Impossible dreams....

It is easy to believe that Jesus performed many miracles while he was on earth.  It is not hard to imagine that the power of his word would cause the seas to calm or the wind to cease or demons to be cast out or the blind to see.  God can do anything, and Jesus is God.

But that was then, and this is now, and it is equally easy to assume that the day of miracles is long past.  The world is a mess and God has a lot to keep track of.  What does a little thing like my life have to do with him, really?  Surely he has better things to do than worrying about me.  I don't know about you, but that is how my thought process usually goes.

Gardening...

It is spring, and the earth is opening itself up for planting and growing and renewal.  Spring is a time of hope, of inspiration, of promise.  The sunshine and the rain and the heat and the leaves and the grass growing all speak to the newness of life coming forth, and it is energizing.

But there is more to spring, a darker side to this cheerful season.  There is also severe weather, and violent tornadoes that destroy and kill.  There is hail, which batters the tender emerging plants, threatening their existence and the livelihood of the farmer who planted them.  Weeds sprout and take over the good plants, and must be ruthlessly destroyed before they ruin the garden.  There are gloomy days, when the sky is grey and overcast, and the clouds hang low like a weight in the sky.  There are trees that fail to grow because they are shaded by larger, more aggressive trees that take all the sunlight.  Animals are born, but they don't all survive.  Each season has its hardship, and spring is no exception.