Making Room for New Wine: Letting Go of Old Skins and Embracing the You That’s Growing

I was in my favorite coffee shop the other morning, catching up on some work while waiting for my next meeting, half-listening to the hum of conversations, and it hit me...how often we try to squeeze ourselves into old spaces that just aren’t made for us anymore.

You know that story about old wineskins? New wine can’t go in old wineskins, or they’ll burst. Too tight, too worn, too stretched. And isn’t that just how life feels sometimes? We carry old expectations, old habits, old versions of ourselves, and we try to make them work for who we are now.

And...

I’ll be honest, I’ve done this more times than I care to admit.

Trying to fit the “perfect mom” mold while juggling work, family, and church.

Trying to force my faith into a tidy box so no one would see my doubts.

Trying to act like I had it all together, when inside, I was stretched thin, anxious, and secretly wondering if I was enough.

It’s exhausting, isn’t it?

That constant pressure to hold yourself together, to meet everyone else’s expectations, to be the person you think you’re supposed to be.

And the irony? The harder we try to squeeze, the more fragile and cracked we feel.

Then one morning, while stretching for my run, I realized maybe it’s not about fitting. Maybe it’s about letting go of the old wineskin and finding...or creating...a space that actually fits me. A space that can hold my questions, my doubts, my growing faith, my joys, and yes, even my fears. Something flexible enough for the new wine God is pouring into my life.

It’s not easy.

There’s stretching, there’s awkwardness, there’s fear of making a mistake.

But there’s also freedom. Grace. Peace.

And slowly, with small choices to lean into curiosity instead of control, the space begins to form, and life flows more fully than it ever could in the tight, old container I was forcing myself into.

So today, maybe notice where you’re still squeezing yourself into old molds.

Where are you holding too tightly...expectations, routines, identities that no longer fit?

And what if you leaned into curiosity, grace, and courage instead, making just a little room for the new wine God has for you?

It’s waiting. It’s sweeter than you think. And this time, the container can finally fit you.