I have always been something of a cook. I learned from my mother when I was a little guy and, to this day, I enjoy spending time in the kitchen. I am particularly fond of preparing meats and main courses. Janet has always filled in the side dishes and together we make quite a team. Dad taught me to barbecue before I was a teenager and I have always been fascinated with the idea of cooking with fire. We had an inexpensive barbecue grill and I couldn’t wait for the smell of charcoal and things cooked on the open fire.
Those memories have been with me for decades and we have always had a grill since Janet and I became husband and wife. About six or seven years ago, as I was starting to slow down from the corporate world, I got interested in making beef jerky. Eventually, I got into smoking baby back ribs, brisket, snack sticks and pulled pork. Yes, there are other things as well – smoked pizza, split pea and ham soup, white chicken chili and even meatloaf! I have expanded my offerings and finally, about four years ago, we invested in a real smoker to help me use the right equipment as I expanded my hobby.
We have been gradually adding some motorized equipment and I have turned one of our two kitchens into a full prep kitchen in the lower level of our home. Birthday gifts, Christmas presents and other special occasions have been used to more fully equip me.
Anyway, one of our family’s favorite things is pulled pork. I learned how to make it several years ago, refined a recipe for spices and got to the point that I was confident enough to make it in large batches once or twice a year. Then, when it is done, we vacuum seal the pork in bags and dole it out to the kids throughout the season.
Well, we were out of pork and I have been told by each of our children that it was time to make another large smoke. So this weekend, my son-in-law Matt and I, with encouragement and anticipation from everyone else, rolled up our sleeves and prepared for the largest cook of our lives. I purchased 103# of pork shoulders and we got ready for what was sure to be a 24 hour cook – straight through, with no breaks.
So Friday evening we began prepping for the cook and everything went on the smokers around 9 p.m. Friday. It gets complicated. Temperature alarms, enough pellets in the hoppers, plans in case it rains, instant read thermometers, peach paper to wrap the shoulders part way through the cook, a period of resting when the cook is completed and, finally, shredding the pork to make the finished product. It was 27 hours from the time we put the meat on until it was pulled and in the fridge for the evening.
Today, after things had a chance to settle down, Matt, Janet and our daughter, Jill, and I worked to vacuum seal about 57# of finished product. Tonight, as I sit here and relax, we are finished with this monstrous undertaking until we will have to do it again – probably in the spring. But tonight, I am feeling joyful. Part of my excitement is the fact that I love cooking for the family and people who appreciate what I do. I keep getting asked about starting up a business but that’s not the point of this – it is to watch the smiles on people when they enjoy my offerings.
Whenever I get ready for these big weekends, I can’t help but think of the examples in the Bible when Jesus fed the multitudes. It was a supreme act of hospitality. Even the disciples were amazed at the miracle of food that was served to the crowds. I have a sign above my smoker that says, “If you feed them, they will come…” While that’s true with our family, the crowds followed Jesus to see the miracles that he would perform. Sick people were hoping to get healed and folks were so excited to be there that they didn’t even think about eating until it got late. Of course, there wasn’t nearly enough food to feed the masses. Jesus, in His infinite power, performed a miracle with what little was available to feed the entire crowd – with baskets of food left over after each person was filled.
Jesus wanted the people to come to learn more about Him and to draw them closer to Himself. But the people were interested in seeing the miracles and didn’t fully appreciate the gift of eternal life that Jesus was offering. But it began with giving a message and a meal… Hospitality is an important part of the way we demonstrate our Christian outreach. Thankfully, we are a family of believers but my gift of hospitality is still on display, especially with those folks I love the most.
Our verse for tonight is from the first Epistle of Peter. Peter, impetuous Peter, reminds us in 1 Peter 4:8-12, “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”
My encouragement this evening is whether it is to serve family, or strangers, using your God given gifts to serve others is a high form of worship and acting in a Christlike manner. God helps us develop our divinely given gifts to be used for glorious and noble purposes, increasing our witness to others. My prayer is that each of us may recognize and develop our gifts to be used for the highest purpose of demonstrating a Christlike behavior and setting an example for others as they follow in our footsteps. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…