Cooking for God's Glory & Husband's Delight Casserole

One of the many ways that we were blessed after having both of our kiddos were people from our church, small group, and family brought us amazing meals for two to three weeks after the babies arrived! Having those meals delivered took so much of the stress off of me as I recovered from childbirth and as we adapted to the changes a new child brought. Plus, having the opportunity to visit and share the excitement of our newest blessing with all these awesome friends was such a wonderful addition to our days! 

It wasn’t until after having our first-born, Daniel, that I really began realizing the blessing having meals delivered to you was, so since those days one of my favorite acts of service has been making meals to take to families who recently had a baby or for someone who is recovering from surgery or a sickness of some kind. I love being able to bless people in this way because as a busy mother it is something I can do as I make the same meal for our family, giving me time to serve both others and my family at the same time! 

I want to be a Missional Woman, reaching out and living on mission for the glory of God! But sometimes it’s really easy for me to get comfortable with where I’m at in this stage of life… taking care of my kids, cooking for and feeding my family, cleaning house, and going to church on Sundays. But then I am reminded that even as a busy mother, there are so many things that I can do for others to show them Christ’s love even with my children in tow! Cooking an extra meal to bless another family is one of those things. And I’m excited for my children to help more and more with preparing meals to bless others with me, especially as they get older.

You might be reading this thinking about how much you hate cooking and wondering how you should go around that to step out and cook meals for other people! I’m not saying whether or not you should do this act of service in particular, but I’d love to share some verses that I think are so encouraging to all of us women who have been given many different gifts – whether they are cooking, photography, crocheting, sewing, woodworking, writing, speaking, or so many other things…

1 Peter 4:10-11

As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, let him speak as it were the utterances of God; whoever serves, let him do so as by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

These verses say it so much better than I can! God has given us wonderful gifts that we love doing! You might be a mother, a wife, a college student, or a working woman who feels like “living on mission for the glory of God” requires way too much time and work for you. The great thing, though, is that our God has given us the strength to serve and the words to say so we don’t have to bless or serve others in our own ability. That is the coolest part ever! If it were up to me, I would never be able to have the time, talent, money, or desire to make meals for the families around me, but with God supplying the strength I need and with Him giving us the resources, we are able to do this so that God can be glorified, not us! That is awesome!

As you go about this next week, whatever stage of life you are in, think about the things God has given you a great love or talent to do, and employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God! And if you are a mother like me, let your children be a part of it and help them get excited to serve and give all the glory to God!

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Here is one of my favorite meals to make for families and everyone seems to love it! I’ve made several different meals for people over the years, but it’s great having this one to come back to if I can’t think of another meal. And it makes me spend less time looking for recipes and gives me more time to make sure I get the meal made and delivered by the time the family wants it! As you can see, it is super easy which I also love!

  “Husband’s Delight” Casserole 
                2 lbs. ground beef, browned
                1 tsp. sugar
                1 tsp. salt
                ¼ tsp. garlic powder
                1 green pepper, chopped
                16 oz. tomato sauce
                8 oz. pkg. thin egg noodles
                4 oz. cream cheese
                8 oz. sour cream
                5 green onions, chopped
                1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Brown meat and drain. Add sugar, salt, garlic powder, green pepper, and tomato sauce. Simmer 15 minutes. 

Cook noodles according to package directions.

Mix together cream cheese, sour cream, and onions. Layer noodles, cream cheese – chive mixture, and meat mixture. Top with grated cheese. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Yield: 12 servings

To go with the meal, I usually buy a bag of Salad and a loaf of French Bread (unless you love making fresh loaves of bread, which is definitely NOT a talent of mine!), and I will make up a batch of Brownies or Cookies for dessert!

One more helpful hint I have is to make your casserole in a disposable 9x13 pan because it helps out a lot in their busy schedule when they don’t have to track you down to return your casserole dish later on! We bought a set of the disposable pans from Sam’s Club that will last a good two years or so for us! 

Have a wonderful time serving while glorifying God! I’d love to hear what some of your joys and talents in life are and how you use those gifts to bless those around you while pointing people to Him!

About Natalie

Natalie graduated with her Elementary Education degree in 2008 and now serves as a missionary to college students with Master Plan Ministries. Outside of ministry, she loves taking pictures of her husband and two children, scrap booking photo memories of vacations and day-by-day moments. She is so thankful for the opportunity to be a mentor to women who are faced with the peer pressure and endless life choices of daily college life, and is excited to see God’s transforming work as He shows His grace and love to these students and prepares them for the years ahead.  

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