Seeds of faith
The other night I was reading my Bible and I was struck by how frequently nature or garden-related themes and analogies appear in it:
Again, He said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seed on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade. -Mark 4:30-32
I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. -John 15:5
That person is like a tree planted by stream of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither- whatever they do prospers. -Psalm 1:3
But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the world and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. -Matthew 13:23
And a new personal favorite of mine:
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. And even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrow. -Matthew 10: 29-31
Ok, so I think you all get the idea.
Spring is, by far, one of my favorite times of the year. Everything's blooming and growing in beautiful colors after the gray and dreary winter. The sun is out more often and we can start to put away winter clothes in anticipation for warmer weather. For our folks at our partner sites, it usually means they can actually start planting stuff! For me, though, lately I've been feeling restless. Don't get me wrong; I still love what I do. But some days it's reeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy hard being stuck in the office all day! One of the ways I draw nearer to God is by being outside, out in nature, and to say that weather is problematic in Berea is an understatement. That's why I love not just what I do, but where I do it; our office is less than half a mile from my house, so I get to walk home every day, and I really treasure that time. Yes, even if it's raining. I usually turn up my iPod and just let it go; if it's a p and w song, I let God have it! If not...dance party for one? :) My walks home help preserve a bit of my sanity on those days when we're not visiting sites or out on tunnel builds.
I think more so than being outside, I draw near to God through music. For the past week or so, I've really been into Matt Maher's new album, Saints and Sinners. If you're a CCM fan, you really gotta give this one a listen! One of my favorite songs on there, "A Future Not My Own", has the following words in it, and I'm ending with them, because I think they sum up the mission of VISTA/restlessness/feeling hopeless, lost, confused, etc. As for me, until we get into a more outside part of things, I'll try my best to remember that God is in ALL things, not just what's going on beyond the walls of the office.
We see the start, but You see the end
We see in part, but Your love sees everything
We plant the seeds, but You make them grow
We're building a house, You're building a home
Again, He said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seed on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade. -Mark 4:30-32
I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. -John 15:5
That person is like a tree planted by stream of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither- whatever they do prospers. -Psalm 1:3
But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the world and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. -Matthew 13:23
And a new personal favorite of mine:
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. And even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrow. -Matthew 10: 29-31
Ok, so I think you all get the idea.
Spring is, by far, one of my favorite times of the year. Everything's blooming and growing in beautiful colors after the gray and dreary winter. The sun is out more often and we can start to put away winter clothes in anticipation for warmer weather. For our folks at our partner sites, it usually means they can actually start planting stuff! For me, though, lately I've been feeling restless. Don't get me wrong; I still love what I do. But some days it's reeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy hard being stuck in the office all day! One of the ways I draw nearer to God is by being outside, out in nature, and to say that weather is problematic in Berea is an understatement. That's why I love not just what I do, but where I do it; our office is less than half a mile from my house, so I get to walk home every day, and I really treasure that time. Yes, even if it's raining. I usually turn up my iPod and just let it go; if it's a p and w song, I let God have it! If not...dance party for one? :) My walks home help preserve a bit of my sanity on those days when we're not visiting sites or out on tunnel builds.
I think more so than being outside, I draw near to God through music. For the past week or so, I've really been into Matt Maher's new album, Saints and Sinners. If you're a CCM fan, you really gotta give this one a listen! One of my favorite songs on there, "A Future Not My Own", has the following words in it, and I'm ending with them, because I think they sum up the mission of VISTA/restlessness/feeling hopeless, lost, confused, etc. As for me, until we get into a more outside part of things, I'll try my best to remember that God is in ALL things, not just what's going on beyond the walls of the office.
We see the start, but You see the end
We see in part, but Your love sees everything
We plant the seeds, but You make them grow
We're building a house, You're building a home
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