When someone is going through a burdened time, it can mean many things and sometimes you might be unsure of how to help. One thing is for certain, they need to eat. They may be too emotionally or physically burdened to be able to make their own dinner, or even too busy to make a meal. That’s where you come in and provide one of your home cooked meals.

When our son was going through cancer treatments there was so many times that it was a blessing to have a freshly delivered or easy freezer meal on hand. We had overnight hospital stays, days full of appointments, emergent doctor visits, days full of stress, sickness, and pain, or sometimes we actually had a one whole unscheduled day together. Those were all times that our friends blessed us by taking care of our meals.

There are restaurants and easy meals at the grocery store, but sometimes just going out can be stressful. A home cooked meal can be a comfort and so much more nourishing.

Tips to Consider When Making a Meal for Another Family

• Make something tried and true. It is not a great time to try a new recipe. Bring something that your family loves.
• Ask about allergies or aversions. You definitely don’t want to cause more grief by triggering allergies or bringing broccoli, which is their least favorite food.
• Ask what they like. Sometimes you can just ask or give them a couple options to choose from, so you know you’re bringing something they like to eat.
• Don’t cook for an army. Bring them an appropriate sized meal. For most families a square 9×9 dish is plenty.
• Healthy (and tasty). Keep the meal balanced and healthy. Giving a family good nourishment, especially during sickness or extra stress, can be good for mind and body.
• Batch Cooking. This is my preferred way to bring others meals. I just make a double batch of lasagna, chicken pot pie, or chicken divan and bring one to another family.
• Freezer Meals. The nice thing about freezer meals is that they can be stored until needed.

Keeping these tips in mind can be helpful, but honestly any meal you bring will be such a blessing and show how much you care!
Some of the meals that stood out to me:

• One friend brought homemade pizza and cokes (one of our family’s favorite meals).
• Another group of friends did a Wildtree Freezer Meal Workshop and filled our freezer with meals to take out when we needed them.
• Diversity. We have people from all over the country in our community, so it was fun to get Louisiana rice and beans mixed in with the Minnesota hot dishes.

It’s really easy to bring someone a meal and it will be such a blessing. One of my biggest takeaways from our burdened time is that if you don’t know how to help a family, bring them a meal, because that will always be something they can use.