Do you know how bagels are made? I had no idea until I started my ministry this month. To make bagels you have to measure each ingredient, mix the dough, let the dough rise, weigh the dough, roll the dough, form the dough into circles, let it rise again, boil your bagels, put on your toppings, and finally, you bake them. It’s not necessarily hard, but it takes time and patience to get your bagels to the perfect chewy, glorious goodness.
Don’t these look delicious? The temptation is so real. I’ve had 4 already.
This month, my new team and I are working with a ministry that helps women out of the sex industry in Thailand by providing jobs for them and steady counseling and services. Some of the women make jewelry, others paint on canvases, and others work in the cozy coffee shop that occupies the first floor of the building, which is where the bagels come in. On every table in the peaceful place, there is a sign that asks, “Why Bagels?” I never even questioned the necessity of bagels at this coffee shop, but little sign explains the heart behind the bagels and the women that make them.
This coffee shop bakes bagels to teach the women patience and perseverance. Like the slow process that produces a bagel, God’s transformation in our lives usually takes time, patience, and an unrelenting pursuit of our hearts. There are times when we are the dough, ready to be formed into what he wants to be, and there are times when we are flat bagels. We don’t rise to the occasion after he’s formed us, and he has to patiently go back and coax us to step into his plan again.
The incredibly beautiful and equally frustrating part of this whole process is that we won’t come out of the oven in all our finished bagel glory in this world. We will live our entire lives and never reach the perfect amount of love and grace or a perfect understanding of God. And yet God waits. He sits with us patiently, works with us constantly, and captivates us with his mercy.
I am in a season of learning to enjoy the process. I am learning that sometimes that bagel needs to be just as patient as the baker, because the it is only in the process that the bagel becomes a bagel. I am learning to stop asking “Why is this happening to me?” and “How can I make this go faster?” Instead, I’m asking, “What is God doing here?” and “How can I join him in the process in the present?” Like a bagel, I have to let God do his part and when it’s time to rise, I have to do mine.
- If you don’t know how I say the word bagel, please facetime or skype me and have me read this blog to you. You’re in for a treat.
- This month our ministry is one near and dear to my heart. I’m hoping to share more about it with you next week, complete with pictures of Bangkok and its little charms.
- I would love prayer for our bar outreach tonight (Friday morning at home). It’s our first time and it feels intimidating and exciting all at once.
- My mom joins me in just 13 days for a week on the race! I’m excited to see her and watch what God does in her heart while she spends time on the field. Be praying for our time together in beautiful Thailand.
