Scales, Weights And Measurements
Scales, Weights And Measurements
Ever tried baking in a foreign country? I have. Measurements and recipes that were once friends become frightful enemies in the blink of an eye!
My grandmother’s antique cream-worn scales have been a regular feature on my mother’s kitchen windowsill ever since I can remember. With the higgledy piggledy collection of weights, they somehow always weigh the ingredients to the ounce, although their appearance may suggest otherwise. Things are not not always as they appear. This family relic is a far cry from the far easier and faster method of using cups that we use here in the U.S. Now I’m not trying to create some immediate competition as to which country is the best on my first blog post (I’m from England, now living in the U.S), I love both places! I am, however, making the point that the way we measure things is important. The way that we measure and weigh ourselves, each other, our churches and ultimately God himself can dramatically affect how we see, love and understand life.
You may have been one of the millions of people that ventured onto the weighing scales this morning and as a direct result your day may have got off to a particularly positive or negative note. This stuff matters, right?
God asks of us that we use honest or just scales and weights. This request rings loud in my own ears, I imagine I’m not the only person that needs reminded of this today. In a world where deception and fantasy are marketed and promoted as reality and we use Photoshop, filters and social media to somehow measure up to this so called dream, I would like to suggest that it can only be a good thing to check our own weights and scales on a regular basis. I find the use of the word ‘just’ interesting; it’s ultimately asking us to be truthful and fair in our assessment of all that we measure. God is described as ‘Just,’ which I think means that he is often balancing out and making equal much of what is biased, unfair and false. This is very good news. I know that I could do with his help in re-aligning and tuning my scales to show the right measurements and weights.
If I can’t love myself well, I won’t love others well. If I don’t see things as they really are, others won’t see me for who I really am. If I don’t hold truth as the plumb line and foundation of my life and purpose, then I’m going to stand on ground that is unsafe and that moves beneath my feet.
There’s nothing like the smell that fills the house and the taste of a fresh loaf of bread that’s just come out of the oven made by my mother. It’s the wonderful reward of hard work, accurate measurements and carefully following the recipe. For us, it’s a life’s work of toil, determination, testing and obedience.
