Learning to bake homemade bread has become a passion of mine.
That being said, I have tried to bake a good, light, fluffy loaf of bread for over a year. Seriously, over one year.
I have tried more recipes than you can imagine. I tried all those recipes where people would review them and say, ‘this is the best recipe ever, so light and fluffy.’
I would hope for the best, but I came to see that regardless of what anyone else said, I could not find the recipe I was looking for. Finally, after a year, I found a recipe that worked well for me.
Then, I decided I would try homemade cinnamon rolls.
One Saturday morning I attempted to proof three different bowls of yeast and warm milk. None of them worked. Finally, in frustration I said ‘GOD! What am I doing wrong here?’ He spoke quickly and directly to me and said, ‘study to show yourself approved.’
I went to my computer and typed in a question to find out what I was doing wrong. I read and re-read all the answers to my question and I tried again. Again, my yeast did not proof, which meant my bread would not rise. I wanted to quit for the day but I refused to quit in defeat.
So, I read some more and I tried again. This time, my dough began to rise after about an hour and fifteen minutes. It took much longer than normal, but it was working. I continued…
After the first rise, I rolled out my dough, put the cinnamon mixture in the middle, rolled my dough up and cut it into slices for cinnamon rolls. Again, I lay them aside to rise the second time. Again, it took much longer than it was supposed to, but it worked. Eventually I placed them in the oven, made the from-scratch icing and waited. I got them out of the oven, put icing on them and took a deep breath.
I cut off a small piece and wow! They were delicious. Amazingly so. Victory!
For the rest of the day I thought about the scripture found in 2 Timothy 2:15; study to show thyself approved.
After doing a little word study on this scripture I found it literally means; to earnestly, diligently strive after the knowledge of something. To labor to study about something. To study and diligently learn to the point the you have the proof and the evidence of a thing. And to accurately practice to the point of being so good at a thing that you can accurately teach what you have learned.
As I dug deeper, I found it means simply to ‘sit at the feet of the master of a thing until you are fully acquainted with it.’
Oh, it sounds a great deal like sitting at the feet of Jesus, doesn’t it?!
In the natural, I had to keep studying about bread and not only the recipes, but the art of baking bread, until I had proof of what I had learned. Every time I failed and didn’t see any evidence of what I was studying and learning, I had to try again and again until I had evidence of what I had diligently put my hand to. This task that is so simple to thousands of people, took me over a year to learn.
Then I had to practice what I had studied until I came to the point that I was able to teach what I had learned to someone else.
In the spirit, it is the same thing. We must sit at the feet of Jesus until we learn of Him. We must keep sitting and continue learning of Him until we have evidence of Him and His word manifesting in our life. The evidence will be more peace in our life. It will be more joy in our life. It will be the fruit of the spirit flowing in our life. It will be more prosperity in our life. It will be more of the promises of God manifesting in our life.
I noticed two things in this process of breadmaking.
First, I could not give up. Regardless of how many times I failed, I had to keep trying. Although people began to tell me that ‘some people just aren’t good at breadmaking’, I could not quit trying, weekend after weekend, I spent hours trying to bake bread. I went through more bags of flour than I care to count.
Galatians 6:9 says; Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Hebrews 12:1-2 says; Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
Whatever we are walking through, we simply must fix our eyes on Jesus, knowing He will take us to the other side. He is the author, the one who began His work in us and He will finish it. We must refuse to give up. No matter what, we must keep walking in faith, keep believing God, keep speaking the word of God and keep trusting God.
The other thing I learned was patience.
James 1:4 says; But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Regardless of what we are going through, if we choose to allow patience to work amid it, we have a promise. In the end, we will be complete and lack nothing. I love, love, love that promise. I try to always remember this truth when I need patience.
I don’t want to walk through trials and tests with a partially victorious outcome. I want to walk through it and come out on the other side, complete and lacking nothing, don’t you?
I labored and diligently worked at baking bread, until I saw the proof of what I had learned. May we all be so diligent in our walk with the Lord. May we diligently sit at the feet of the Lord until we come to KNOW Him. Until we see the proof that He is engrained in our life. Until we are walking in the spirit daily. Until we speak the word of God only. Until we see the word of God and all His goodness manifest in our lives. Until then, may we study to show ourselves approved.
Prayer for Today: Father, may I become a student of your word. May I become a student of your ways. May I become more and more like Jesus every single day. I will sit at His feet until I walk like Him, talk like Him and trust like Him. This I declare and decree, in Jesus name. Amen.
