Ep 184 Activating & Reactivating

Today we explore aspects of activating something new and reactivating former parts of our lives.  Discover how these 2 aspects build off each other.

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Transcript

Activate and Reactivate

[00:00:00] Christina: Hello, it's great to be with you. Today, we are talking about activating and reactivating. And the inspiration for this comes from a simple parable from Jesus that I've been coming back to over and over again, the past few years now, Jesus had this habit of taking the most ordinary day to day things and drawing these analogies from it, and on a surface level, it can seem really simple.

And yet when you sit with it, there's a lot of profound wisdom that I think can be found. And so he's comparing what's the kingdom of God is like. And he says, it is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about 60 pounds of flour until it worked all the way through the dough. And so as I've been sitting with this imagery of Jesus I've been thinking about it in an activating sort of way.

The yeast is slowly working its way through the dough to activate it. And so in some of the coaching work that I've been doing with groups, we've been talking about paradigm shifts and how often paradigm shifts are invisible in nature, how we work through these ideas out over time. It takes.

unseen inner work that has to be done. And so it's been an encouragement for me that activation doesn't have to be loud, doesn't have to be in your face, but it can come in these slower, less notable forms, yet very transformational. Like this example of yeast, flour, and water somehow transforming into bread through this process.

[00:01:23] Chris: I really appreciate you bringing up this notion of activation and I've talked to a number of people over the last couple of months, and one of the words that I'm struck by that you've used a couple of different times is transformation that happens. And I think when you, you add an ingredient. To your life or you add a spiritual practice to your life and the transformation.

I think a lot of people have expectations that the transformation happens right away, but I really appreciate you saying sometimes the transformation doesn't happen until later on. You have to wait a certain period before you see transformation. Although I think there are times where we may activate a practice in our life or we may do something that causes transformation right away.

But I really like thinking about activating and the notion of the transformation that, that would happen in one's life.

[00:02:20] Christina: So while I think there are times where we activate, we catalyze, like this yeast is talking about, I actually want to build off this concept from the angle of reactivating. And I'm going to take inspiration. Building off of Jesus's parable from a recent experience with sourdough. I know many people were on a sourdough kick during COVID.

I never got on that train. I didn't have time or interest or whatever. However, a few weeks ago, my neighbor gifted me with a sourdough starter and a lesson on how to use it. And so I discovered this process of reactivating a starter by feeding it. So for those of you who are not familiar with how this works, my neighbor created a sourdough starter which contains enzymes to work as a rising agent.

And she went through a multi day process in order to create this starter. It has to sit and ferment and it's this whole ordeal. However, once you have this, you can use part of it for your day's baking and then you keep some of the starter for the next batch. And so my neighbor pulled out starter from the fridge while it's in the refrigerator, it's no longer active.

And so she said, I have to feed it. And so she puts some flour and some water to reactivate it. And then as it sits for several hours, it becomes a living yeast and it doubles in size. So she reactivated it, gave some to herself and then sent me home with a jar full. And so as I've been sitting with this idea of a cold starter in my fridge, again, I'm amazed at the transformation that takes place when you add a little bit of flour and water.

Again, it's simple and yet it can reactivate not only what you need for today, but then continues to multiply for the future, which again, in my previous experience with bread baking with yeast, you make your bread and then that's it. And it again, that slow transformational process that we're talking about, but the sourdough starter is actually a different ball game where it's what you need today, but then also you can reactivate it later down the road.

By putting it in the fridge and then refeeding it. And so I find myself drawn back to the words of Jesus with this sourdough reactivating aspect in our own lives. And so just reflecting on, okay, I have different life experiences. I have resources. I have relationships that exist as a basic makeup of who I am.

However, not all of those things are active in my life right now in certain ways or at the same time. And so these dormant part of me. Something simple can activate, reactivate those things, right? So a conversation, a noticing, maybe a simple suggestion from someone that brings something back into my active awareness, and so I'm going back to those things that are within me.

And there's a reactivation process that happens. So again, the activating and then the 

[00:05:02] Chris: reactivating.

Yeah, I think I I appreciate you bringing out this analogy with the sourdough and this notion of reactivating. And I think the thing that I was struck by in your story is words, how, words form our lives. And I think you, you described a circumstance or a situation where something reemerged or resurfaced.

And. I was walking with someone just the other day and we were actually talking about engaging in spiritual practices that, they, that they didn't currently walk out in their life. And so there's this invitation to maybe go back to this practice. And as I think about this idea of reactivating, I think it's always in us, right?

Like it's there. The starter is there. The things that we've done, the things that we've experienced, they're there. But what we're doing is we're calling them to the surface again. As a pathway forward. And so I really appreciate you bringing that forward. 

[00:06:12] Christina: Yeah. And I think that there is wisdom and sometimes we have to dip back into our timeline to garner something that we had from before in order to move forward.

So it's not that we're staying back there or trying to return to a form that once was, but we're borrowing wisdom from that part of our life. We're borrowing pieces from that part of our life to then reactivate and then it creates something new. So the start of. The sourdough starter that I have in my refrigerator now several weeks later from my friend in the neighborhood, although the beginning essence came from her.

Now it's a completely different thing because it's several weeks down the road and we've refitted and baked a bunch of bread and done different things. And so it's taken different forms and shape, even though the I, two weeks ago it was one thing and now it's something different. And so I think that there's this dynamism that happens when we're reactivating pieces in our lives.

It's a little bit different than nostalgia, which is just going back and reminiscing. It's taking something kind of borrowing it to move forward. Like you're mentioning, Chris, I like that. 

[00:07:08] Chris: Yeah. And I was with a group of people not too long ago and one of the practices it was a contemplative practice and we were doing this thing of a couple of different practices but one of the themes was God's love for us.

And so one of the practices that we engaged in was audio divina. And so I play guitar and we sit and we listen and audio divina just means divine listening, listening with your heart, listening with your ears. And one of the participants felt like they were reminded of a memory of when they were a kid and they were sitting in a of flowers and just this sense of God loving them so much that they You know, the flowers were just for them.

And so I really like what you're saying. Cause it built upon the theme of the practice. Like the theme was God's love. And so being drawn back to that memory of being a kid totally built upon the present moment. And yeah, that, that is amazing. 

[00:08:08] Christina: I think another thing that strikes me about this parable is the multiplication aspect of it.

And so again, my neighbor. Just because she split her starter dough with me, she now has twice as much, we, we walked away that day, both having fed it, and then at the end of the day, she had double again, she had what she started with, and then, and I had double, and so this beautiful multiplication sort of miracle that happens, if you will.

And it reminds me of this beautiful kingdom concept, right? That Jesus is getting at, but there's a childhood song. Speaking of that, Chris, that we used to sing in elementary school. And it says love is something. If you give it away, you end up having more. And then it goes on. It's just like a magic penny.

Hold it tight and you won't have any lend it, spend it. And you'll have so many. They'll roll all over the floor for love of something. If you give it away, you end up having more. And as a kid, we were being taught to, to be open minded and generous and to share with others. And then it does come back to you.

And I think there's something about this kingdom principle that Jesus is saying, again, it's a lot of times it is invisible. It's inner work. It doesn't have to be loud and flashy. And yet at the end of an, and I was struck again, when I read this it's wow, 60 pounds of. flour that Jesus uses in Luke 13 20 when he's describing this, which is a lot of flour.

So I don't know if this like village lady, like baked for the whole entire community or what, but but again, it's a very small amount of yeast that's needed to, to again, feed a village, and just that. And again, there's chemistry and science behind all of this as well of how that works, but the multiplication aspect is something that I'm really struck by

[00:09:42] Chris: Yeah I really liked that. And I think, going back to words, I think a lot of times when we sense what the spirit is doing, we can offer words to people that encourage them. And sometimes, we could just our words are, we're not paying attention to them, but if we're living from a place of love, those words, they grow and the people that are around us are blessed by them.

And so I really appreciate your song talking about spending love. And I've been thinking about that, living from that place of love, Living from that place of abundance, because I think there's such a temptation to live in scarcity and fear of there, there's not enough, or, if I encourage this person, what will people think, but, our words, Spending them as if it's like love currency for other people is something that comes to mind.

So I appreciate your song and very tangible way of how to. Live our lives 

[00:10:51] Christina: and it's interesting. You're using words a lot. And again to feed a sourdough starter, it's flour and water are the two ingredients that you need. And so it seems as though we're saying maybe love or a posture towards others and Abundance, but also words, I think are serving as an activator.

And, I think sometimes it can, like I said, just a suggestion from someone, I was talking to someone the other day who you know, and again, a lot of young people are maybe trying to figure out their careers, and what do I do? And maybe went to school to study something and it isn't quite landing.

And sometimes just like a simple thing of have you thought about this? That someone can suggest to somebody can change the entire course of that person's life, right? It's this. Activator or it could be a reactivator depending on if they're if this person has known them for a while and tapping into a deeper part of who they are.

So again, just the power of that activation and reactivation. And I think you're right, Chris, that words tend to be one of those key ingredients that are needed in this.

[00:11:46] Chris: Yeah, absolutely. I even appreciate the story that you just share because I think this notion of truly seeing people. And I think seeing how people are made, seeing the contributions that people are bringing to the world. I think sometimes people are You know, young people, they don't even see their own potential, their own, like how they're uniquely wired to be in the world.

And so truly seeing people means that you're activating the ways in which they move through the world. And I think that's what a lot of people are wanting is how do I move through the world being authentic and truly me that empowers me to be me, but also brings light and love to everyone else around me.

[00:12:29] Christina: So hopefully as you consider this idea of activation and reactivation, maybe the next time you eat a baked good, you can take a moment to reflect on Jesus's simple parable about the kingdom of God, which is that goodness, love, justice, hope, all the good things that are available to us as humans and how we can be agents of activation and reactivation.

So thanks so much for this conversation.

 And now is the part of the podcast where we talk about what we are into. So what are we into?

[00:13:02] Chris: Something that I have been into by association, my two oldest children have been reliving some of their childhood experiences. They've used to watch this television series called VeggieTales. And they have a brother who's significantly younger than they are. And they have been going down memory lane.

I've been going down memory lane with them on this, this movie and television series called VeggieTales. And so our house has been singing some really fun songs and engaging in these lovely vegetable and fruit characters called VeggieTales. So That's what I've been into. 

[00:13:41] Christina: Very fun. I have been into a new Japanese seasoning blend from Trader Joe's.

Our family often eats stir fries for dinner and I recently discovered this Trader Joe's Japanese blend. And we, as we've shared on the podcast before, we host students from different countries. And a couple of summers ago, we had a student from Japan and they tend to have more salty, savory snacks than some people from other parts of the world tend to lean into more sweet snacks.

And so anyway, it not only has it been fun and an enhancement to our stir fries, it has these different seeds and seaweed pieces and all of that. But it's actually reminding me of our two students. And I remember one day coming home with these seaweed sheets and like their face lit up that we had a snack that they were like, So nostalgic for from back home.

So I am into the Trader Joe's Japanese seasoning blend. 

Thank you so much for joining us and until next time, make it a