The Dough of 2011

I forgot it was the new year.  I jumped out of bed this morning (after my alarm went off for the 3rd time) once I realized all I needed to get done in the first few hours I was out of bed.  I had to start my husband's work laundry (being from the farm it all soaks in the washer for at least 10 hours), get the meat out to thaw for today's dinner, wrap two presents (hubby's family is celebrating Christmas today), wash dishes (I was exhausted last night and we somehow ran out of hot, even warm, water last night!) and prepare the dough to make 3 loaves of bread.  The bread was the most critical one.  With all the rising and falling and rising again that it needs to go through, I had to have that dough made by 5am.  I got it done by 5:02.  Close enough!
As you can tell, I had no time to waste when I got up.  I got crackin' on my list and was bustling around the kitchen for almost an hour when all of a sudden it hit me that it was now 2012!  I felt like I should be very contemplative at that moment, but my mind just jumped on to the next thing.
Now that I have a moment in between my "to-dos" I can think back.  It has been a year of tremendous joys, but there has been great heartache mixed in as well.  As I look at it all now, I can't help but compare it to the bread dough I made this morning.  The dough that is rising on the dining table right now is mainly composed of flour.  That's just the day to day moments that fill the majority of our time.  There is also a smidge of salt.  Now, I don't know that too many people would want to just dig into a bowl of salt.  It would horribly dry up your mouth and could even feel like it was burning your throat going down.  The salt I could say, would be the heartaches of this past year.  On it's own it may not be pleasant or something we desire, but God allows those heartaches to season our year.  The yeast is an easy one.  That would be the great joys of this year.  There were only a few events (our wedding, the birth of two babies, etc . . .) that would be considered great joys, but it greatly changes the rest of the year.  As just a little yeast permeates the entire loaf of bread and makes it all rise, so even a few great joys sprinkled throughout the year creates joy in our day to day to make it a joy-filled year.  The last thing I add is water.  Without the water there is just a bowl up of differing ingredients that although they are mixed together, they create absolutely nothing useful or of beauty.  The water works all things together to create something good.  Remind you of anything?  "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28.  God is the water.  God through His Holy Spirit and His Holy Word, work in our lives to take all the events and moments to create something good.  When we rely on Him, when we allow Him to work in us and to shape our perspectives, wants and desires, He alone can make it all work.  He gets us through the heartaches.  He brings tremendous moments of joy to our lives.  He sustains us in our day to day with the very air we breath.  Without Him, this past year would be a useless bowl of dry mix good for nothing at all.  With Him, this year has been a great creation of blessing that when it goes down, is warm and soothing to the soul.  Only God can mix just the right amount of each ingredient and give it just the right amount of "rises and falls" to make something useful out of our lives.  And every loaf of bread is a little different.  They all have different seasonings and can be made into a variety of shapes.  But He knows what we need when we need it.  If we allow Him, He will make us good, whether it's a light french bread or a hearty sourdough.
As I head into 2012, I pray that I continue to let God be the creator of all things beautiful, good and useful in my life.  I pray that while I relish the joy He brings, I also allow Him to add the salt when needed, knowing that He will never add too much, and that He will work it all together for good.