New life!

At some point last autumn, I abandoned the garden to its own devices. I let the fallen leaves lie wherever they fell and moulder away happily. Most seem to have landed in the flower beds. I left the dying flowers to cling on over winter, brown and shrivelled and ugly.

Occasionally, I noticed. And I thought, hmm, better get out there.

Today I took half an hour or so – positively balmy out there in the high 30’sC – and trimmed back a couple of the shrubs and voila! Beneath some of the fallen stalks and piles of slimy leaves, brave crocus opened purple and vibrant. New life, not just promised but already presented!

It’s easy to miss the signs of new life, of blossoms opening anew, in myself and in others close to me. It’s easy to become so accustomed to the detritus of past bad attitudes or unhelpful habits or harsh words that I can overlook the new life growing inside.

Coming into spring now – hurray! Time to spring clean soon – not just the house or garden but also the character. Time to uncover new life which God might just be nurturing in my heart and the hearts of others, new, positive outlooks, new hopes and dreams. Time to clear away the mouldering rubbish and let in the light, let in the air, let in the warmth.

Rats!!

Rats!

One of my neighbours is fighting to reclaim her garden from an invasion of rats. So far they have got rid of about seven of the rodents, but one very smart, very fat rat is too clever to take the bait, no matter the type of trap. 

My neighbour planted crocus bulbs in a patch, years ago, and delights every year to see the carpet thicker and more vibrant than the previous year as the bulbs open in burst of golden and purple colours. It’s taken years of careful husbandry to achieve this beautiful spread. It took the rat just one season to decimate it, eating his way through one bulb after the other.

It isn’t an overnight task to bring the fruits of the Spirit to maturity. It’s a lifetime’s effort, and it requires us to be alert to the ways in which little rodents can get in and nibble away at what is growing in our spirit, our personality. It only takes one rapacious rat, ignored or unnoticed, to undo the years of careful attention.

Gone for Good

Two days ago, the carpet of snowdrops and sprinkling of golden and purple crocus disappeared under a white blanket of snow. Today the sun beams out of a windswept sky – clouds streaking through the blue expanse – and those battered bulbs are raising their weary heads. 

Sometimes it seems that it’s the vulnerable and precious who are dumped on in life. Good to know that bad things are like the snow, quickly disappearing in the warmth of God’s love. It can seem that his love is slow in coming at times, but when it breaks through, the beauty of those battered lives is breath-taking.

Come to me, Jesus invites us. If you’re tired out and weary and needing a rest, he’s the one to go to. Keep company with me, he says, and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.

One day all the bad things will be gone forever.

Autumn Crocus

Standing in my window on another glorious autumn morning, I noticed the few purple crocus struggling through the weedy undergrowth. These valiant wee flowers have survived sporadic lawn mowings, car or truck tire incursions, and general neglect. They haven’t proliferated and spread, but neither have they died. I had to rush out (brrr!) and take a picture of them.

I read in Philippians today that it is God who is at work in us to help us want to be the people he created us to be. Sometimes we are all hemmed in like those crocus on the drive, our roots nearly strangled by the aggressive competition. But we can still bloom and bring colour and beauty into the broken-down landscape we may inhabit.

We can only do this as we rely on God. He in us. Changing our minds, transforming our brains so that we become the best we can be. It doesn’t matter if we’re part of a carpet of crocus blooms offering a breathtaking wash of colour along a river bank, or one of a few stragglers hanging on in the verge of the road. If we allow God to help us be all we have in us to be, we will brighten the landscape, bring joy to others who may be struggling, and move closer to experiencing the shalom of God.

A lot is spoken of mindfulness these days, mostly extolling its benefits as its practice proliferates into the classrooms and boardrooms. Much more effective than focusing on myself, though, and on my breathing or my position in the chair or the sounds around me at that moment is focusing on God, the source of all possibilities, the one whose answer is always YES. 

The one who gave up his life for me.

As I sat silent and still in my window ledge, I waited to hear his voice, to sense his presence, and I did. Maybe today I can be a little more like one of those crocus blooms, bringing colour and beauty (as Christ shines through me) into any situations I may encounter.