Dear Fellow Children of God,
Last Sunday as I walked out of my front door I saw one of
my neighbors walking down to his car where his wife was waiting. Across the street another set of neighbors
was working to spruce up their planter, and they were also planting some
flowers. It had been a while since we
all talked so I walked over to say “Hi.”
As I approached, the neighbor climbing into his car replied and said, “Everyone’s
coming out of hibernation.” Hmmm. Maybe so.
Two weeks ago the Elders brought a birthday gift by my
house. The gift was some vegetable seeds
and plants for my garden. So, on Saturday
when my grandchildren, Jackson and Kendal, came to stay the night they found
the seeds. Jackson said, “Poppy, I want
to help you plant the carrot seeds. Then
we can pick them next week and make carrot cake.” Hmmm.
I have had Jackson and Kendall help me pick carrots before. But maybe I need to teach him more about
seeds. So, we roto-tilled the garden,
measured the distance for the rows and pounded in stakes. We ran some string to mark the rows and then we
planted carrot seeds, radish seeds, beet seeds and lettuce seeds. We also planted swiss chard, brussell sprouts,
and broccoli plants. It was more work
than Jackson expected. But, maybe
Jackson will learn some more about gardens.
Last weekend when Jackson and Kendall came to stay not
only Saturday night, but Friday too, their cousins came over. The oldest three spent the night. So we had 6, then 5, grandkids at the
house. Kathy had invited them all, but she
came home from work pretty beat. So
Kathy told me, “You take care of them.”
Well, we went out to the garden and planted potatoes, and peas, and
onions. Then Henry stayed around and
helped me plant cabbage, red lettuce and cauliflower plants. ( Please see the pictures below.)
What all of these little life events have in common is
that Spring has arrived in Alaska. The
trees now carry my favorite color of green, that light green color of new
growth. The promise of new life is before
us. Soon our roadsides will be decorated
with colorful flowers. And soon our gardens
and berry patches will be giving food for our tables. In spring time we know that life has a
future.
God speaks to us in many ways. Obviously God speaks through the Scriptures
and the Sacraments. Most importantly,
God speaks to us through The Word, His Son, Jesus. But, God also speaks to us through His
creation. Scripture is full of teaching about
God’s truths from creation for those who will listen. Scriptures tell us that the heavens speak of the
glory of God. (Psalm 19), Jesus teaches lessons from animals, (Matthew
6:25-33), and from agriculture (Matthew 13).
God also teaches us about the life of a disciple from the life cycle of grain
and seeds. Jesus says in John 12:24-25, “24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat
falls to the ground and dies, it
remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it,
while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
Teaching may reach a head when it is taught in
words. But, when we learn the truth of
God from the experience of life, we more easily learn that truth in our hearts. I pray for many people. But, I especially pray for my family. So, as I speak to my loving Lord about my
grandchildren, I especially pray that they may know and believe in God’s love
in Jesus. I pray that they will someday
receive God’s gracious gift of eternal life in heaven.
Maybe spending time in the garden with “Poppy” and
learning about patience and life will help my grandchildren learn about our
Lord and His plan for our lives. “24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat
falls to the ground and dies, it
remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it,
while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
A Child of God, Thankful for Spring, praying for my
grandchildren,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. Gardening with the grandkids. After all, even if you have fish to eat, you
need vegetables to go with the fish! https://plus.google.com/photos/114993745799525883148/albums/6150979902030077889?banner=pwa
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ABOUT ‘THOUGHTS FROM THE PASTOR’
- I am sending these e-mail messages, hopefully weekly, to all St.
John members and friends whose e-mails I have. (I am always adding new
names of friends and members – in case you are just receiving this e-mail for
the first time.) However, if you don’t want to receive this e-mail,
please let me know, and I’ll gladly leave your name off my list for this
message. . .
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