Lest you think I’m going to become a food blogger, rest assured that I am not. I started making sourdough bread (something I have wanted to do for a long time) about 6 or 7 months ago. It has been a learning process for me, learning about myself, who I am, and how to bake a successful, appetizing loaf of sourdough bread. I did not know that I would learn to relax so much into who I am and what works for me as I did—it has been an amazing journey, I’ve heard it called that, but I didn’t know just how true it is.

Of course, for most people, the first loaf (or loaves) doesn’t look like any loaves of bread we’ve seen in the grocery store or the local farmer’s market. It is frequently flat, dense, over-proofed or under-proofed, burnt or underbaked…  You get the idea. Mine was a bit dense (as I am sometimes) because I was in a hurry to have some sourdough bread, and my starter was only seven days old (it ended up taking several weeks until it was strong enough to use).

So, I did the only thing I could think of to learn more about the magic of baking sourdough bread—I joined some beginner sourdough bread baking groups on Facebook and scoured the pages of comments and pleas for help to find out the definitive techniques and tricks to making sourdough bread. I learned some things such as the importance of a strong starter, the difference between over-proofing and under-proofing (although that is still a bit of a mystery to me), and bulk fermentation (still a little mystified).

Some people take a very scientific approach to baking sourdough, and for other people, rules do not apply. Other people have a warm environment, some people (like me), prefer the thermostat in my tiny apartment to not go over 68 or 69 degrees. …and humidity (or lack of it) can affect your outcome.

I learned a few useful things in the groups, and I’ve written them down.

I’ve also wasted a lot of time listening to people arguing about things you are “supposed to do” or things you are “not supposed” to do. Admittedly, I’ve been more confused by the volumes of comments that I read than helped. I’ve also got some books by professional bakers who give detailed instructions for making sourdough bread.

I’ve given some thought to the many hours of conflicting voices that I’ve listened to about bread baking (I’ve baked bread for over 50 years, but I had some relearning to do with baking sourdough bread). It caused my mind to wander (it does that frequently) and I thought, “how similar this is to the Bible, to truth.”

Everyone has an opinion about religion, Christianity, what it means to be a Christian, and how a Christian is supposed to live and be. However, it doesn’t really matter what anyone thinks or their opinions and belief systems. The only thing that matters is God’s opinion, because frankly, the older I get, the more broken I see that the world and its people have become.

Even in churches.

My church journey has been interesting, too.

I was brought up in a church that made its doctrine the main point of salvation. God graciously led me to more scripturally aligned churches, and I have found in my later years, I prefer a church that reads/teaches verse by verse through books of the Bible. Having come to that point in my walk with Jesus, I am rather aghast at much of the instruction “Christian” leaders teach as truth.

Our God is both a God of mercy and justice, yet many people either rely on his mercy and explain away his justice; or they call our God’s justice and would hold back his mercy. There are other unbiblical views of God and “doctrines”, but I really don’t want to go into them here—that’s not my point, because I’m of the opinion that taking a positive approach to knowing our Father in heaven has much more appeal.

So, like with my sourdough, I go to the book, to the ones who know the topic and can give me an accurate answer. And the only answers to the ever-increasing opinions, “doctrines”, teachings, and whatever else the enemy has in his bag of tricks to throw us off tract (There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way to death. Proverbs 14:12), is to know our Bible—the Word of God.

I listen to it on various apps because my eyes are a little wonky nowadays and it is easier to have it read to me. You can listen to it or read it, but whatever you do, let it become a part of you!

Paul warns Timothy, “Now the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons, through the hypocrisy of liars who consciences are seared.” (1 Timothy 4:1-2)

It is the last days! Things are going to get worse before they get better, no matter what the deceiver says—because that it what the Bible says. Now (today) is the best time I can think of to fortify our deception prevention!