On Retreat - 3

It was the third day of our retreat and I decided to spend some time in the library. I had the room to myself and chose to sit at a large polished mahogany desk right in the window. I was on a journey this week and didn't want to miss out on what God had for me.

As I gazed at the panoramic view before me, I was totally taken in, from the morning sun highlighting the green-topped cliffs, to the inviting sea, to the sky with all the colours of the rainbow. It was breathtakingly beautiful - heart-stopping. It was like having a ringside seat on heaven. I just gazed, transfixed. It was touching something deep inside and I could have stayed there all morning.

In my observation I became aware of two things. Firstly, there was the separateness. I was in the warmth and comfort of the building, but this heavenly vision was outside. I then felt the closeness of Father, almost like He had His hand upon my shoulder, urging me to consider.

It was as if God was reminding me, that although as Christians we are heavenward bound, heaven is also to be experienced in the here and now. That He doesn't just want us to be observers, but partakers of the abundant life and that all we need is within us.

"The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you." Luke 17:20-21

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From a Brass-bound Stump

Because of her disability, my wife 'brings her garden inside' and is a dab hand with house plants. I never cease to marvel how she can grow beautiful plants from just a piece of leaf. One of her pride and joys is a magnificent maidenhair. With it's feathery green fronds, it has centre stage in our living room.

That is, until we returned home from a few days away, to find that some of it's leaves were turning brown. She realised if it continued like that, it could whither away and die, so drastic action was called for. She had to be cruel to be kind.

The stems were cut down to within an inch of the pot and the whole thing repotted in new soil. It must have been very uncomfortable for that plant to start with, as nothing seemed to be happening. I wondered if it was dead, but my wife knew better. Several weeks later, a tiny green shoot appeared and now we have the makings of a brand new maidenhair, looking fresher, greener and livelier than ever.

When we experience loss, we can be catapulted into a potentially painful scenario. Whether the loss of employment or health, bereavement, an accident, financial difficulty or whatever, it can leave us bewildered, even devastated. We may feel the whole situation is out of our control and that part of us is dying. Initially we may be in disbelief and want to escape from the situation and get back to what was. But as we adjust to the different 'soil' and yield to God and allow the Gardener to gently tend us, we begin to see the opportunities for growth and new life.

We may not be like King Nebuchadnezzar who suffered a period of mental anguish, before God restored him, but we may feel we have been cut back to a 'brass-bound stump.' However, we can be assured that as we look to God, we will come through. Things won't be the same, part of our life may have died, but there will be a new flow of God's life in us.

"Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field." Daniel 4:14-15 New International Version

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