Casting Yeast & Throwing Stones
I’ve picked up a new hobby, recently. Baking bread. It’s creative, relaxing, and brings me joy. Part of the process is casting yeast into the dough. Just a minute amount of yeast kneaded through the dough allows it to rise and multiply. Jesus compared yeast to the Kingdom of God in Matthew 13. Like yeast, the Kingdom of God seemed very small at the beginning, starting with only a few disciples, but their ministries cast the yeast that caused exponential, worldwide growth.
My Crucible beginnings were small. I attended my initial weekend in Williams Bay, WI. It was good and transformative, but there wasn’t a local Connecticut community, so it was unlikely I’d go further. Then, business sent me to Texas, one week before a Lake Brownwood initial weekend, only a short distance away, so I stepped into my first staffing experience.
Brandon Brunson welcomed this “outsider” and Garland Bluhm encouraged me to pursue this work. These men’s words were yeast, cast into my heart, which grew and caused ripple effects throughout my life and Crucible community experience.
As a kid, my buddies and I frequented Community Lake on the west side of town. We hung out there for hours, competing for the best rock-throwing skills. With just the right lift and toss into the deepest water, large rocks produced a deep thud and a magnificent volcanic splash. Small, smooth rocks were for skipping off the surface tension and we all vied for the most skips before the rock sunk. There was always a controversy, though, over whether or not the flat, smooth stone or a round stone would produce the most skips. I guess it really didn’t matter because it was more about the angle and velocity of the throw. Once there was enough power and the right glancing angle behind it, that stone skipped across the surface like it was a solid surface, not water.
Whichever way a stone was tossed into the water, one thing was sure: a rippling effect occurred. Like the stone that gets tossed into the water, it doesn’t matter how a man enters into his Crucible journey, there will be a ripple effect in his life emanating from the impact of his work and soul transformation. Like a small amount of yeast worked into dough and grows as we begin taking responsibility for our decision and steps into our purpose with power and passion, these ripples will affect all those around him—his spouse, his children, grandchildren, co-workers, and communities.
And can grow into a wonderful fragrance which blesses those around.
By Peter Aldrich
Peter completed his initial weekend in March of 2015 and also completed the Two-Year Transformational leadership program. He has staffed various Crucible Project weekends, including Kenya in February of 2018. Peter is also a catalyst in bringing The Crucible Project to men in the northeast and building a community of Crucible men there. He is part-owner of Cage Data an Information Technology, Managed Service Provider located in Connecticut.
Photo Credit: Pratap Sankar via Creative Commons.