A Light in the Window

A Light in the Window
Susan Hoyle, pastor Trinity United Methodist Church

This is the time of year for gardens. We worked the ground in the spring, planted those seeds or young plants and then waited. Finally, we enjoyed those first fresh vegetables, lettuce, new potatoes and green beans and oh, those fresh tomatoes! So here we are in August and we have more vegetables than we know what to do with. We may have more squash, zucchini, cucumbers and maybe even tomatoes than we can use. We give our vegetables away to anyone, even strangers, who will take them. We have an abundance of fresh vegetables and that abundance is such a blessing. And it all began with a garden.

Scripture tells us from the beginning, God planted a garden. Genesis 1:9-13 tells us about that first garden. You see, God created the heavens and the earth, the sun and the moon, the sky and the seas. Then God planted that first garden, the vegetation that began to cover the earth. That first garden was to nourish the physical needs of the animals and the people. God knew that it was important for them to be nourished physically. It was also important to nourish the emotional side of the human beings with relationships with other human beings. God created us to be in community with each other. And even more importantly, God created us to be in relationship with God so that our souls would be nourished. So, how is it with your soul? How is your soul being nourished?

We can easily talk about gardens that nourish us physically and we can easily talk about our relationships with each other. But it can be much more difficult to talk about our relationship with God. God may seem so far away or we just don’t know how to be in relationship with God. How do we begin?

We begin by discovering ways that we get to know God. We read Holy Scriptures, we put ourselves in the stories, imagining we are there with our faith ancestors in the Old and New Testament. We listen to soft music and light a candle. Perhaps we sit by a lake and just drink in the calm of the morning. Each of these ways to nourish our souls is called a spiritual practice. A spiritual practice is way to connect with God and each one of us connects with God in different ways.

Take some time to notice when you feel close to God. It may be in worship and it may be in some ordinary task during your day. It could be when you pray for someone or someone prays for you. As you discover the spiritual practices that nourish your soul, you will begin to look forward to that special time with God. You are refreshed, you have a new sense of peace and you really are on holy ground. Amen.