Ashy or solid?

But the Spirit guides us

Psalm 143:10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.

Sometimes life feels so unpredictable walking forward feels “ashy.”

I internalized that image from an experience I had when I was fourteen. I attended a youth retreat a few hours from my home in Guatemala, designed for MKs (missionary kids) for whom such an experience was rare. What a privilege! I have never forgotten the fun of spending time with other teens, nor the impact of our speaker Ron Blue’s teaching about Romans 12:1-2: Don’t conform to the world …

During the retreat we got to hike a mountain next to Pacaya, an active volcano. It was hard! A recent eruption had buried the trails in several feet of still-warm ash. Have you ever tried to walk through ash? Imagine trying to climb a hill when with every step you try to take you slide backwards or sideways. Just keeping your balance, or getting to your feet again after you fall, feels like the toughest thing you’ve ever tackled. And the ash gets into your clothes, into your mouth and eyes, covers your skin … A “slippery slope” for sure.

Pacaya Volcano: Shutterstock yggdrasill

We didn’t manage to hike far. We finally got around to the side of the mountain not facing Pacaya, where we could sit, gulp water, and gasp over the majesty of a circle of volcanoes, a crystalline blue lake nestled in the valley between them. As we took in the view, our speaker challenged us to give our lives to the Creator of all this beauty, a trustworthy guide.

Our leaders decided we should walk downhill on that side of the mountain, to avoid most of the ash. What a delight and relief to find firm footing! We no longer took it for granted.

All this was still vivid in my mind when a short time later I moved to the U.S. to live with a family I didn’t know in a foreign world where almost nothing was as I expected.

Occasionally another teen would give me hints about how to dress, how to behave, how to talk, how to relate, guiding me to a firmer path through the strange adolescent milieu of an American high school. They probably had little idea how important I found their willingness to share their knowledge. Despite Romans 12:2, there were many ways I needed to conform to this world! Sorting all that out sometimes felt like walking through ash.

Our sibling group is walking through some tough uncharted “ashy” terrain related to health and aging. It’s good to know that we can trust the Holy Spirit to guide us on solid ground.

Gentle and quiet

But God’s Spirit loves beauty

Job 26:13-14 God’s Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent. These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power.

Isaiah 61:3 To all who mourn in Israel, the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.

1 Peter 1:2, 3:4 God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. … Clothe yourselves with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.

I love hiking! Nothing soothes my soul more than unhurried time in the gentle beauty of woods. Birdsong and the music of a brook, the exquisite beauty of tiny wildflowers, fleeting glimpses of deer and other woodland animals, shade and sun and breeze combine in beauty that is precious to me.

Catoctin Mountain Park, Steve Walters

I enjoyed all this last week during our family reunion, on a trail in the Catoctin Mountain Park in the lovely company of a beloved niece and nephew. They were patient with me when I needed to breathe a bit on the ascent, and the rich conversation we shared has given me food for thought ever since.

God created us to love beauty. His Spirit creates and sustains beauty both surrounding us and within us, in harmony with his own nature.

I hope that today you and I will find space to soak in the loveliness of the world and people around you. And find joy in the work of the Spirit in our own hearts.

Fairest Lord Jesus (“Beautiful Savior”) unknown writer, 1662, Stacey Sings Hymns.

The plow’s blades are sharp

But God’s planting produces a harvest of love

Hosea 10:1-4, 12 The richer the people get, the more pagan altars they build. The hearts of the people are fickle. … They spout empty words and make covenants they don’t intend to keep. So injustice springs up among them like poisonous weeds in a farmer’s field. … The Lord says, “Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love.” Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.

In April 2013, I asked Karis how she wanted to celebrate her 30^th birthday. By then she wasn’t very mobile and often rested in the recliner we positioned for her in our dining room, looking out on our back yard. Most Pittsburgh yards slope either up or down. Ours curves up with a flattish strip along the back fence.

For her 30^thbirthday (May 5, 2013), Karis requested turning the grass strip into a perennial garden, created with transplants from her friends’ gardens. As she enjoyed the flowers, she would remember their amazing and beautiful love for her.

A Notre Dame friend, Georges, offered to take on the project of transformation. With a borrowed rototiller, he broke up roots and plowing the grass under.

Once Georges declared the space ready, we invited friends to come over and plant something from their gardens. Spring brought a profusion of blooms to delight and encourage Karis as her kidney failure worsened.

All this came to mind when I read this passage from Hosea. Weeds (in our case, grass) can be dealt with several different ways. The most gentle and time-consuming is to pull them out. They can be killed with chemicals. Or they can be plowed, like Georges did to create Karis’s perennial garden, using sharp blades to destroy both the plants and their roots.

Through Hosea, God asked his people to plow up the hard ground of their hearts, so the seeds of righteousness could flourish. Georges’ rototilling illustrates for me how painful that work can sometimes be, when it’s not just a weed here or there, easy to pull out by hand, but rather a whole section of my heart given over to bad habits, attitudes, and behavior because of neglect or resentment or idolatry (something else becoming more important to me than loving God and others).

I’ve had to do some painful plowing of my heart the last couple of weeks. You too? I can’t wait to see the beautiful crop of love God promises to grow from his seeds of righteousness.