1. Nearly Died for Brownies<br />by<br />Sandra Cash<br />Professor Bouchard<br />Crown College<br />English Composition, Section 111<br />17 September 2011<br />In April of 2008 I went on a mission trip to Juarez, Mexico. The mission we were with was Harvest Hands Ministry; they help with kids in bad family situations by giving them a home. The boys helped build walls and buildings for the dormitories. The girls were able to host VBS for the children and take care of the boys by cooking and cleaning. God had worked through all of us while on this mission trip; he taught us a lot in our daily activities.<br />After a difficult day of work, we decided that brownies would be a marvelous dessert. Once we finished our daily devotions, we would make some brownies. We walked through the hall chatting about our favorite part of the day and stepped outside where it was dark. The stars were shining. While the other girls were chatting, I was gazing up at the stars, finding the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper. It was amazing how the night sky looked when the lights of towns were not covering it up. The mountains added to all the beauty of the stars and moon. It was an amazing sight to see the huge mountains covered by darkness with stars all around it.<br />Soon we arrived at the kitchen that had a very old gas stove. This old gas stove had to be manually lit; all of us girls had lit it a ton of times before to cook meals. We were the ones who cooked the meals for everyone, with the exception of when we did VBS. We all had familiarized ourselves with the kitchen, the huge griddle (which also had to be lit manually), the old gas stove, and where all the dishes were located in the kitchen. <br />Sam asked, “Natalie could you go get the brownie mix out of the pantry?” <br />Natalie replied, “Sure, I can do that.” <br />Now the pantry was to the right of the kitchen. Natalie walked into the pantry, grabbed the brownie mix and brought it to us. We started to make the brownies; Natalie found the big bowl to put the ingredients in, Sam found the oil and water, while Miriam and I started to mix everything into the bowl. After mixing it all together, we found a pan to put the brownies in and we started the oven. <br />Sam was usually a professional at lighting the stove; she had done it plenty of times for dinner. She found the matches, turned on the gas stove, lit the match and attempted to light the pilot. It would not light, but she kept on trying until she gave up. <br />She asked, “Miriam can you light the stove? For some reason I cannot seem to light it.”<br />Miriam replied. “Okay, I will try to.” <br />Miriam also tried and likewise had no luck. She kept going at it until she realized it was not going to work for her. <br />Miriam then asked, “Sandy I can not light the stove and neither can Sam. Will you please try?” <br />I said, “Sure, I can try.” <br />I had lit the stove what seemed like billions of times in the morning to help make breakfast for everyone, so I began to think, “Surely something is wrong with the stove if it would not light for anyone, so why should I try?” I tried nevertheless. First I lit the match making sure that the little flame did not die out before I reached the pilot. Once I reached the pilot I lit it. All of a sudden, flames exploded at us! We were all around the stove, with the exception of Natalie who was putting away the brownie mix in the pantry while all of this was going on. We screamed and sprang back. After we had recovered from the shock we checked to see if our eyebrows were still there; thankfully they were. <br />Natalie called from the pantry, “Is everything okay in there?” <br />We called back, “It is now.” <br />Once, she came back into the kitchen, we told her how the stove would not light and how once it did flames came at us. <br />We could tell the brownies were done by the wonderful aroma that invaded the kitchen. Before we told the group that the brownies were done, we had decided that we would tease the boys about nearly killing ourselves for their brownies. Once we had told the rest of the group that the brownies were done they came and ate the brownies. While the guys were eating the brownies they told us we made amazing brownies; we said, “They better be good brownies!! We nearly killed ourselves for your brownies!!” <br />The guys replied, “What are you talking about?” <br />We then began to tell them the whole story; by the end everyone was shocked. They were thankful none of us had been hurt, which had to be by God’s protection. He had to be watching out for us; otherwise it could have turned out horribly. <br />Isaiah 43:2 really came alive for me through this incident: “…When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” God’s protection was defiantly with us that night, and I am very thankful for it. This was just one example of how God showed me how I should be thankful for every day things. We take for granted things like running water, a nice house or your own room, God’s protection and a good gas stove. Ever time I have to light a gas stove, burner, or griddle I always think back to that time, and it helps me to be thankful for all the things I have. <br />Works cited<br />New International Version of The Holy Bible. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984. Print.<br />