Once upon a time Rome was the center of the world, parties were lavish and the wine flowed freely from wineskins (a fancy name for the bladders of animals.) During this time there lived a healer who spoke in metaphors.

One day he explained to his audience how no one should put new wine into old wineskins but instead into new ones.

With use, the wineskins, (the bladders of animals) stretched and wore down, becoming fragile and brittle. They could break at any moment and would ruin the new and expensive wine that would be poured into them. It was a situation set up for anxiety and failure. The logical thing to do would be to pour the new wine into new wineskins, thus preserving both.

This metaphor applies in two ways: First to our thoughts and second to our potential.

1) Thoughts – If what we believe becomes our reality then our thoughts are hugely important.

Years ago when my thoughts were negative and self destructive, they formed the container or “the wineskin” from which I held and viewed all of life. My old thoughts created old wineskins – fragile and brittle and on the verge of breaking.

My thoughts today are vastly different and to place my new healthy thoughts into an old breaking wineskin isn’t wise.

As our thoughts renew so should we replace the container that holds them.

2) Potential – Everyone has potential. It’s about whether we choose to actualize it. As we grow into our potential we expand, becoming stronger and wiser. Huge plans require us to become bigger than we have been before, like a plant whose roots have flourished and need to be transferred to a larger pot. In this same way we can outgrow our present situation (our old wineskin).

The old wineskin might have once been perfect to hold our old thoughts and goals but will only stretch so far before breaking.

Growth requires us to pour our bigger thoughts and goals into a stronger wineskin.

By definition growth requires the ability to grow.

It requires that we replace our old wineskins (the ways which we thought and viewed the world) with newer, healthier ones. In this way as our thoughts become wiser, like more expensive wine, we have a safe place to hold them from which our potential can flourish.

May we go forth with thoughts like delicious and expensive wine.

Do you have a thought or belief in your life that could be considered an old wineskin? What thought or belief would you like to replace it with?

With Love,

Z :)

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