The glossy purple crocus- a royal flower, complete with orangey-gold centre. These three responded to a couple of days of sunshine, and now grace my front garden. So beautiful to see.
It’s important to be grateful for such beauty: and to say “thank you” promptly. By their fragile nature, these pretty blooms will fade fairly quickly. Frost/rain/slugs could make off with them by the morning… Though others will take their place and, in turn, will bring me again to a moment of joyous celebration!
“I will sing the LORD’s praise, for he has been good to me.” – Psalm 13v6
There’s an important distinction between declaring that “God is good” and “God has been good to me.” The first is a general truth and the second is a personal testimony. General truths can seem hard to take in the light of suffering or loss: the “goodness” is difficult to understand in those precise circumstances. There can be times where faith stands up under the strain and says “God is good” (through gritted teeth?)… see below for words from a country man and prophet named Habakkuk…
Tonight I give thanks and praise to God because He has been good TO ME in a specific way. A follow-up test has shown my cancer surgery was completely successful back in 2019. I believe God loves me and looks over me- and in a good partnership with the NHS, I have been blessed with a longer life. Honestly, it was harder to say “God is good” on the day the surgeon said “We need to operate on Thursday…” The general truth about God’s goodness was not something I doubted- but it didn’t “feel” good. God gave me a surprising peace, a wonderful wife, some amazing friends, and a brilliant surgical team… and now, three + years later, the general truth has become a specific one. I am simply grateful- and saying my most sincere thanks.
Today I also have various friends facing surgery, struggling with serious health concerns, living in difficult even tragic circumstances. God is good: my prayer must be that “God will be good to them” in the most appropriate manner, bringing healing and wholeness through medical skill and/or Holy Spirit power and grace. (There is no need to believe it must be God-OR-medicine. It can be BOTH/AND.)
I truly hope that my faith- and theirs- may reach the depth of that man Habakkuk… To be able to say and mean this:
“Even if the fig tree does not bloom and the vines have no grapes, even if the olive tree fails to produce and the fields yield no food, even if the sheep pen is empty and the stalls have no cattle— even then, I will be happy with the Lord. I will truly find joy in God, who saves me. The Lord Almighty is my strength. He makes my feet like those of a deer. He makes me walk on the mountains.” – Habakkuk 3v17-19
I’m attaching this post to a photo I took this week of my favourite type of crocus. Purple-and-white stripes with a glowing orange centrepiece. I do believe the God who created these IS good and generously kind.
Simply thankful: Peace and grace to you, with joy and hope through faith!
I’ve done it again! Despite multiple failures, I’ve done it again. Will I ever learn?
A pleasant if wearying session in the garden, weeding out the really successful plants (weeds) and making room for the hopefuls for next Spring. I have planted crocus (crocii, crocuses, take your pick) once again. Not a good track record, never yet does the reality match my dream. So this year I’ve cheated. I have NOT planted any yellow ones- in my experience yellow crocus is just a salad bar for early slugs and naughty birds.
So then, purple, plus purple/white stripes, and pale lilac-colour. Cracked it! It was lovely to have my hands in the soil, pulling wicked weed roots, ripping out the dying marigolds, and making room for the greatest show on earth! 2021, Aldwick, West Sussex- the best display of crocus EVER.
This is being a gardener. It is a life of undying passionate optimistic HOPE. That which I have planted SHALL be floriferous, gaudy, and perfectly gorgeous. There, see, I’ve said it- again.
If only the RHS gave gold medals for dandelion or couch grass. Did you know couch grass has other names? “Twitch” or “scutch” or “Aarrgghhh.”
“Scutch” sounds like a loathsome skin disease… should I pray and command it to be healed, and never return?
Time for some better and more responsible theology, I think! The thing common to true gardeners is the kind of hope that carries on from year to year, always confident that this time the sweat will earn rewards of beauty, or stunning veg, or sumptious fruit. It is a lifestyle of hope despite hard labour and many discouragements.
Now I ache. All of me aches. Kneeling… not sure if getting down there is hardest, or getting back up… I gave the grass its final(?) cut for 2020, planted crocus and alliums, moved a couple of plants, put down mulch, pulled up this years’ crop of annuals, swept the path… and somewhere during all that I had a sudden sense of physical and emotional relief. Two reasons- first, I heard the very welcome news that “Scutch” Trump lost the election and may be composted in January: and second, the sheer joy of working with living, growing things of beauty and great potential. A surge of hope and confidence! Simply lovely. But I still ache.
We can live in hope, or shrivel in despair. Sheer hard graft may be essential (especially in the garden!) and doing the hard yards can be discouraging. Here are a few words from the Apostle Paul, addressed to the early Church. Hopeful words… when we sow/plant, we have hope of a harvest.
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” – Galatians 6:9 (ANIV)
“So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.” – The Message.
Communication- sight, sound, touch. We learn through experience and effort, through resting and remembering. When I see the crocus peeking through the grass, how does my soul respond? Two short quotes to consider:
Sacred writings are bound in two volumes—that of creation and that of Holy Scripture. —Thomas Aquinas (1224–1274)
Ever since God created the world, God’s everlasting power and deity—however invisible—have been there for the mind to see in the things God has made. —Romans 1:20
Today- look out for something that will speak to you of God and His love. The one who seeks, will find.
Went out again this afternoon on my e-bike. Riding against a headwind seemed likely to be challenging, but hey, that’s why it has a battery. I ended up taking a couple of detours (one on purpose!) that worked out well. First I came across a lovely bank of crocus clumps.
Then my “accidental” detour took me the longer way round- but on the way came within 10 feet of a resting buzzard, and a bit later a fishing heron flapped out of the ditch beside me. To crown the detour, skylarks serenaded me as I worked out how to get from C to B without going via Chichester or back to A.
A quiet ride into the Bersted Brooks Nature Reserve gave me time to reflect and listen to robins and blackbirds singing. It was great.
Going home was really easy. The wind was behind me, and the ground was pretty flat. By the time I reached home, a mug of hot tea was VERY welcome.
Most of the today’s route is one I use quite a bit to access the main shopping areas. Usually the car is necessary! Carrying big bags on a bike is not too clever.
The difference today was amazing. Usually my eyes are occupied with traffic, and the 30 mph speed limit is quite fast enough to mean I miss a lot of detail in the surrounding countryside. Oh good, you say! Keep your eyes on the road !!!
Today was worthwhile- I could stop and look. There was time for a few photos. I could apologise in person to the heron and the buzzard for disturbing their lunch. The skylark choir received the attention their melody deserved. The sights and sounds were simply beautiful. It was truly worth looking.
The things I see and hear are triggers for remembering the big picture, for taking a wide perspective on life, for allowing my mind and spirit to sort stuff out and see what is truly important. Having more time to do this is a privilege: and I wonder, if I had made more time to do this, would my life and ministry have been better balanced and more fruitful? We are surrounded by the crushing pressure of “busy” and find ourselves being shaped from the outside. Surely that is the wrong way… the core of life WITHIN should shape me and take priority over the world’s patterns.
It all tied in rather well with what Jamie was preaching this morning. Time to look, to see, and to pray… my ride reinforced what God was getting across to us in church. We like to put structures and rituals in place, and end up serving them instead of letting God mould us from the inside out. Look and learn. Listen and learn. Live the life we are meant for.
Thank you, God, for a second chance. It was worth the second look.
Romans 12:1-3 (NLT) And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice- the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.
Look, See, Pray 