The Wise Gardener

    This weekend Pastor Scott Fine (Mountain Life Church)  centered his sermon around the following quote:  "Do not be deceived:  God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." (Galatians 6:7)  The remarks touched on different ways we can flourish:  reading scripture and really integrating it into our lives,  acting with intention and keeping like minded company were a few of his points.   The Bible is rich in agricultural and gardening metaphors and since I spent all of yesterday working in the yard,  it gave me time to think.

     The front of my house is shaded while the back is a sun filled meadow.  We live at 7500 feet above sea level and get lots of snow so these are all factors that the wise gardener must consider.  Shade loving plants thrive in the cool of the front porch whereas the meadow welcomes sun worshipers.  Hmm.  People are similar.  We all have the capacity to flourish  yet we need different environments. We all have unique lessons to learn.
       As I cleared the dead leaves in the front flower bed I was thinking that it would help the plants breathe easier.  God does the very same for us. " He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." (John 15:2)  When you take the dead branches and blooms off a plant, it allows the nutrition to go to the parts of the plant that are still vital and alive. I believe God gives us situations for our highest good.  I will admit that there have been times that I have questioned the wisdom of the Almighty.  However, I know my doubt is a product of my own short-sightedness.  I cannot see the big  picture until events have played themselves out.  Proverb 3:5-6 states: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight."
     Jesus calls us to go and bear fruit (John 15: 16) and he gives the command: " Love each other."  He did not say love those who are easy to love, love those you agree with,  or love those who love you.  He meant everyone.  As Pastor Andy Stanley (Northpoint Community Church, Alpharetta , GA) said, "How dare we unlove someone?"   God knows the recesses of our souls.  He gives us people and experiences that open our hearts and shine light in every corner.  He truly is the Wise Gardener.   May you flourish.

     

His Grace is Sufficient for Me

     As if bronchitis and a sinus infection were not enough, my thyroid  (probably feeling left out of the general merriment) is also out of sync.  Surely I am one of the only people who could be sick for nearly a month and not lose any weight at all.  I was getting winded walking up the stairs and attributed that to the chronic wheezing in my chest.  Happily the wheezing is gone, yet the fatigue goes on.  An astute doctor checked my thyroid levels and lo, they are half what they should be to function normally.  So, now I will gradually increase the dose and check the serum blood levels of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) until I reach the therapeutic level.  Excellent.   
      At least there's an answer.  I was beginning to think I was losing my mind.  I certainly have NOT been losing any weight despite  strict diet and exercise.  I feel like I am trapped in someone else's body.  I've decided to take a new, radical approach, the hardest one of all:   Patience.  I will garden, walk, weight train, eat healthy, rest and get my medicine levels right.  I will not run until my heart feels like exploding.  I will not kick box until my lungs burn.  I will wait patiently. Supposedly, strength arises for those who wait upon the Lord.  I am now broken and I am ready to wait.  In 2 Corinthians Paul illustrates the Lord's view of weakness:  "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."  I have tried everything else; it doesn't work.  I am ready Lord;  I will wait upon your perfect timing. So I wait, and hope the "weight" will cooperate.  May you walk in His light.

Go in Peace

     I have been out of commission with a bad virus this week.   I went to the doctor to keep my viral self from morphing into pneumonia.  (Although I am a nurse, it is very hard to listen to your own lungs!)  I have spent the better part of the week hacking and struggling to breathe.  I have been so uncomfortable in my body that I could not sit still.  It got me thinking about the interface of our spiritual and physical bodies.
     I've seen many a movie where the loved ones tell the dying, " You can go now, it's OK."  Until the other day, I never really pondered the necessity of this gesture.  If I were dying, and my son needed me, I would hang on as long as I could.  I know this because I know how stubborn I am.  I am sure that eventually the body would give out, but I believe the spirit has some say.
     When my grandmother was dying she said,  " I'm scared."  What did I say? I said nothing.  I regret this and I regret it deeply.  It would have been better if I had said, "I would be too" or  " I understand" or well, anything would have been an improvement over my non-response. 
      Next time, when a loved one is dying I'll do things differently. I will reply and I will honor that very delicate place where body and spirit meet.  If a soul is ready to cross over they need support and faith.  I believe there's life after death.  Do I understand the nature of it? No.  Do I believe there's part of us that endures? Yes I do.  The awkward part about having loved ones die is we tend to make it about us.  Their illness and departure is about them.  When they leave, our loneliness and sorrow is about us. There's a time and a place for both.  Next time, I'll do a better job.  May  peace, mercy and compassion be yours.

Music in My Soul

Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.
Lao Tzu

    I went to hear a Third Day concert last week.  They are a Christian rock group from my hometown, Atlanta.  There is a spectrum of opinion on what sacred music is or should be.  I endured the droning monologue  of a young, and very self important, priest a few years ago.  "Only traditional music can be sacred," he opined.  Blah, blah blah blah blah.  He droned on until I thought my head might explode.  I was attending a wake and not in the mood to argue so I simply left the room.  Music, like other arts is subjective.  I say that whatever brings your heart closer to the One, whatever gives you pause to consider the holy,  that is sacred my friends.   
   There were times during the concert that the entire audience sang the songs a capella.  It was a beautiful, sacred sound and surely heard by the universe.  Each of us brings unique qualities and gifts.  Each brings a distinct frequency to the world.  Find the music that resonates with you and let your soul rise up.  Be joyous.