The Candy Drawer

I have a confession to make.
I have a candy drawer in my kitchen.
If I told you that the candy drawer was not for me, you would probably not believe me.
But it is true.

When my children were growing up, I was careful about what they ate.
I was careful about the amount of sweets they had each day.
I baked homemade desserts rather than buy things that were pre-packaged.
Oreo cookies were the one exception.

I decided early on that I would have a drawer in my kitchen that would contain only candy.
Gum, chocolate, M&Ms, Skittles and sometimes lollipops could be found there.
Having a candy drawer was actually a lesson in self control.
Just because the candy was accessible did not mean you could have it any time you wanted.

I remember my children would take a paper cup and fill the bottom with M&Ms.
In fact, my youngest daughter enjoyed that as her after lunch treat on the way to kindergarten.
It was right around the time that blue M&Ms became available.
Please put some blue ones on the top, Mommy, she would say and I would do just that.

Friends would come over and my children would ask if they could have some candy.
Their friends’ eyes would open really wide when they saw we had a candy drawer.
You’re lucky, a friend said, you can have candy any time you want.
No we can’t, was the reply; we can only have it once a day but we get to choose which one.

I would eat it all the time, the friend replied.
I remember my child looking over their friend’s head and smiling at me.
They knew better.
Having candy nearby did not mean they would eat it all the time.

There are M&Ms in the chicken feeder dispenser on my kitchen island.
That is quite a conversation piece.
All the young people eat M&Ms when they sit at the island and talk.
It is almost a trademark by now: Mrs. Gallagher’s M&M dispenser.

When I have young moms over for tea, it doesn’t take long before the children see the M&Ms.
They ask me if they can have some but I always defer to their mom.
Usually it is an easy, Yes.
Like my children, they get M&Ms poured in a cup, just enough to cover the bottom.

Now that I have Bible study in my home, the candy drawer has been discovered.
When the children come upstairs after our Bible study is over, they walk right into the kitchen.
One precious little boy will grab my hand and lead me right to the candy drawer.
At first, the children are too timid to reach in and choose a piece by themselves.

After our first Bile study this year, I realized that I did not buy any special candy.
I decided to put a few things in a tiny snack bag.
The two little boys who were the recipients of the candy were thrilled.
I remember years ago, one precious little child reminded me he had a brother at home.

Making one snack bag or two does not matter.
That little boy went home with two snack bags, promising me that one was for his brother.
I smile to think that my candy drawer has been discovered.
A drawer filled with goodies; a drawer filled with things that must be eaten in moderation.

I think of John Bunyan’s classic tale, The Pilgrim’s Progress.
I think of the town of Vanity.
The main character, Christian, and his companion, Faithful must pass through this town.
They look and act very different from the townspeople in Vanity.

Emerging from the wilderness, Christian and Faithful see before them a town they must enter because the Holy Way passes through it. It is an ancient town named Vanity Fair, where, all year round, such merchandise is bought and sold “as houses, lands, trades, places, honors, preferments, titles, countries, kingdoms, lusts, pleasures, and delights of all sorts…Entering the town, the two Pilgrims cause quite a stir. Their dress is different from that of the townspeople, and they speak a language…that is not understood. They are plainly “outlandish men” (foreigners), and are put down as fools or “bedlams” (madmen). But what particularly irks the townspeople is their attitude toward the goods displayed at the fair. When called to look at them, they turn away, putting their fingers in their ears and crying out, “Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity” (Ps. 119:37). When mockingly asked what they might be interested in buying, they “gravely” reply, “We buy the Truth” (Prov. 23:23). A crowd gathers to taunt and revile them, “some calling upon others to smite them,” which leads to a great hubbub and the arrest of the Pilgrims for disturbing the peace. After being questioned, they are severely beaten and locked up in an iron cage to be made a spectacle to the multitude, being for some time “the objects of any man’s sport, or malice, or revenge.” Under these trying circumstances, Christian and Faithful conduct themselves so “very wisely and soberly” that some of the townspeople begin to sympathize with them and urge their release.
(Summary of, The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan)

Vanity Fair offered everything that anyone could ever want.
Everything was pleasing to the eye and to the senses.
Christian and Faithful were able to withstand the temptations of Vanity Fair.
The irony of their journey was that the Holy Way passed through Vanity Fair.

It is no different with us.
We, who are in Christ, walking His Kingdom Way, must pass through Vanity Fair.
There are things all around us that tempt and tease.
Our senses are bombarded with things we are told we need, things that are pleasing to our eyes.

Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to Your Word.
(Psalm 119:37)

Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline, and understanding. (Proverbs 23:23)

Christian and Faithful were able to withstand the temptations of Vanity Fair.
God held them and kept them as they traveled on The Way.
You and I can withstand the temptations of the world by God’s grace.
The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at our disposal if we are in Christ.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  (Galatians 6:22)

We are overcomers.
The Holy Spirit helps us to overcome.
We can victoriously pass through Vanity Fair.
We can withstand the temptation of the candy drawer.