Wineskins

"Pour new wine into new wineskins." - Zen saying

That sentiment is in the Bible as well. What might it mean?

- New wine has a flavor all its own. Old wineskins bear the residue of previous wines, which could distort the taste from the way it was created. If we want old wine, why not drink old wine? Ideas of youth and promise can gain wisdom from the ages no doubt, but also lose their freshness when tempered with the failings or fears of the past. Sometimes ya just gotta go for it.

- How old are the wineskins? They had their day, but by now could be at their breaking point. A gallon of wine could translate to a pint on the ground. Is that an effective way to live? We can pour our energy into something gaining strength rather than losing it. When I'm choosing an organization to be involved with, one question I ask is whether it's growing or shrinking... flowering from its youth into a robust strength or fading steadily toward its death? Sometimes a patch of the skin might be hardier than others. I was once part of a growing church whose denomination had been declining in the U.S. for forty consecutive years. Look at the whole.

- Am I the old wineskin? Have I stopped growing? Am I getting starchy and rigid? Are opportunities passing by in my marriage, career and social life because I choose to sit in the same skin? Or do I carry a sense of renewal into each week so that I can fully enjoy the taste of new wine as it's poured in?