God's Wife

An eye witness account from New York City,

on a cold day in December, some years ago:

A little boy, about 10-years-old,

was standing before a shoe store on the roadway,

barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold.

A lady approached the young boy and said,

'My, but you're in such deep thought staring in that window!'

'I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes,’

was the boy's reply.

The lady took him by the hand, went into the store,

and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks

for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water

and a towel. He quickly brought them to her. 

She took the little fellow to the back part of the store

and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed

his little feet, and dried them with the towel.

By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks..

Placing a pair upon the boy's feet,

she then purchased him a pair of shoes..

She tied up the remaining pairs of socks

and gave them to him.

She patted him on the head and said,

‘No doubt, you will be more comfortable now..'

As she turned to go, the astonished kid

caught her by the hand,

and looking up into her face, with tears

in his eyes, asked her:

'Are you God's wife?'

In the story the women is washing the child’s feet as Jesus washed the apostle’s feet. The modern day setting reminds us that we as disciples of Jesus are called to serve the poor and each other. We can bring the light and love of Jesus to the world by reaching out to those in need.

John 13:12-16 NIV

12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

In Jesus’s time the roads were dusty and people wore open-toed sandals. Their feet often became dirty. It was the job of the lowest servants to wash the guests' feet.

Water of Life

I love summer time and gardening. Everything about gardening makes me think of God. The flowers and vegetables are gifts God gave to feed us and surround us with his beautiful creations. Punning and transplanting are other things I’ve been doing a lot of this summer. I had some invasive perennials that I decided to dig up and replace with some colorful plants that will bloom all summer. I moved a few plants around because they weren’t thriving where they were planted. We had a few hot days and the garden looked parched and wilted so I gave it a good watering. Within a few hours the garden was transformed and radiant. It seems like everything we do in the garden has biblical connections.

Isn’t God the ultimate gardener? The world began in the Garden of Eden where everything Adam and Eve needed was present.

Genesis 1:29 (NIV)

29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.

God prunes us when we are out of control or too tangled up in worldly things that are not bearing fruit for the kingdom and plan God has for each of us.

The Vine and the Branches (John 15:1-4 NIV)

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

At the Resurrection, Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene as a gardner.
John 20:15 (NIV)

15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Our gardens need water to grow. We need the water of life that only God can give us. In the Bible water represents the Word of God, baptism, salvation, and eternal life.

Revelation 21:6-7

6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. 7 Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

Not to forget the infamous women at the well.
John 4:10-16 (NIV)

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

We give our gardens water to grow. Only God can give us the water of eternal life.

my backyard garden

Do Not Worry, Trust in Jesus

The following “poem” came to me in at a time when I most needed it. When your children are young you worrying about many things. When they grow up it isn’t any easier, just different.  

TRUST ME

Do you believe that I am the Son of God?

And do you believe that I died for all men and women and that I rose from the dead?

Then why do you continue to be distracted and anxious about your loved ones?

Do they not also belong to me?

Would I refuse to work in their lives as I work in yours?

I have not put you in charge of saving them.

I have already done that.

Nor have I charged you to change them.

Your task is to love them, forgive them and pray for them and to turn them over to Me.

Come closer to Me yourself.

And I will do the rest.

TRUST ME!

More of Jesus’s teaching on the fruitlessness of worrying from the gospel of Luke

Luke 12:22-34 NIV

Not Worry

22 Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24 Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

27 “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!29 And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30 For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

32 “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The Joseph Story

In the Jesus in Scripture and Tradition MOOC from Notre Dame University, the professor says, "Genesis 50:15-21, is one of the most profound passages in all of scripture.” Wow!

My lectio divina of this passage:

 Joseph is the 17 year old favored son of Jacob and Rachel. Jacob gives Joseph a very special coat, which might have been a type of vestment. At that time Joseph has at least 10 brothers and probably an equal number of sisters, although they not mentioned directly. Jacob has fathered these offspring with tow wives and two servants of the wives. It’s difficult to imagine what the family dynamics would be like under those conditions. The issues of sibling rivalry, jealousy, and multiple mothers, must have made life complicated for all members of the family. Out of all the children, Joseph is the favored and “chosen” son of the favored wife Rachel. Joseph was the long awaited child that came late in Jacobs and he gets much more attention from his parents. Jacob sends Joseph on a trip to check up on his brothers. I have to wonder why Jacob sent Joseph off alone to check up on his brothers knowing his naive and boastful behavior would surely get him in trouble with the older brothers.

Joseph goes off to find the brothers wearing the coat and brags to his brothers about a dream he had. In his dream this brothers are bowing down to him. It’s not hard to understand how showing up with a special garment and sharing the dream about being in a position of power over his brothers was not well received. Joseph was in a vulnerable position: alone, far from home, in the presence of his brothers who mostly hated him. They sold him as a slave. This was following his older brother talking them out of killing him. The brothers blooded Joseph's special coat and brought it back to show Jacob. They told him his beloved Joseph had been killed by a wild animal.

Joseph ends up in Egypt as a slave. In spite of many ups and downs Joseph ends up in a position of great power in Egypt. Joseph has the gift of prophecy and predicts a famine. The pharaoh believes Joseph and Egypt is able to store grain prior to the five year famine. The famine happens and the entire world is suffering. Jacob in his very old age sends ten of his sons to Egypt for grain. Joseph and his brothers meet again. They don’t recognize Joseph, but Joseph knows who they are, In spite of the evil the brothers did to him, he felt compassion for them and helped them by giving them grain and much more to bring back to their father. There is a lot more to this story and the reader should read Genesis for the details. This is a story of forgiveness. Joseph forgives the brothers the evil they did and tells them that God brought good out of their evil by putting Joseph in a position to save his family in the time of famine. Joseph brings his family to Egypt and provides for all of their needs. Then Jacob dies. The brother fear Joseph will turn on them now that the father has passed. The brothers think Jacob only took care of them to please his father

Genesis 50:15-21 (NIV)

Joseph Reassures His Brothers

15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died: 17 ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.

18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said.

19 But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. 21 So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.

Joseph has now matured into understanding his chosen position. He is no longer the young arrogant teenager. He now knows that being "chosen" is not about being in a position of power and prestige. It is about love and service to others. Being chosen by God means responsibility for the betterment of others. This is beautiful story of God's providence and forgiveness.

Jacob blesses Joseph and gives him the coat.

Illustration by Owen Jones from "The History of Joseph and His Brethren" (Day & Son, 1869). Scanned and archived at www.OldBookArt.com where it was marked as Public Domain.