The 250 Dollar Recipe

The Rev. Joseph Winston

November 22, 2009

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6 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what
M
ATTHEW

you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will
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wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at
the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your
heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And can any
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of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you
worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither
toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like
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one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today
and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you – you of
little faith? 31 Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will
we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these
things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33
But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well.”

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Sermon

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.1
Have you been so impressed by a meal that you wished to repeat it once again
at home? Have you craved something on the menu so much that you would do
whatever it takes to have it one more time? Have you eaten something so lovely
that you just had to have the recipe?
Apparently, these feelings of want for good food are quite common. As if to
prove this point, a few years ago, there was an email going around that started off
something like this.
My daughter and I had been out all day shopping and it was time to get some-
thing to eat. I had always heard good things about the food at the Neiman-Marcus
Café so we decided to stop there for lunch. We both purchased salads, which we
absolutely loved. The holiday spirit in the air made us want something extra, a
little dessert to finish off the day. The smell of freshly baked cookies in the café
sealed the deal for us. We both ordered one “Neiman-Marcus Cookie.” They were
divine. They were warm and full of chocolate.
When it came time to pay, I asked the waitress if I could have the recipe for the
cookies. She said, “I am afraid not.” With all the Christmass parties just a few days
away, I needed the recipe. I knew that all my friends would absolutely adore these
cookies. I wanted to make them for everyone. “Well,” I asked, “Could I purchase
the recipe then?”
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3.

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 Immediately, she said, “Yes.” When I asked how much, the waitress quickly
responded with, “Two-fifty. It is a great deal for a terrific cookie.” I told her to add
it to my bill and I thought nothing more about the cost. I only wanted to go home,
rest a bit, and then fire up the oven and bake these cookie.
It might not be that you go to the store in Dallas. It is even possible that you
do not life shopping at all. Despite these potential differences between you and
the narrator of the story, you share something in common with the author. This
is exactly how you lead your life. You get up in the morning. You do what is
required. You take care of your needs. Finally, when you complete all your work,
you crawl into bed hoping to get the rest you need for tomorrow.
Today’s Gospel lesson challenges the way that you live. This assault on the
Protestant work ethic begins right away. Jesus says to all of us,2

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or
what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. (NRSV
Matthew 6:25a)

This sentence from Jesus strike very close to home. You certainly have cares
that you must face every day. Life is not easy. It never has been. There are bills to
pay and work to do. Throw in all the different complications of modern existence
and you soon do not have any time for yourself. There are trips to see the doctors,
hours of thankless work needed to clean up the house for the holidays, and all the
baking for friends and family that is required during this time of the year. The more
you look at your hectic schedule, the worse it gets. Children and grandchildren
2
All the uses of you (ςύ) are plural in this verse.

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need help during the day. Just about every trip into town takes more time than
expected because of the traffic. Due to the poor economy, relatives cannot find
work. Then there are all the personal issues that bother you. The cold, wet weather
of the past few days that makes your joints ache. The report you recently received
from the doctor that warns you of the changes that lie ahead. Then there is that
empty seat at the table that can never be filled. This weighs heavily on your heart.
It is easy for you to continue this list of concerns that face you every day. You
realize that you must eat. That is a constant in our world. If you are lucky, you can
completely live off the land. Even the rural lifestyle comes with its own unique
set of problems. The country, county, and city demand the payment of taxes. That
money must come from somewhere. It must be earned through labor. On top of
all the effort required to keep your head above water, you still have to work in the
fields raising your crops, to spend hours taking care of your animals, and finally
to expend energy in bringing the harvest home. You tell a similar story if you live
like the rest of us. Food costs money. That requires work. You put in your hours.
You pay your taxes. You go to the grocery store. You purchase what you need.
You worry if you can make the ends meet.
You see the costs of health care. It is being debated all over this country. Den-
tists want to be paid. Doctors are not getting any cheaper either. Insurance is taking
a bigger and bigger bite out of your paycheck. Medicines are more expensive than
ever. Add it all up and there is less money for you. You realize all of this. You see
it every time you pay a medical bill. This is the life you live.
Then there are all the other expenses associated with living here in the United

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States. Housing is not getting any cheaper. Cars cost more than ever. Then there
is clothing. Even the discount brands take more money than last year.
It is difficult to live. You see this all the time. It seems to require all of your
attention. There does not appear to be time for anything else.
Turning back to the email about the recipe, it was a few weeks later when I
received the statement from Neiman-Marcus in the mail. You would think by now
they would have on-line payment. I have to admit that I did not open it right away
because it came in around Christmass. Finally, after all the festivities finished, I
sat down with all the other mail that came in during the holidays and I reviewed
the bills. Imagine my surprise when I saw the total expenditure at Neiman-Marcus
of three hundred and twenty five dollars. That could not be right. I remembered
spending about twenty-five dollars at the café for the two salads and drinks and
around one hundred dollars on perfumes. But where did I spend the other two
hundred and fifty dollars? The receipt held the answer. It said, “Neiman-Marcus
cookie recipe” – two hundred and fifty dollars. No recipe in the world is worth
that amount.
I immediately picked up the phone and called the accounting department at
Neiman-Marcus. After waiting on hold for what seemed like an eternity, a human
being finally picked up the phone. It took her a few minutes to find my bill. “Do
you have any questions?”, she asked. “Why of course,” I answered. “Why was
I charged two hundred and fifty dollars for a recipe? The waitress in the café
clearly said two-fifty. You have to agree that amount does not mean two hundred
and fifty dollars.” The representative calmly replied to me, “I am sorry for the

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misunderstanding. Our standard charge for any recipe for an item in the café is
two hundred and fifty dollars. I cannot remove any item from your bill unless the
item still is new and it is in its original packaging. That is our policy on everything.
You see we only sell the finest merchandise in the entire world. We are not a resale
shop. Certainly, by now, you have at least looked at the recipe. Probably, you have
used it. We cannot take it back.” I have never been one to beg, so I cut to the chase,
“I am going to tell everyone that I know what happened to me. I will not set foot
in your store again. And by the way, I am emailing all my friends this recipe.”
That is why you are receiving this email from me. I count you as a close friend
and I believe you would like the enclosed recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Please
pass the entire story with the instructions for the “Neiman-Marcus Cookie” on to
whomever you know.
If only you acted like the poor shopper, who was billed two hundred and fifty
dollars for a recipe. I wish you were as upset about the cost of life as that person
who ate that famous cookie was. You should be telling everyone you know what
is happening here inside these four walls. They need to be told the truth about the
world. But you do not. This attitude is literally killing us.
By now, you realize that you will die. That is not news to anyone. You would
hope that the sure certainty of death influenced your daily behavior. It is not. You
continue to only focus on this life. You know in excruciating detail how much it
costs to live. You still fill up all the hours of the day with work. Right now is all
that actually concerns you.
Do not get me wrong. It is good to work. That is one of God’s gifts to you.

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You need to have focus. God also graced you with the ability to complete the tasks
assigned to you.
The problem is what you are looking at. By only placing your eyes on today’s
problems, you ignore both yesterday and tomorrow.3 You forget what God did in
the past. You do not remember how He brought your family safely to this place.
You do not recall how He cared for your parents. You no longer know the story
of how Jesus bought you with a great cost. In other words, you do not have faith
that God acted in the past. You also are not looking ahead. You do not see what
awaits you. Your vision of God’s plan for you is lacking. You do not realize that
God wants your time and talents. This means that you do not have faith in God to
work out His plan for you. Just as important, by focusing on the issues of the day
you actually miss God. You do not see Him working right here.
Jesus tells you in today’s Gospel Lesson to look around. See the birds flying
in the air. God takes care of them. Take a hard look at your life. There are things
outside of your control that only God can do. Look down at the ground. See what
happens there. Beauty comes and goes. God gives the plants clothes that the kings
only wish they have. By moving your eyes away from your constant concerns, you
have a chance to see God in action. This is the Good News. God is always with
you no matter what you do.
Today’s teaching form Christ also gives you the gift of perspective. By asking
you to look up, Jesus points out to you all that happens during a day. The sunrises,
3
We have abandoned the faith since the culture of consumerism tells us that the only impor-
tant time is the eternal now; we have no past and we have no future. Walter Brueggemann, The
Prophetic Imagination, (Fortress Press, 1978), p. 11.

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it sets, the clouds move, and the wind blows. By making you stare at your life,
Christ reminds you of the process that is living. You are born, you age, and then
you die. By directing your vision on the plants of the field, Jesus lets you see the
seasons: spring with its time of planning, summer where nature grows, fall means
the time of harvest, and Winter brings the time of rest. This work of the Lord
gives you faith. You see that He has helped you in the past and you trust that this
continues for the rest of your life.
That is why on Thursday, you stop what you normally do so that you can
remember what you have. This gives you a chance to thank God for His work in
your life. You take the day off, not to have a bit more turkey and dressing, but to
raise up your voice in prayer to the One who made it all possible.
By now, it should be completely clear to you that the email about the Neiman-
Markus cookies is totally false. It is just one of those stories that are too good
to be true. During the nineties, a similar version made the rounds but this time
Mrs. Field’s cookies took that place of Neiman-Marcus. Sixty years ago around
1948, the story involved paying twenty-five dollars for a cake recipe from the
Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.
There is something that you can learn from this. You like to repeat meals. Cer-
tainly, your Thanksgiving dinner contains recipes handed down from your parents.
You want to have consistency in your life. On Thursday, you are celebrating God’s
bounty with the rest of the nation. You also like passing on your traditions. That
is why your family joins you at the dinner table during the holiday. You hope that
they continue with what was first given to you.

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 The Church teaches you these same lessons. You read the same Bible as your
parents and their parents before them. You use the same form of worship that they
did. You also go and tell others what happens here in Church. You pray that the
Holy Spirit brings others to faith and that they learn what God first gave you.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”4

References

Brueggemann, Walter, The Prophetic Imagination, (Fortress Press, 1978).

4
Philippians 4:7.