Rachelle will be co-presenting a workshop on the missional church at the Generous Orthodoxy Conference in Seattle.

I’ve been learning a lot about being a Christian lately. Not from church or a small group or pastoral counseling, but from someone the church would call “lost” – my neighbor Elizabeth.

Elizabeth is not a religious person. I’ve never known her to go to church or teach her children how to sing “there was a Savior died for me and Jesus was his Name-O.” Yet Elizabeth is one of the most deeply spiritually connected people I know. She is, by passion and profession, a chocolatier. (I know, chocolate! What could be more divine? Of course she’s spiritually centered!) The thing I love about Elizabeth -- other than that she calls me over to do taste tests -- is that she has a very practical everyday spirituality. She doesn’t have to talk about “ministry” and “work,” or about “church” and “the world.” She manages, in her own unique way, to blend spirituality and everyday life into one smooth whole.

Take truffles for instance. When Elizabeth works with chocolate she comes to the process with love and joy. When her thoughts drift away from love and joy, towards negative thoughts and worries, she gently draws them back again. She exercises this discipline over her thought life, because she believes that the spirit in which she makes the truffles will impact their flavor and their ability to bring joy to others. In other words, the success of her chocolates comes not merely from words, or deeds, but from the heart.

I can’t help thinking that in this unassuming way, Elizabeth has taught me something crucial about Biblical living. This kind, thoughtful woman has shown me how to live consistently and with care; how to be attentive to our hearts and to make sure that our inner life matches up with our outward words and deeds. I’m so grateful that Elizabeth has let me see this quiet, gentle lesson about Godly living. Thank God for chocolate!

Elizabeth Peckham is the proprietor of Heavenly Chocolates, a small batch chocolate business featuring hand-rolled truffles and decadent chocolate cakes.