Tumultuous Tomato

I love all types of tomatoes; especially ones that are vine-ripened.  And this is the time of the year when they can be picked and eaten right off the vine.

But, since I live in Minnesota and I don’t have a greenhouse, all winter I settle for eating pink tomatoes that were harvested and shipped before they could come to full maturity.

As I eat them, I dream of summer when I can go into my garden and pick one at the fullest possible time of maturity; ripened to perfection!

This year is no exception…

Day after day I have been watching for the first red tomato of the season, eagerly and patiently anticipating the day when it would be introduced to my taste buds.

I should also add that this year I removed our six-foot high barrier fence because it blocked the sun from fully reaching our garden…

 

And I built a new much shorter picket fence in its place so that neighbors would have an easier time picking our abundant raspberries - that we can’t possibly use all for ourselves. Year after year we get so many that even with freezing we still don’t have enough room to store them.

This year was no exception and because we would be on the road for much of July, we decided to invite all of our neighbors to partake so that none of the raspberries would be wasted. The same went for any of the other fruits and vegetables that were in our garden.

One of the days that we were home (in between our many road trips), I noticed that one of the tomatoes was starting to ripen. I was hoping that it would come to maturity the next time that we were home.

The next time I came home from our travels, I heard from many neighbors and friends who thanked us for the raspberries; confessing they had come multiple times and each time hauled away a “boat load”.

I also noticed that the tomato was almost perfect. I would give it a few more days so that it would be perfectly ripe. My mouth waited in eagerness for this day of bliss that was coming!

 

The next morning, I noticed that the tomato was missing. My immediate thought was; “Who would take my tomato without asking me?” (now that I was home). I used my placid facade to conceal the tumult of my mind.

Just as quickly as the tumultuous emotions tried to come up, they were replaced by thoughts of my own stinginess. After all, I had invited neighbors to take whatever they wanted; I should be glad that I had something to give.

Believe it or not, over the next two days whenever I went into the garden to pick raspberries, I would look at the tomato plant and wonder who took it?

And, just as quickly as the tumultuous emotions tried to come up, they were quickly replaced by words of scripture:

“You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19b) 

“Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.” (Proverbs 21:23) 

 “Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor.” (Proverbs 22:9)

“…but the godly are generous givers.” (Psalm 37:21b)

Today when I went into the garden to pick raspberries and I looked at the tomato plant, my eye saw something red. No, not me but a tomato. But it wasn’t in the garden. It was laying beneath a tree and about one forth of it was eaten…

A squirrel had taken it; not a person; I had been wrong...I realized that it was a good thing that I hadn’t allowed my mind to “take someone to court” over a tomato.

I almost took an offense and got mad at “someone” over a missing piece of fruit! Thank God for His grace!

 “Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.” (Proverbs 13:3)

Reflecting, I find it amazing how stingy I (we) can be over something like that. Who cares if it had been a person and not a squirrel who took it; that is what it was there for!

It also shows just how much I (we) don’t trust God for His provision. The Apostle Paul wrote;

 “And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. ⁹ As the Scriptures say,

“They share freely and give generously to the poor.
    Their good deeds will be remembered forever.” (2 Cor 9:8-9)

May God change our hearts and open our hands of anything that we would hold back from one who needs something.

All Scripture if from New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

What in The Heaven Is Going On?

It doesn’t matter how the tragedy comes…

A bridge collapsed, a car crashed, the economy tanked, a job was lost, a marriage came to an end, a baby dies, an injury took place, your favorite sports team lose for the fifth straight game….

And the reaction is often the same response…

(Pardon my French)

But…“What in the hell is going on???”

Why is it that we often assume that all hell itself has been launched as though God was nowhere to be found?

And if God is mentioned, He is either blamed or cursed.

Why is that? Why are we so obsessed with always seeing the negative and assuming the worst?  

Some people are so obsessed: With asking God to damn this and to damn that –marriage, home, car, etc…

Why not ask God to bless this and to bless that?

It is as though we are fixated on what is wrong and rarely focused; or even ask the question;

“What in the heaven is going on?”

In Chapter 3 of the Book of Habakkuk (in the Bible), the prophet was given a vison of some impending disaster that was about to strike. His response was (at first) to have a view from below. Verse 16:

      “When I heard, my body trembled;
      My lips quivered at the voice;
      Rottenness entered my bones;
      And I trembled in myself…”

You might be thinking; “Well at least he was dealing with reality…he wasn’t sugar-coating in some Pollyanna dreamland view...some happy-happy-joy-joy everything will work out you’ll see” view point.

But I would submit that his perspective changed when God showed him a view from above and he asked (implied):

“What in the heaven is going on?”

We pick up his response in verse 17:

      “Though the fig tree may not blossom,
      Nor fruit be on the vines;
      Though the labor of the olive may fail,
      And the fields yield no food;
      Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
      And there be no herd in the stalls—“

See, he was dealing with real life, real death, reality! He spoke of seeing no crops, no food, and no livestock. He spoke of truth (from man’s perspective) and said it like it is.

BUT his response was to ask (implied):

“What in the heaven is going on?”

We pick up his response in verse 18:

       “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”

His response to the question; “What in the heaven is going on?” was one of praise and determination to see this disastrous situation from God’s perspective and REJOICE!

It is as though he chose to say; “I choose to see and look for how God will and is responding!”

And in doing so, from God’s perspective, he could see that God was still in control and He was his source of strength to get him through this disaster!

We pick up his response in verse 19:

       “The Lord God is my strength;
      He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
      And He will make me walk on my high hills.”

The difference in how we face disasters or bad news for that matter is really about CHOICE.

Choice to ask, “what in the hell is going on?” and choice to ask; “what in the heaven is going on?”

One will feed into your fears and anxieties and one will produce hope and faith and joy!

It’s really doesn’t change the circumstance; just how you CHOOSE to go through it/them.

Hey Mister, There’s Underwear Stuck To Your Shirt!

It was a long day filled with drama, intrigue, and mystery and I couldn’t wait to get home to do my best impersonation of Mister Rogers and change my clothes. I’m not sure why, but it helps me transition from where I was to what’s next on my agenda.

It felt as though all I did all day was make decisions at the speed of an air traffic controller, as all around me situations arose that needed my attention.

All day it felt as though decisions were made based on limited information that I was given. And, in time, when things came to the light, I realized that a more thorough investigation might have helped me make better decisions.

In one incident, something was “planted” to punk a staff member. And, judgment came way too soon until the whole thing was revealed to be a joke gone wrong. Fortunately those who were indicted were in on the joke and we all had a good laugh.

And now I was home and I made my way upstairs to my bedroom to change my clothes.

As I started to undress, a pair of black women’s panties fell to the floor and I thought of several things. First of all, the panties, being black, had probably clung to the t-shirt and weren’t noticed because the t-shirt was also black and had been covered up by a dress shirt.

Secondly, I was glad that I didn’t have anyone else see the panties.

Thirdly, I was grateful that the panties hadn’t fallen to the floor while I was at work. No, not because of any embarrassment on my part. Being that I am almost six decades old, I could use the “I’m an old man!” card and people would leave me alone.

No, I was grateful that the panties hadn’t fallen to the floor while I was at work because of what would probably had happened next.

During the day (M-F), I pastor by managing a program for men who are dealing with addictions and it is not unusual for some of the clients to fabricate the truth. 

And today had been one of those days when I had been chasing the wind trying to get the truth in a (potentially) volatile situation.   

One of those days when (sometimes) I resorted to being driven rather than being led and where I reacted rather than responding.

One of those days where I wondered whether or not the truth would ever come out as I tried to sift through distortion of the truth and we tried to unravel a web of stories as we sought the truth.

And, as the dust settles and the truth comes out, there are usually messes to clean up and apologies to be given for misreading the situation and not showing an attitude of grace. Or for not taking the time to pause awhile as we waited upon God for what we should do.

As I bent over and picked up the black panties, I thought about how on this day if they had been found by a staff, there was the potential of one of the men being accused of possessing something impropriate for them to have.

Accusations could have arisen trying to find the guilty person who would be so “sick” as to have a pair of women’s panties in their possession. Based on how we were dealing with things, we probably would have brought in someone from the Spanish Inquisition to assist us.

As I placed the panties in the clothes basket, I uttered a prayer of gratefulness that they hadn’t fallen out of my shirt. And for how aware I was for His grace that stopped an investigation.

Yes, we are called to hold people accountable; but to do it in ways that honor and care for each other. In ways in which we know we have not jumped to conclusions without ever really investigating.

We are called to love like we have been loved:   “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.”

              (Luke 6:36-37)

We are called to be like the One who has shown mercy upon us:

       “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.” (Psalm 145:8-9)

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:31-32)

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.  For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.” (Luke 7:1-2)

“Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.” (James 1:19)

All Scripture is from Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.