instructions by Coach Hummel: “Stay off of the football field, (A string about a foot high was placed around the entire perimeter to remind people to stay off of the field, protecting it for the football season in the fall.) and pay attention to ensure you don’t miss your events”. Our team found a nice grassy spot on the embankment surrounding the track and took off for our warm-up laps around the track.

I was the only runner from my school in the mile event, but I knew that I was supposed to listen to the first call and turn in my entry card at the scorer’s table. I listened closely, heard my event called and turned in my card. Then I just simply watched other teams of runners and followed their lead. When they stretched I stretched. When they jogged I jogged. So when I came back near the scorer’s table and saw the hurdles being moved onto the track,  I asked the nice lady at the scorer’s table if they have moved the mile run to after the hurdles. She jumped up and called the people putting the hurdles on the track to get them off and told me the mile was getting started on the far side of the field.

In near disbelief combined with panic-stricken horror I broke the big rule of running on the football field in an attempt to make it to the starting line of my race. I jumped over the string barrier, sprinted as fast as a distance runner can sprint and when I neared the starter whose gun was already raised to start the race I screamed: “Wait!”  At that moment I failed to unsuccessfully navigate the string barrier on that side of the field and tripped over it landing face down right at the starting line. In that moment of crisis, I put my faith to the test. I uttered the most sincere fervent prayer of my life thus far. I begged my Father in Heaven whom I was desperately trying to believe in, with all the faith I could possibly muster… to make me invisible… It was the only solution I could think of…

When I heard giggles, I knew my prayer had gone on answered.

I was trying to understand spiritual things at this time in my life. I was trying to see if prayer was real and if I had enough faith to ask for things that I felt I needed. I’m sure I wasn’t completely surprised that Heavenly Father did not make me invisible. I was desperate and in a desperate moment, I asked for a desperate solution.

I held back tears as I took my place in the back of the pack of over twenty runners at the starting line wishing I was anywhere but there. Three laps into the race I found myself in sixth place. My mind had been wandering through embarrassment with God about my ridiculous plea for help. Perhaps in a last ditch effort to try my faith that day I prayed for help in running the last lap of my race and finishing strong. With 100 yards to go, I passed the two front-runners.

I felt God had sent me a message. I felt he wanted me to keep trying, to keep believing and keep searching.

-JC

As I reflect on this experience today, I ask myself:
Do I stretch spiritually, physically, and emotionally beyond what I think Ican do with faith that Christ will make more out of my life than I can on my own?
Do I quiet my world enough for the Spirit to testify truths of Christ?
Do I share the truths I learn with others?

Coconut Cream Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

½ cup soft butter
½ cup butter flavor Crisco
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 XL eggs
1  teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup cocoa (I use Hershey’s dark)
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter, Crisco and sugars with an electric mixer on medium-high for 1 minute or until fluffy.

Hand stir in eggs and vanilla; don’t overmix.

Add dry ingredients all at once and mix until fully incorporated. Add an additional 2 Tablespoons of flour for high elevation.

Scoop out approximately 30 1.5” balls of dough.  Gently roll into a ball. For a richer flavor and smoother texture, form cookie dough balls, flatten slightly, and refrigerate or freeze until ready to bake. Place on greased or parchment paper on an aluminum cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 9 min. Let cool.

To make a sandwich cookie, dip half of all cookies into melted chocolate almond bark, or 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips melted with 2 Tablespoons Crisco or coconut oil.

Immediately sprinkle with toasted coconut. Do one at a time to make sure coconut sticks before chocolate sets. 

Make Coconut Cream Frosting while chocolate sets.

Coconut Cream Frosting
8 oz. softened cream cheese
¼ cup soft butter
¼ cup cream of coconut (Coco Lopez brand works great)
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon coconut extract
1 3/4 cups powdered sugar

Mix cream cheese, butter and cream of coconut until smooth. Add vanilla, coconut extract, and powdered sugar. Mix until fluffy. 

 Spoon into quart size freezer-strength Ziploc until ready to use.

To make a sandwich cookie,
Cut a ¼ inch hole into bottom corner of Ziploc bag of frosting. Pipe frosting onto bottom of ½ of all cookies.

Place another cookie on top.

Let set. Share!