Last week, I spent a little time with Carrie Hankins learning about bread. The bread that we talked about was sourdough bread. Unbeknownst to me, making this particular type of bread takes a little bit of time. One cannot simply say, “Hey, I’d like some sourdough bread” and then make it immediately; there is planning and waiting in the transformation process. In fact, to make sourdough bread, you have a to tend to a starter, days in advance, prior to even putting the mix together. After that, you have to wait at least 24 hours before you even bake it! But here’s the great thing about this bread- it is well worth the wait! 

Jesus talks a lot about bread and the process of making bread. One of the primary elements in his diet, Jesus often used bread and the process of making bread as a means to communicate serious spiritual topics. For example, in Matthew 13 and Matthew 16, Jesus talks about yeast. In both, Jesus highlights how just a little bit of yeast can have a big impact. By referencing yeast’s ability to change bread, Jesus explains how others can potentially influence our lives.

But Jesus also used bread to talk about transformation, which hits home when we think about the sourdough bread that Carrie made for us this Sunday. When Jesus institutes communion in Matthew 26, he presents bread as a symbol of his body which was broken for us. And each week, as we partake in it, we are celebrating that we have been transformed. Like the bread, when a little bit of yeast (good influences) are added to our lives, we become more like Jesus. And when we become more like Jesus, living in that transformation, we create a community that feels a lot like home.