🍞 A Loaf with a Lesson
As I stood in my kitchen kneading a batch of sourdough bread, I realized I was holding more than dough — I was holding a living parable.
My journey to baking bread started for one reason: health.
After years of battling hypertension, diabetes, and obesity, I was told over and over again, “You need to stop eating bread.”
I tried. I searched for substitutes. But nothing could take bread’s place in my heart — or on my table.
Then I began to research. I discovered that the reason the bread from the store left me feeling bloated, spiking my sugar, and gaining weight wasn’t because God’s gift of wheat had failed me — it was because we had changed it. Over decades, we stripped it, bleached it, processed it, and even altered its DNA. We turned something pure and nourishing into something that now harms the very bodies it was created to sustain.
In my search for better health, I found sourdough. I learned to make wild yeast, to use unrefined, unbleached einkorn flour — wheat close to its original form. The process was long and slow. At first, I asked myself, “Why am I doing all this work when I could just buy a loaf?” But as I saw my health improving — no bloating, no sugar spikes, even weight loss — I realized the work was worth it.
And in that moment, it struck me: this is how God intended it all along.
His design for bread was good from the beginning — just as His design for all creation was.
🌱 God’s Perfect Design
“Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!” – Genesis 1:31
“God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path.” – Ecclesiastes 7:29
From the start, God made everything whole, nourishing, life-giving. Whether it was wheat in the field, marriage in the garden, or truth in His Word — it was all perfect. But somewhere along the way, humanity decided we could “improve” on perfection.
🐍 The First Alteration
The very first distortion of God’s design happened in Eden.
“They traded the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator…” – Romans 1:25
The serpent didn’t invent something new; he took what God said and modified it. Just like bread today, the truth was processed, altered, and sold as “better” — and humanity took the bite.
📜 Prophetic Warnings
God has always warned that altering His design leads to ruin.
“I planted you as a choice vine from the purest stock. Why have you become degenerate and turned into a foreign vine?” – Jeremiah 2:21
“…It is time to destroy all who have caused destruction on the earth.” – Revelation 11:18
Jeremiah’s words sound like they could be talking about wheat — but they’re about His people. When God plants something pure, He expects it to remain pure. When we change it, we lose not only the original form but also the original blessing.
🍯 God’s Design for Bread
From the Old Testament to the New, bread has been God’s symbol of life and provision.
“Look! I’m going to rain down food from heaven for you…” – Exodus 16:4
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again…” – John 6:35
Is it any wonder the enemy would want to corrupt bread — both physically and spiritually? Bread points us to Jesus, the One who sustains not just our bodies but our souls.
🍃 The Corruption Principle
Paul warns that even a small alteration can spread until the whole thing is changed.
“…Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough?” – 1 Corinthians 5:6–7
“This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough!” – Galatians 5:9
Once you introduce something into God’s design that doesn’t belong, it doesn’t stay small. It grows, it permeates, it transforms — and not for the better.
🕊 The Call Back to Purity
God always invites us back to His original way.
“The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul…” – Psalm 19:7
“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it…” – Jeremiah 6:16
Just as I went back to the ancient, slow process of making bread the way God designed it, we are called to return to His ancient paths — His truth, His order, His design.
💖 Why Choosing God’s Design Matters for Our Health and Our Worship
When I chose to return to a better bread — bread closer to God’s original design — I wasn’t just making a health choice. I was making a worship choice.
God created our bodies as temples for His Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). The condition of this temple affects how we show up before Him. When we fuel ourselves with what He designed — physically and spiritually — we’re not weighed down, distracted, or hindered. We have energy to pray, to serve, to rejoice, to focus on Him without the fog that poor health can bring.
Israel understood this connection. Before entering God’s presence in the Tabernacle, the priests followed God’s instructions for cleansing and preparation — not because God is distant, but because His presence is holy. Just as a priest would not come into the Holy Place without preparation, we are wise to prepare our hearts and bodies for our daily worship.
Bread in its pure form was part of that preparation — from the manna in the wilderness to the Bread of the Presence inside the sanctuary. Choosing “better bread” today is a reminder to honor the One who is the Bread of Life by caring for the body He has entrusted to us.
When we tend to our health God’s way, we’re not just living longer — we’re living ready, available, and alert to enjoy His presence and answer His call. And that, above all, is the true goal.
🌸 Reflection Questions
In what areas of my life have I accepted a “processed” or “modified” version of God’s truth?
Where have I chosen convenience over the purity of God’s design?
What “ancient paths” is God calling me back to today?
How does caring for my body prepare me to better enter into God’s presence?
🙏 Closing Prayer
Father,
Thank You for creating all things good, whole, and life-giving. Forgive me for the times I’ve altered Your design or accepted a corrupted version of what You intended. Open my eyes to see where I’ve traded the truth for a lie. Teach me to hunger for what is pure, to walk in Your ancient paths, and to trust that Your way — though it may be slower and require more care — always leads to life. Help me to care for my body so I may come into Your presence ready, focused, and full of joy. Keep me nourished by the Bread of Life, and steadfast in guarding the purity of what You have given.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
🌾 Longing to understand why God’s original design matters—in your health, your worship, and your walk with Him?
Let this free journaling companion lead you into prayerful reflection on what happens when we alter what He made perfect, and how returning to His ways restores both body and soul.
Together, we’re growing as a community of believers who seek purity, embrace God’s ancient paths, and guard the blessings He intended from the very beginning.
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Click below to download your When We Change What God Created Reflection & Journaling Guide.
—Written with love by Faithful Pen | His Words Give Life