God’s Part + Our Part

Have you noticed the human tendency to pray only about things we think we can’t handle? I had to learn a lesson about overconfidence and the importance of asking for help from God even when I felt I could handle things on my own.

When I was an apprentice cook in a college cafeteria many years ago, I prayed a lot at first. If you’re making enormous quantities of food and you mess up a recipe, it’s expensive and embarrassing. I realized prayer was needed. But as time passed and I became more experienced, I didn’t pray about my work anymore. I was confident I could handle it.

One lunchtime, 30 minutes before opening, I was taking three long catering-size pans of spaghetti in sauce to the oven to keep it warm. I moved two from the cart to the oven and reached for the last one