I spent most of a school picnic trying to win a cake, only to discover it wasn’t even the cake I thought I wanted.

Earlier this month, Noah’s school had an evening picnic.

Hamburgers. Chips. Soda. Kids running everywhere.

Then I saw a Nothing Bundt Cakes bag sitting near a table full of miniature Bundt cakes.

If you know me, you know I have a serious sweet tooth.

And vanilla Nothing Bundt Cake is one of my favorites.

So while Amanda and I stood there talking, I kept one eye on the cake walk.

Every time I thought about jumping in, a kid got there first.

Then I thought it was kids-only.

Then I saw adults participating.

Then just as I was about to get in...

“All adults out. Kids only.”

Perfect.

Later, I heard:

“Last round. Everybody wins!”

Finally.

I grabbed a cake.

Took a bite.

And thought:

This tastes different.

Then I looked at the label.

It wasn’t Nothing Bundt Cakes.

It was Holey Cakes.

It was still good.

I still ate it.

But it wasn’t the thing I had spent the last hour imagining.

And that made me think about how often we do the same thing in life.

A job.

A promotion.

A house.

A relationship.

A car.

Something somebody else has.

We build it up from a distance and convince ourselves:

If I could just get that, then I’d be happy.

But sometimes the version in our head is better than the real thing.

Philippians 4:11 says:

“I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.”

Maybe part of contentment is learning to stop romanticizing what we don’t have.

So ask yourself:

Am I chasing the real thing... or the version I’ve created in my mind?

Because sometimes the thing across the room isn’t nearly as perfect as it looks.

And sometimes...

it isn’t even the cake you thought it was.

🎙️ Summit After the Storm Podcast
Season 6: Lessons in Real Time
📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10
🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com

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