Christopher's Miracle Story: What's on the menu?

For the vast majority of us eating is a natural and necessary part of our day. If you are like me, then you are probably thinking about food as soon as you get up. After all, your stomach won't let you forget. When the eyelids open, the stomach takes its cue. After hours of neglect the stomach starts to growl and gurgle in demand for caloric attention.

If you are the cook in your family, then meal planning takes center stage early in the day too. My mind starts its usual meal planning routine just as my feet hit the floor. Do we have time for scrambled eggs this morning or will a bowl of cereal just have to do? Then before the kids have swallowed their last bite of Frosted Mini Wheats, I'm already thinking about what to make for lunch. The kids have already had that child hood staple, peanut butter and jelly, two days in a row. Can I get away with hiding it in their sack lunches one more time this week without having to risk the inevitable, "Mom! Not PBand J again!"? Then, of course, there's the question that I really dread everyday. What am I going to make for dinner? I don't know about you, but I tend to get into "food ruts". I'm not much of a chef to begin with, so I often tend to make the same dishes over and over again. It's just easier than trying to research new recipes, or even worse create a new one on my own.

I have a couple of friends who are gourmet chefs. When they cook, they don't just make dinner. They create dinner. My friend, Christie, loves cooking so much that she even has a blog that details all her tasty creations. It's called Mom What's for Dinner. When I get in a "food rut" I sometimes get ideas from her blog (www.momwhatsfordinner.com). She recently visited us and made us a to-die-for dish called Chicken Fettuccine Lasagna. All I can say is, "WOW!" The best part about it was that Christie got to see Christopher eat for the first time. Christopher now has a new favorite dish, and needless to say there were NO leftovers.

Watching Christopher devour bite after bite of Chicken Fettuccine Lasagna, I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that eating is now a natural and normal way of life for him too. He isn't much for meal planning or cooking, but he loves eating real food. Getting your dinner from a feeding tube may cover your caloric and nutritional needs, but it's nothing like getting to actually savor and appreciate the vast array of tastes and textures of real food.

I wasn't sure how long it would take him to develop a menu. Would he be a picky eater, or would he be adventurous and want to try everything. He seems to have landed closer to the adventurous side of the scale. He is pretty open to trying just about anything (except asparagus..he just won't even try it), and he seems to have developed a pretty extensive menu over the past year. He has said that his biggest hurdle when trying a new food is usually the texture. The first time he tried a banana, he hated it. He said that he couldn't believe that anyone would ever eat those things, but after sampling them a few more times he got used to the texture. Now bananas are one of his favorite fruits. He's learned that sometimes you have to try a food more than once before deciding if it will become part of your menu or not. That was definitely true with pumpkin. He thought he didn't like pumpkin until he tried pumpkin cheesecake. Now pumpkin, at least when it is in cheesecake, is on his list of favorites. Other favorites are Chinese food, pineapple, Caesar salad, oranges, apples, triscuits, yogurt, cheese, pizza, hamburgers, pasta, chicken, steak, and anything potato. Vegetables, as is true with many "new eaters" (babies, small children), are still a work in progress. Corn and carrots are about the only vegetables on his menu right now besides some salad items. It will be interesting to see how his tastes for different kinds of food continue to develop and change.

I never get tired of watching Christopher eat. I just marvel at God's handiwork every time I see Christopher sink his teeth into a juicy hamburger or slurp down a fruit smoothie. It never gets old. We never expected this to happen. We never thought we would watch our son enjoy his own birthday cake or eat turkey on Thanksgiving Day, and yet thanks to the glorious miracle that God has blessed us with, we get to delight in our son delighting in God's bountiful blessing of food. What was impossible for man was possible for God. Christopher is living proof of that.

The lesson I have learned is two-fold. First of all, depending strictly on yourself, your own abilities, or in "man" in general is a limiting proposition at best. Humanity by its very nature is limited and temporary which brings to mind the Bible verse Proverbs 3:5, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." Secondly, God is far more capable and powerful than we often acknowledge or give Him credit for. His power transcends our abilities and understanding. He is not limited by anything or in anyway. His power is infinite and eternal, hence the Bible verse Matthew 19:26, "Jesus looked at them and said, with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Even though we didn't expect it. Even though we didn't think it could happen, and even though we didn't deserve it God did it anyway. God's power and majesty were on display as He mercifully healed what man had little power to understand much less cure. God willed it, and it was so.

What did the future hold? We didn't know. Would the holes close on their own, or would he need surgery? The answer to that question was in God's hands. He would provide a way according to His unique sense of timing and purpose. What was clear was that God in His Heaven was in control, and His care and concern for us are beyond measure. Ephesians 3:20 states it best, " Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you can pray like this: