“And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.” Mark 2:22 

If you research how wineskins were made back in Jesus’ day, it is even more interesting to learn how they renewed old ones. The new, soft and pliable skin full of oils was suitable for the fermenting of new wine. The skin stretched as the wine aged, but through time the wineskin tended to dry up and become brittle as the wine was consumed. Sometimes these skins were stored outside and experienced even more drying under the hot sun. Instead of tossing these worn-out skins in the trash, tanners would soak them in water for a time and then massage oil back into the skin. Some stretching and beating was involved to really work in the oils and water into the skin, kind of like how we work out a new baseball glove. Through some time, more oil, and rest, these skins would become like new and could be filled once again with new wine.

Life in ministry can feel a lot like a wineskin. One’s calling is sometimes referred to as wine in a wineskin. So, how do we make sure our “wineskin” doesn’t become hard, brittle, and burst? Much like the process of renewing wineskins, we too need some time to soak. Soak in water from God’s Word. Get some of His oil massaged into our hearts through prayer and being in His presence and maybe get a little stretched. The soaking and the massaging needs time. It wasn’t a quick fix for tanners to renew wineskins. It would be good to remember that it may not be a quick fix to recover from pouring out your life to serve others. This is especially true for those that may be stepping into new positions or new ministries, “new wine”. New wine needs room to grow and thus the reason it needs a new wineskin to ferment in. The wineskin needs to be soft and pliable to stretch with the expanding wine. As we continue to pour ourselves out and to prevent us from getting hard and broken, let’s remember to renew ourselves by soaking in God’s Word and receiving His healing oil in His presence.