In my last article, I began a new series about God's miracles that are all around us. I still think about that thin atmospheric line protecting us from the cold blackness of outer space. Life is fragile, yet so abundant! We usually think of miracles as a healing or something supernatural and extraordinary, but to me, as I think of that thin line, even a mundane banana is a miracle. How did we get such things as bananas onto this planet? We didn't. That is the miracle!

As leaves turn shades of red and yellow, and temperatures drop, I think of making a warm pot of chili and baking some pumpkin bread. My basil plants will not thrive much longer so I will miss the pesto with garlic, olive oil, pine nuts and parmesan cheese. I spread it on whole-grain baguettes and top it with mozzarella and tomato slices. So good! I wonder if God's miracles might extend to ginger cookies and chocolate brownies.

I even wonder if my focus on heartier food is part of a miraculous winter survival instinct. My mom used to have a large garden, so we would have been canning this time of year. Dad tried to get an elk and two deer for the freezer. Now, I just go to the grocery store, but maybe that instinct is there, still embedded in my cellular memory. Or-maybe I just need a reason for making brownies.

What do you like to eat in the fall? What is your favorite spice? My favorite baking spices include cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. Spices and herbs for snacks and main dishes vary widely between nations. I used to look forward to the Taste of the Nations at our church in Toronto. There were 50 nations in the church, so we enjoyed the curries from India and Pakistan, jerk chicken from Jamaica, authentic Chinese food, treats from Germany and Scandinavia, olives and falafel from Israel and the Middle East, spicy appetizers from Mexico and South America, Greek souvlakis and unusual flavors from Africa. Variety and abundance mark the spice world; yet I still treasure my salt and pepper.

All of the herbs and spices are a miracle to me, but an even greater miracle is the taste buds God put in our mouths to sort them out and enable us to enjoy them. Our tongues have thousands of tiny buds that sense sweet, salty, sour, bitter and savory flavors. Our taste buds even know when to reject something awful like poison.

Romans 1:20 tells us that we can see God's character and nature by looking at what He made. What do you see about God as you review your own food favorites? I feel encouraged. I can fall into looking at God as far away and detached, but then such a God would not have bothered to give us such abundance, variety, comfort and fun.

The greatest miracle of all is when I think of John 1:3 that tells us that there was not anything made without Jesus. People even rejected Him when He came. On top of that, He was willing to go to the cross for you and me. Why would He do that? I wish I could fix you a cup of tea and offer you a cookie and we could talk about that.

Sue Carlisle grew up on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. An enrolled member of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, her passion is to encourage people to look at creation and see our awesome Creator. Sue is author of Walking with the Creator Along the Narrow Road (2013 Indian Life Books). She and her husband, Wes, now live in Thunder Bay, Ontario.