No Ordinary Bread

I love eating foods from different cultures, and some I most enjoy are the different kinds of bread.

Some bread is flat; some is leavened. Some is dense and dark; other bread is fluffy and light. Some is served warm and some at room temperature. I never tire of exploring and learning how each culture makes bread.

Beyond the taste and texture, however, is another amazing thing about bread: as different as each kind is, all bread shares a purpose, an experience to which we all can relate.

In many cultures, bread is central to our meals; it nourishes our bodies and gives us strength for our work each day.

It unites us, too. When I eat my morning toast, I can imagine someone else, far away, eating their bread with dinner or lunch. When I make my own bread, I can imagine someone else in another land doing the same thing—carefully and with love.

When Jesus says, ‘I am the bread of life’, we immediately understand the central place God has in our lives.

What’s more, we share Jesus, the bread of life, with each other, far and near, as we live faithfully.

When we think of Jesus, ‘the bread of life’, our ordinary, daily bread takes on a deep, rich meaning and becomes something not-so-ordinary.

Prayer: Dear Lord, we praise you for the gift of your Son, Jesus, the bread of life, who unites us all in faith. Amen