Devotion - Tuesday, October 6

Baking is an activity most of us do too little of.  I am guilty of this as well.  There was a time, earlier in my life, when I baked all the bread we ate in our home.  We had a recipe that made 4 loaves.  We would eat three and give the fourth to a neighbor or friend.

Baking allows you to understand what concerns Paul in I Corinthians 5:7-8.  He knows the effect that leaven (yeast) has on the loaf.  While there is only a small amount added to the other ingredients, it has a tremendous effect.  

In I Corinthians, Paul asks whether we will be affected by the "old leaven," (the leaven of a godless life) or the "new leaven" which is Christ's claim on our lives.

Who are the persons, or what are the situations which provide the leaven for your life?  Is it the persons you gather with for prayer who have the effect on you?  Or is the persons you see garnering the spotlights?

When you bake, you add the yeast and you mix it in, and you cover the bowl with a damp towel, and you walk away.  You wait.  It takes time for the effects of the leaven to be seen.  When it is initially added, you can't see what it will eventually do to the rest of the loaf.

You may attempt to tell yourself that you can withstand the influence of the "old leaven".  You may attempt to claim that you can be around all of that, but not be really influenced.  Remember that the effects won't show themselves for some time.  

Be aware of the leaven being added to your life.  Choose.  And choose wisely.