When I was young, my mother was an elementary school teacher. She had to juggle many duties, but somehow found time to cook delicious and nutritious meals for our family every evening. She was a wonderful cook. Cooking seemed fun to me, and I liked to hang out in the kitchen under my mom’s patient tutelage.

One thing my mother taught me is ingredients aren’t always measured the same way. Flour, for example, is sifted before measuring, while brown sugar is packed down in a measuring cup. For this reason, I like to think of Luke 6:38 as the “brown sugar verse.” In this passage, Jesus explained how we should treat others: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

I Timothy 6:18 tells us to “Do good, be rich in good deeds, and be generous and willing to share.”
Matthew 5:16 states, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

I find it interesting that the “brown sugar verse,” gives us more than an admonition; it also contains a promise. Jesus told us when we give, we get back “a good measure.”

What is a good measure? And why is flour sifted, anyway? Flour tends to settle and pack down, so for recipes to be standardized, it must be sifted. If I sift flour into a cup, I can watch it settle right before my eyes by shaking the cup gently from side to side. Jesus told us a good measure is shaken together so that more will fit in the container. He also said that a good measure is running over. I like to think of pouring cornmeal in a cup and watching it flow over the top and down the sides.

My favorite mental image, though, is brown sugar. A whole lot more brown sugar will fit in a measuring cup when you pack it down!

“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”—II Corinthians 9:6