Something that makes me happy is baking bread....

I love to bake bread! It's so satisfying to mix the dough, add just the right amount of flour, proof the yeast...and then my favorite part, kneading...it's just relaxing to knead the dough and watch the gluten develop until it feels just right. Smooth, but elastic, firm but not dry.



And then I started thinking...I had eight minutes of thinking time. Fold, push, turn. Fold, push, turn. I only used one and one half tablespoons of yeast for almost eight cups of flour. And it's going to make two big crusty loaves.
Fold, push, turn. What kind of "yeast" is in my life? What if it's obnoxious? What if it's complaining? What if I added just one and one half tablespoons of cheerfulness? Or gentleness, kindness and self-control? Fold, push, turn. "A little leaven leavens the whole lump". I have an influence on the people I encounter- My family, my family in Christ, the people I meet as I go about life. What yeast do they see prevailing in my life?

"Beep!!" There went the timer and I put my lump of dough into a bowl and sat in on to rise. But I went away thinking, about yeast and influence and attitude.


"To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened."