BY DAWN REED

When the alarm went off on Sunday at 4 a.m., there was a lot to do. Coffee day for our jail Bible study meant brewing started early.

It was going to be a busy day. There was jail study at 6:45, Sunday School breakfast, then Sunday School, the 11 o’clock service, followed by a deacons-and-wives dinner. The evening would end with Bible study at a local rehab.

I had promised to take banana bread to the employees at the rehab. Notes in my phone and on a kitchen cabinet were reminders.

At 5 am, I realized there was one small window to bake the promised bread: it was before jail. If I mixed it up quickly, there would be just enough time for it to bake.

I hurried around the kitchen as the coffee brewed, adding ingredients to a bowl. Filling the loaf pans, the batter did not seem exactly right. It felt thicker than usual. When I put the banana bread in the oven, it looked off. Had I not mixed everything as I always did? Hmmm.

I turned from the oven and saw the buttermilk on the counter. That was it. In my haste, I had forgotten to add the buttermilk. Buttermilk makes a big difference in banana bread.

Quickly donning oven mitts, I yanked the pans out of the oven, poured the batter into a bowl, then whisked in the forgotten white liquid. What a mess. New pans were filled and rushed back to the oven.

I always pray for my food to be a blessing to the receiver. This was gonna be a stretch. The odds were slim that it would turn out. Hoping for the best, I carried on with the prep for the morning.

Martha is a famous Bible example of having a lot to do. Told in Luke 10, her story is one we can sink our teeth into. Jesus was right there in her house, but she was too focused on other things to spend time with Him. As we read, we might be tempted to think, “Silly, Martha,” but when we compare our routine to hers, it is easy to see how it could happen.

These days, we can be super busy. Busy doing good things. As followers of Christ, that is our goal: to do good works (Ephesians 2:10). But in our busyness, it is crucial not to leave Him out of the mix.

Just as buttermilk is vital to banana bread, Bible reading, prayer, and being part of a church are vital to our well-being and spiritual being. If we leave one of them out, our mix will be off. Without a big daily serving of Jesus, I’m undone.

The acid in buttermilk reacts with the baking soda, causing the banana bread to rise. It brings the change.

As summer brings opportunities for other things, let us remember to keep Jesus the main, delicious thing. He brings the change in us.

The banana bread turned out fine after all. I will make sure not to leave it out again.