As I read Sister Porter’s words, I am most intrigued and inspired by her thoughts on leaven, and the role it plays in both baking and our lives. I began to notice that her descriptors were like character traits of someone who has more “leaven” in their lives—someone who “lifts” and “makes room”, someone who carries themselves with “lightness” and whose heart is “soft”.

 

Unfortunately, a more accurate description of today’s world feels closer to the “spirit of heaviness” that she spoke of—like we are all under the pressure of a weighted blanket that we are being told is for our own good. This is reality, get used to it. Yet, the comfort quickly turns suffocating, with little room to spare. We become greedy with the space and time we do have, motivated by a scarcity mindset that there isn’t enough to go around. Our hearts turn rigid and unwilling to believe that there is another way—that this overwhelming burden is not meant to be carried alone, let alone that it could be lifted all together.

 

And suddenly, you catch a glimpse of light from the corner—a breath of fresh air—giving you a taste of what life must be like out from under this weight. So you move towards—towards Him—and the light expands. You feel a softening. You carve out more space, more moments with The Light, and the heaviness continues to lift. You finally pull the weighted blanket from over your head, realizing it has shrunk. Still heavy in your arms, but no longer enclosing around you. There IS another way! We are not victims of a collective heaviness that seems to loom and linger, we are beings of light, hope, and abundance. And so we begin to lift the corners of the blankets of those around us—letting in just enough light for them to reach for.

 

He reaches back, our brother and Savior.