I love that term, don’t you? A baker’s dozen. Who doesn’t want a baker’s dozen of anything, especially donuts, homemade rolls, loaves of bread, you know, bakery stuff. I’m a lover of all things carb and when I’m given a baker’s dozen, I feel compelled to indulge – I must eat it! All 13. I was interested in where that term came from after my prayer time the other day.
So what exactly is a baker’s dozen other than yummy? In medieval times, bread was sold by weight. Just like today many of our foods are sold by weight. A stroll around the grocery store proves it. Farmers’ Markets affirm it. Meat is priced per pound. Fruits and vegetables are priced per pound. Canned food is sold by ounces. Dried foods like spaghetti and rice are sold by pound. Ice cream used to be sold by the gallon – there are some tricksters out there though who have kept the gallon price but not the gallon size – check it out. Anyway, you get my drift.
The best things in life are sold by the dozen! The most precious things in the world, think about it, it’s downright true, are sold by the dozen. Donuts – by the dozen. Breads – by the dozen. Cookies – by the dozen. Muffins – by the dozen. Nowadays you only occasionally stumble across a baker’s dozen – 13 of something! When bread was sold by weight, bakers used to throw in an extra to be sure they complied with the weight standards. You see, a baker could be fined or flogged for cheating customers out of their fair share. In those medieval times, it was a little more difficult to be precise. Temperature control, air flow, baking conditions, yeast quality, moisture control (especially in England), etc. made it difficult to make sure that a roll was a roll was a roll. Size and density varied. No two rolls were alike – I’ll take the big one! In order to avoid the harsh penalties, a baker would throw in an extra just in case there was shortage.
So, what’s all that rambling got to do with my prayer list? You know how my mind works, it makes weird connections and here’s another. I have a baker’s dozen on my prayer list – oh, it’s not a written list, it’s a mental list. A list of 13 people, my baker’s dozen, that I love who either don’t know Jesus, outright reject Jesus, or are just dabbling in Jesus. Not a criticism, just an observation. Thirteen precious people! Thirteen sweet, wonderful people who I want to meet in Heaven – no time soon mind you. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are tons of folks I want to see in Heaven, but the Lord has imprinted these people on my heart for some reason for right now. You see it’s personal for me – these are the people Jesus has entrusted to my prayer care. Sure, there may be other pray-ers praying for my baker’s dozen, and sure there are others that I am praying for outside my baker’s dozen. The point is the prayer.
And remember, the Lord is waiting so that people have time to be saved.
2 Peters 3:15
Just think what the world would be like if every believer committed to adopting a baker’s dozen. You’re thinking great, add one more thing to my to-do list, add 13 more things to my prayer list that I can’t get through already. Why yes, yes I am. You see the most important thing we can ever do for someone is to pray for their salvation. Sure there are many things on earth to pray for, but everything here on earth is temporary – everything. Everything here on earth can be taken care of by Heaven. Salvation. Every hurt on earth can be healed by Heaven. It sounds too good to be true, but it’s not. So, how am I going to find time to do this, you say? Easy, I say. We waste away how many hours a day with mindless mind-chatter. You know, those conversations we have in our heads – I’d say this, I’d do that, I’m gonna – Preparing for this, preparing for that. Those moments of wasted time and energy can be captured. Thirty sincere seconds without the radio or TV, or whatever else it is that pulls us away from presenting someone to God for eternal life.
Here’s the thing, our prayers for others don’t have to be novel sized. A thought, a whispered prayer, a moment. Lord, turn their hearts to you. Lord, fan the flame. Lord, open their eyes to you. Lord, draw them close to you. Just…Lord.
Praying for others sometimes seems like a daunting task – just be honest. That’s because when we pray, we try to tell the Lord all the things wrong that need fixed. Oh yeah, then we try to tell Him how to fix them in the way we want, or in the way we think would be best for them. Who are we? Our job is simply to present them to Jesus and allow Him to work it out with them. We cannot save people, only Jesus can. We cannot heal people, only Jesus can. That takes the daunt out doesn’t it? We offer them up to Him, The One, The Way, The Only.
Look at it exponentially. My baker’s dozen, if even one of them eventually has a baker’s dozen, and then even one of their baker’s dozen has a baker’s dozen. Think about it. That’s how the Good News is spread, one person at a time.
Wednesday
Read 2 Peter Chapter 3. Peter notes how we should live each day until Christ returns. Write down what Peter says about how we should be living. Let’s compare that with how we are truly living. What are we doing while we are waiting?
Thursday
Read 2 Peter 3:13-15. Read Romans 2:4. Both passages talk about God giving us time. List the reasons in those passages.
Friday
Read Ephesians 3:-1-13. What is the secret plan revealed. Write it down. As Followers of Christ, we have been given the responsibility, the task, the honor, the joy, the courage, the power to spread the Good News. How are we doing?
Saturday
Read Ephesians 3:14-21. Paul’s prayer. Could this be a prayer for our baker’s dozen? Are there folks for whom we would fall to our knees on a regular basis petitioning the Lord to open their hearts to Him?
Sunday
Think about the folks around you. If you were to commit to praying for a baker’s dozen, who has the Lord laid on your heart? Children, parents, friends, coworkers, neighbors, family, folks you may not yet know? We have an opportunity to be part of God’s divine plan for others – Salvation.
Monday
Read Ephesians 2:8-10. We were not saved for our own benefit. We were saved to glorify God and bring others to Him.
Tuesday
Read Ezekiel 12:19-20. Read Jeremiah 29:11-14. Read 2 Corinthians 5:15-21. Use these verses as the base for our prayers for our baker’s dozen. Search for more scriptures to use as prayers.
A BAKER’S DOZEN
