Judge, Jury, Lawyer, or Witness?

Judge, Jury, Lawyer, or Witness?

A sermon delivered by Rev. Peter T. Atkinson

March 25, 2018

at Bethany Presbyterian Church, Zuni, Virginia

Matthew 26: 57-68

Matthew 27: 11-14

Let us pray,

Help us to see despite our eyes

Help us to think outside of our minds

Help us to be more than our lives

For your eyes show the way

Your mind knows the truth

Your being is the life.

Amen.

What a long strange journey we’ve had, from the entry of Jesus all the way to today when we consider Jesus on Trial. Today is a special day in the church, and it actually is a double duty day because today has two names, for it is Palm Sunday, but it is also Passion Sunday. And today we are paying our respects to both. It is as if we get the entire story of our Lenten Journey today, and then this week, we go even more in depth, with our Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services, Today we began the service dedicated to remembering Palm Sunday, Singing All Glory Laud and Honor again, then the choir’s anthem of Hosanna with the kids, parading and waving palms, and now we shift to the trial.. . the shouts of hosanna turning into the mob’s shouts choosing with resounding voices, Crucify him! Save Barabbas!

Let’s look at this trial. . . and I want to look at three different parts of it, for it has many different facets, as no one really wants to make the call on Jesus. The first two come from the gospel of Matthew, and then I also want to look at part of the account from Luke:

Here from Matthew 26: 57-68

⁵⁷ Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. ⁵⁸ But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome.

⁵⁹ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. ⁶⁰ But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward.

Finally two came forward ⁶¹ and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

⁶² Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶³ But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

⁶⁴ “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”^[a]

⁶⁵ Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. ⁶⁶ What do you think?”

“He is worthy of death,” they answered.

⁶⁷ Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him ⁶⁸ and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”

Now it picks back up in the next chapter, now from the Sanhedrin to Pilate, the Roman governor of the province of Judea, Here is Matthew 27: 11-14

¹¹ Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

¹² When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer. ¹³ Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?” ¹⁴ But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge—to the great amazement of the governor.

Now look at the same scene from Luke, I include it because Luke includes the charges Jesus is facing.

Luke 23: 1-5

Then the assembly rose as a body and brought Jesus before Pilate. ² They began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man perverting our nation, forbidding us to pay taxes to the emperor, and saying that he himself is the Messiah, a king.” ³ Then Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He answered, “You say so.” ⁴ Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no basis for an accusation against this man.” ⁵ But they were insistent and said, “He stirs up the people by teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee where he began even to this place.”

The one thing I want us to think about this morning is the fact that this trial of Jesus is not just a historical event.

Jesus is still on trial, today, just like he was in this passage.

If we are honest, we all play a role in this trial as well.

Because we are still trying to determine what to do with Jesus,

and by we I mean the world in general, all of us collectively and each of us individually.

IF we look at this account of the trial from Luke we see the charges made against Jesus

 and what Jesus' accusers say about him.

·         "perverting the nation,"

·         forbidding us to pay taxes to the emperor,

·         and him saying that he himself is the Messiah the King.

I can't help but see the parallels of then and now.

Perverting the nation:

Look at these quotes from the secular world of today, perhaps the man who is the chief prosecuting attorney, against Christianity, Comedian Bill Maher, these come from his mockumentary Religulous

         We are a nation that is unenlightened because, of religion. I do believe that. I think religion stops people from thinking. I think it is justifies crazies .

         When we talk about values, I think of rationality in solving problems. That’s something I value. Fairness, kindness, generosity, tolerance. When they talk about values, they’re talking about things like going to church, voting for Bush, being loyal to Jesus, praying. These are not values.

         I think religion is a neurological disorder 

         Faith means making a virtue out of not thinking. It's nothing to brag about. And those who preach faith, and enable and elevate it are intellectual slaveholders, keeping mankind in a bondage to fantasy and nonsense that has spawned and justified so much lunacy and destruction.[2] 

If you could summarize and mold together these four quotes, wouldn't they be saying that the idea of Christ is perverting the nation? And therefore should be dealt with accordingly.

Okay, now so, refusing to pay taxes to the emperor.

Obviously that is inciting people to be against the government.

Christianity stands in the way of the government's enlightened rule of the people.

They cling to their guns and religion,

rather than relenting to the benevolent arm of the government. . .

maybe not taxes, though we don’t really like paying them, but instead just blind allegiance. . . Christians are accused of this. . . and therefore Jesus is accused of inciting it.

Still. . .

And finally

Claiming to be King/Messiah/God:

How many times do you hear? Yes I believe Jesus was a very good man,

and a great teacher of morality, but Son of God. No way. . .

Prove it. So Pilate asks him, flat out, so is this true? Tell me. Jesus says, "So you say," or what do you think, what do you believe, Pilate?

So if Jesus is still on trial today, what is our role in the trial of Jesus?

Who are we supposed to relate to in the story of the trial?

You may think that this is an easy question, but is it really

Remember Jesus says, Father forgive them they know not what they do/

Are we the judge?  Relate to the judge

Are we the jury? Do we relate to the jury

Are we the trial lawyer? Do we relate to the lawyer

Are we the witness? Do we relate here?

What do you think?

Maybe the judge?

Here Jesus has three judges

The Sanhedron which has already come to a decision and are merely looking for evidence

Pilate, who just wants the most politically expedient end to this situation

And Herod, also political, looking for a way to get in good with the Romans who have kept him in at least Puppet power

Look it says they have become friends. . . .

One thing in Common – Power

We live in a times where for the last 1500 years the tables have turned and Christians have held all the power. . . at least nominal power

There is an old Proverb that says, be careful who you choose as enemies because you will become just like them

Article about Facebook and the Devil

Why do we make the things we don’t agree with “of the Devil”?

Isn’t that what the Sanhedron was doing with Jesus?

Satan and the Fence

Christians don’t have the best record when it comes to wielding power

And we deal with the consequences every day. . .

and part of it leads to the idea that Jesus always loses the trial

Father forgive them they know not what they do. . .

Jury. . we talked before as we begun Lent, looking at how Hosanna turns to crucify

Do we like to stay in control of Jesus?

Do we shape him to fit our desires and wants?

Do we cut off his edges to make him palatable?

But then when he that narrow version of Jesus falls short in our eyes,

do we choose Barabbas instead

Sometimes we don’t even realize it. . .

Article about Facebook and the Devil. . .

“WE should want eternal life for our children. . . “

“I don’t want to give my child the world if it costs them their soul”

Jesus loses every time.

The world crucifies Jesus every time. . .

Father forgive them they know not what they do

But maybe you are on the right side of it all, you’ve got Jesus in your heart, and you want to save him

Lawyer – Defense Attorney

Do we argue with the world

Do we make good arguments

Do we warn and try to make people change their minds?

The case for Christ, the Reason for God, God is not dead

When we hear Bill Maher, or anyone else we want to argue

When we see someone post the wrong thing about Jesus we want to correct them. . .

Winning

Pride

Red Cross Knight

When we see Jesus not answering his accusers questions we want to speak for him, stop them, show them

Can I get a witness

Peter and Denial

What it gets you to witness

The difference between witness and Lawyer

Revelation

Without a Sword

Without a Sword

A sermon delivered by Rev. Peter T. Atkinson

March 18, 2018

at Bethany Presbyterian Church, Zuni, Virginia

Matthew 26: 47-56

Ezekiel 33: 23-29

Let us pray,

Help us to see despite our eyes

Help us to think outside of our minds

Help us to be more than our lives

For your eyes show the way

Your mind knows the truth

Your being is the life.

Amen.

In our journey from the Colt to the Cross, we have gotten to the part where time starts to move very quickly

Because the events of the Holy Week has now turned into merely a few jam packed hours,

 at least the last three weeks have only been the story of a few hours. . .

Lord’s Supper, Gethsemane, now Betrayal and Arrest,

Just a few days after Jesus entered into Jerusalem on that Colt, and headed to the temple,

Now the trial and crucifixion are fast approaching, and Easter draws nearer,

we wonder could we face such darkness, without Easter’s glory rising securely in the future

So let’s look at this betrayal and arrest

Here Matthew’s rendering, this is Matthew 26: 47-56

⁴⁷ While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people. ⁴⁸ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him.” ⁴⁹ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him.

⁵⁰ Jesus replied, “Do what you came for, friend.”^[d]

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. ⁵¹ With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

⁵² “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. ⁵³ Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?”

⁵⁵ In that hour Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. ⁵⁶ But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.”Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

Look at the details of this. . .

Judas comes with the mob of men with clubs and swords,

the mob is from the Chief Priests and Elders

Then the betrayal kiss. . . saying “Greetings Teacher”

Jesus, says “Do what you came for”

They seize him. . .

One draws sword and cuts off the ear of one of the servants of the high priests

I always remembered that being Peter. . .

Jesus says put your sword back

Twelve legions of angels. . . . but scripture must be fulfilled

Am I leading rebellion? You could have taken me any time. . . but now because scriptures are being fulfilled.

Then disciples, desert and fled. . . .

We are familiar with the scene, I think

Today I want to take a look at Judas and Peter, especially, but really the last line,

All the disciples deserted him and fled

So all the disciples go away, let’s think about maybe why for each. . .

let’s look at Judas first, he may be the easiest to look at why he deserts. . .

Guilt right? Enough to lead him to suicide. . .

But what about why he betrays?

Is it just about greed and the thirty pieces?

Is it somehow that he was chosen to bear all infamy to fulfill the plan?

Or is it just somewhere in the middle. . .

Not what I ordered?

Disillusioned – Heaven on their minds

Revolution

Iscariot - - from there, or is it sword carrier

The shame is we won’t know because he kills himself

No one ever got the exclusive interview. . .

But Jesus does say. . .

Put down your sword. . . . and they all deserted

Let’s take a minute on this

I had thought that the disciple who pulled the sword was Peter,

but that is not Biblical, probably something I picked up at the movies

And they all deserted. . .

But we do get to watch Peter’ desertion

Three times he denies

Peter. . . could you?

Fight or Flight, right?

Could you do it?

Think of what it means. . . because you don’t get a sword

So you don’t get to fight. . .

Have you ever tried to build something without the right tools?

It makes a mess, and eventually you just quit. . .

That’s like fighting without a sword especially when everyone else has a sword. . .

Bringing a knife to a gun fight

Taking a test when you read the wrong book

Me teaching a science class

Having a church dinner when you can’t bring a casserole. . .

That dog won’t hunt

Can you fight without fighting? No so run away. . . quit. . .

Hoosiers. . .

Ezekiel

²³ Then the word of the Lord came to me: ²⁴ “Son of man, the people living in those ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as our possession.’ ²⁵ Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you eat meat with the blood still in it and look to your idols and shed blood, should you then possess the land? ²⁶ You rely on your sword, you do detestable things, and each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?’

²⁷ “Say this to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, those who are left in the ruins will fall by the sword, those out in the country I will give to the wild animals to be devoured, and those in strongholds and caves will die of a plague. ²⁸ I will make the land a desolate waste, and her proud strength will come to an end, and the mountains of Israel will become desolate so that no one will cross them.²⁹ Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I have made the land a desolate waste because of all the detestable things they have done.’

Of all the sins and reasons they list for the destruction, it is only the sword, that is repeated

Depending on the sword

Surrounded by Egypt, Assyria, Babylon

No win situation, with sword, but with God?

Fully Rely on God, isn’t just a slogan for Frozen Yogurt, ie Sweet FROG F(ully) R(ely) O(n) G(od)

Wouldn’t the disciples be in the same situation if they fought back

The Romans have more Swords, always

It seems that the only way for Peter not to deny was to wield a different kind of sword, and lay himself at the feet of God’ Will

They all couldn’t, it was much to scary, can we?

What armor have we, what sword?

¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.       

–Ephesians 6: 14-17

Is it enough?

It certainly is, but do we have enough faith to put it on. . .

A Garden

A Garden

A sermon delivered by Rev. Peter T. Atkinson

March 11, 2018

at Bethany Presbyterian Church, Zuni, Virginia

Matthew 26:36-42

Genesis 2: 8-15

Continuing with Jesus’s walk from the triumphant Palm laden entrance to Jerusalem

He headed for the temple

Broke bread with his disciples,

And then headed out into a garden to pray. . .

^{Matthew 26: 36-42}

³⁶ Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

⁴⁰ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. ⁴¹ “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

The setting matters

I’d like to juxtapose three different stories and places this morning

And so I want to put them in your head to before I begin. . .

Picture the place of this prayer, Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane

Picture the place of the temptation – 40 days and nights in the wilderness

And picture the place of the fall of Adam and Eve. . . another garden

I do think the setting of these three is significant,

So having taken a minute to think of the three. . . let’s look at the first in the Bible

Our Old Testament Lesson

 God creates the world in 6 days, according to Genesis 1,

and then there is the day of rest

And then we are put in a garden

Here is is for this morning Genesis 2: 8-15

⁸ Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. ⁹ The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

¹⁰ A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. ¹¹ The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹² (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin^[d] and onyx are also there.)¹³ The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.^[e] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 

What is it about gardens?

Jesus prays in the garden, let this cup pass, thy will be done. . .

God puts Adam and Eve into the Garden

To work it and to take care of it. . .

Have you ever worked a garden?

When I was younger I use to hate it

Dad would take me out with him, the sun was always hot,

the ground too was hot and dry, or the other extreme too muddy

the work took forever, and there were no winners and losers, no score, nothing to keep my attention

And it seemed at least to me like Dad always gave me the jobs he didn’t want to do,

The ones that had low skill level, the boring ones. . .

The garden took too long, and I just didn’t like it.

I remember Dad though walking in during the summer hours,

with the latest huge piece of lettuce,

With great Pride, Hey yall look at this one!

Yeah great, Dad. . .  I didn’t get it.

I didn’t get it then, but now I do

Now I get it, I love my hands in the dirt, I love planting seeds, I love the wait and anticipation of growth

I love that I get to share it with my kids, I love that we can grow our own food, that I can show that to the girls

I love that what we grow in our garden would potentially be more healthy for us to eat,

I love that we can save a little money, at least hypothetically speaking. . . we’re not there yet

I love that I’m connected to the rest of humanity, who has done this for thousands of years. . .

But most of all I love it now because it is my land, and my garden. . .

It’s mine

I get to plan it

I get to make the decisions,

I get to decide where things will go,

what they will look like while they grow

I get the satisfaction of going to the hardware store if I need to, to get whatever it is I need for it

When problems arise I get to be the one who solves them, and if I don’t it don’t

I don’t need winners and losers and a score anymore because I understand the reality of the battle

And if you’ve owned land, as most of you have probably, you know the battle

Against weeds, and vines, and time, and varmints, wascally wabbits, and flower sucking deer

Root eating moles, bugs, slugs, grubs, mites and blights

And digging in the ground and finding the unexpected snake in your peripherals

It’s a battle, but you have a vision

You can see it in your mind, exactly what it could be like, and that vision may not be attainable, and maybe it’s better that it isn’t, because it keeps you fighting.

It keeps you out there, digging, and planting, and weeding, and clearing, and cutting turf, and taking more trips to the hardware store,

And it does begin to take shape

And you want to show it off, that huge piece of lettuce, that picturesque vista,

that shaded flower bedecked oasis, where the hammock fits so perfectly,

and the lemonade is fresh and inviting, or any other cold beverage of choice,

God did mandate rest of course, didn’t he, to take it all in and truly appreciate a job well done,

But then the battle looms again,

And it is all a cycle, cultivate, plant, weed, wait, weed, wait, weed, wait, harvest. . . and again.

And when someone comes to visit and compliments you on your work it feels good.

There is the Old Joke, when the missionary comes by says

What a beautiful garden that you and God have here. . .

And the guy doesn’t miss a beat and says, “yeah you should have seen it when God had it by himself!”

And it makes you wonder whether God has a different thing in mind entirely when he sees garden

Because look at a forest, look at the edge of your yard, when you let things go. . .

Look at a field of nothing but wild flowers,

I once described a field of wild flowers like this. . .

I object to its disorder, its tangles, its lack of lines,

Its disunity, and patently patternless being;

I wonder  how it can produce the fruit

Of such multiplying color free from

Any bound. . .

What is God’s garden like? Is it like our own or not?

Would he consider our gardens gardens, would we consider his?

But it is true that a garden is the picture of the partnership between God and Man at balance. . .

Both are needed to at least fit the human definition. . .

It is as if Human’s add the lines, the details, the order. . .

And God supplies the life. . .

That’s interesting to think about for a moment before we go on. . .

            Because that is what the weeds are, and the encroaching woods, the disorder of the wildflowers

            Life without bound. . .

The Girls have been watching The Lorax Movie non stop this week

The movie based on the Dr. Seuss book about the Trufula trees,

and the little orange dude that speaks for the trees, and the guy cuts’em all down to make Thneeds

You know the thing that all people need. . .

The movie, reimagines the old story, that there is no a world after all the trees are gone, Thneedville,

And everything is a man made, artificial copy of what it used to naturally be like,

So they have fake, trees, and sky, and sun, and the bad guys even sells fake clean air for everyone

It’s total propaganda, but a pretty cute movie all in all. . .

But I wonder if that is the man version of the garden

Without God anymore. . . everything is neat tidy and perfect, but lifeless, messless, and in a sense: awful,

That is the Utopic picture of human beings without limitation, without God,

and the rules a real gardener knows. . .

which may be the cause or divide between rural and urban areas. . .

people who garden retain that humility that comes from fighting the battle,

but not winning it by breaking the rules. . . by disrespecting life. . .

Because experience teaches that if you let something grow itself,

rather than forcing it the results are better. . .

The poem on the back of your bulletin, is about such a time.

I had planted some sweet peas, but planted them where the rain beat them down a bit,

So they were a tangled mess on the ground, I tried to raise one up to meat the trellis that would save them,

But they wouldn’t go, they had too much spine,

so they were beaten down, and they wouldn’t let me save them

They wouldn’t let me do what I knew was best for them, no matter how much I pulled and pulled,

But then I just left the trellis there, and they grew up it on their own. . .

I called the poem experience, and closed it like this. . .

True gardeners, having seen

Before, remembering

July’s flowerng harvest,

Move to other meddling

Gardening experience teaches to let things go, to let them happen, and God does. . . Life does

Whereas pulling, forcing, just destroys that life. . . breaks the spine of the plant

Look at what Jesus is wrestling with here in the garden

Let this cup pass. . . thy will be done

He knows what he faces. . . he knows the pain, the cross, all of it,

But he accepts God’s will, knowing that it is the way of life, even if it leads through death

Think about Adam and Eve. . . God lies, his way is not better, we will not surely die

No but God’s way is life, and the way they chose was its opposite. . .

Think about our other setting of the three in the Wilderness

Jesus is there, the devil too, the devil promises him escapes from suffering

Food to a hungry man, power and control over all things, and a test for God,

I had said that defeating the devil is not difficult for Jesus, he simply says no, the devil says, Ok

It is easy to choose Good over Evil I think if you know the difference

It’s just sometimes we don’t know that difference, things that are evil seem good,

And vice versa, its that place of the serpent in the garden, the lie, you will not surely die,

That seed, planting that seed of doubt is enough to make us question, to make us lose surety

But look at the prayer of confession,

easy to say, “His will is perfect” difficult to say “His will be done

It is easy to say His will is perfect, but difficult to know and accept his Will for us

But Jesus does both. . . He knows his will and submits to it, and though it leads through death

It leads to life, he must let go, he must allow for the garden to be that partnership,

He must remember what the garden is about. . .

Man being put in the garden to work it and to take care of it

We are put in the garden to work it, and to take care of it, because that is who we are, who we are made to be, not for our own glory but for His. . .

And it can because mixed up right, who am I doing this for, who’s will is being done?

Remember I didn’t like helping dad in his garden, I didn’t feel that right sense

It wasn’t mine. . . and this isn’t mine either, if we think about it being God’s,

But there is a sense that it must be the garden God gives us directly, right

And it may not just be a garden. . .

Maybe it’s our job, maybe its art, maybe it is relationships, our families. . . work it, take care of it

Maybe it is our church

Look at the main parts of this sermon with the garden as a metaphor for church

It must be our own, we must have a personal call to it, ownership, our church, not our fathers

But it is connected completely to our humanity—we are connected to our forebearers

Vision, constant battle, but a battle that must never be won, can’t cheat it

God’s way is messy – our way is order,

God’s way leads to life – ours to artificiality, slow cheap death

Remember the Wildflowers

Would God consider our church, church? Would we consider his?

Remember the sweet peas and the lattice

Experience teaches we shouldn’t force things to fit, but allow God to work them

We mustn’t break the spines of others to force them to our will

Humility, partnership, all important for a garden to flourish

At all points of life, in every step of life we find ourselves in the garden with God, or rejecting God and standing tempted in the wilderness. . .

blown by the wind of our viewpoint

The garden flourishes and life abounds when we say as Jesus does, Thy Will be done

And that means being open to letting go, letting God, and picking up the cross, allowing the mess of the beauty of an occasional wildflower, while still holding onto a vision and fighting the battles continuously. . . tall order, and a conflicting order, but then again, there is order beyond our imaginings in the beauty which passes our understanding in the mind of God. . .

His will is perfect, despite our eyes. . .

Let it be done, and may life abound. . .

Amen