Becoming Ourselves 

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my
word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and truth will
make you free.”

John 8:31-32 
Now I become myself.It’s taken time, many years and places.I have been dissolved and shaken,Worn other people’s faces…- May Sarton, “Now I Become Myself” in Collected Poems, 1930-1973,
p.156            

As we close 2011, my prayer for you and me is that we keep and ponder in our hearts the
things we learned about living for the Kingdom through the lives of those we
heard speak this year.  How we were enriched and encouraged through lives
that were aromatic, lives permeated by the yeast of the Kingdom of God.           

It’s interesting to think that bread will take the form of the baker, the one
kneading and shaping and molding it.  The baker knows when to knead and
how long, because the wise and good baker understands the nature of the dough
and the bread, the pressure needed for the texture, the coarseness or fineness
of the grain and its flour, the temperature of the oven.  Letting the
dough rest and rise, knowing when kneading is necessary, is the nature of a
good bread maker.  A good bread maker consistently turns out aromatic
loaves with consistent texture and flavor.  The loaves reflect the
knowledge and care of the Baker.  These loaves of the Baker, when cut,
provide nourishment, not hollow pockets of air.           

So we take lessons learned from so many wonderful women who shared this past year and look
toward a year of flourishing together and continuing to grow and be
fruitful.  The image we are keeping before us this year is of a
tree.  Psalm 1 tells us how to be happy, to be blessed, how the life of a
righteous person is like a fruitful tree.           

If you’ve received the newsletter, you’ll see that there are many wonderful women sharing
from different seasons of life.  We’ll get a peek into their hidden life
in God, the wonderful rings of their lives as trees of righteousness, bearing
fruit in season.  We will be challenged and encouraged in wonderful ways
and we hope that you will take advantage of the many opportunities we have to
flourish together this year.           

I do hope you will join me at our January 26 luncheon as I share some things I am
continuing to learn about the hidden life that we have in God, who we are
inside our “bark.”  Will you please join me in prayer that this will be a
year where you and I flourish, where our lives declare to the world a life
ruled by a God who is more wonderful than we can imagine or think.