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    1/18/12

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     Many years ago, I read a book about simplicity in my quest to find out what faithful stewardship looks like. As a side note, I think that most people only have one main point of a specific belief/idea but they need to write 150-300 pages to create the perception of importance of what they are saying and so that people will be wooed to engage the conversation through their book. Many times, our lives really have only one major theme and we spend our time unlocking that in a variety of ways. But it can still all be summed up in one major life theme.

    So, back to the book about simplicity; the main point is we need to guard our lives and hearts from materialism as it impacts, on many levels, our ability to steward. Their suggestion was that every year, we should find one thing of value in our home and give it away. As I thought through my house, most everything I had, was given/ bought cheaply/or donated to me. The execution of this specific principle in my life, was not going to impact the tenderness of my heart as it was laid out in the book.

    I began asking the Lord,  "What specifically do you want from me in this context to keep my heart soft and not get swept away, even inadvertently, into the mind-set of materialism?" Within a few days, the thought that became clear was I needed to remove the tv from my living room where I spent time with people, to upstairs where it wasn’t so convenient. What was fascinating to me, was what that did for my home.

    My house was built in 1939 which was before the tv had been invented. In my living room, I have a beautiful wood burning stove that was the center focal point of that room. When I removed the television from that room, peace immediately filled it. What had been happening was the tv and stove were competing for the central focal point in the room; that place where our eyes naturally rest. By removing the tv out of the room, the room came into alignment. So much so, even the other day when a friend came into my house, she asked if I had my home professionally designed?!

    The other thing I think about with principles like this, is do I need to do that (give one item of value away) every single year or do I keep that principle/idea in the context of my decision making process and let it arise when the test needs to arise?

    In 2009, I ended up going through one of the most difficult financial times of my life. It was through the series of choices made by another individual that created extreme financial challenges that I was not sure how I was going to navigate successfully. Before those events happened, I had already committed in my heart to buy a reasonably-priced, used car for a family in the community that I was supporting because I knew that having a car and dependable transportation is a key to breaking free from poverty. They had cleared up their own technical issues related to their driver’s license (which had kept them from driving for 13 years) and they were in a place to start driving their kids to school every day (which I had been doing for them).

    But then, my car died. And the cost of repair was more than car itself was worth. I did need a car to make my own life work but I had not saved up what I would need to buy myself a used car as well as purchase one for the other family.

    In this decision making process, the principle of simplicity began to weigh in: having my own car, is a privilege and not a right. The truth of the matter was that the majority of my life happens in a 3 miles radius and the family I care for was living next door so with a little communication, we could coordinate our lives so we could share a car and meet all of our goals.

    For the next 6 months,  I shared a car with this family until I saved enough to buy my own. People interpreted my gesture as being so kind and generous but the truth was, I did what I did because I make choices based on my life principles. If I am committed to keeping a soft heart that is free from issues such as materialism, then that was the choice that I needed to make in that season. It wasn’t easy to share a car on many levels, but I needed to do it for me to continue to guard my heart. It was more important for me to keep my heart soft before the Lord then it was to have my own car for a season.

    So, what is it that the Lord has asked from YOU to help guard your heart from materialism?

    Squash-Watermelon

    1/9/12

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    A skill set that I have cultivated over the years has been the ability to appreciate the value of something even if I do not have a natural affinity for it. This sums up my thoughts about gardening. As my sister says, I love the idea of a garden but I am not interested in doing the actually gardening. 

    However, I do believe in the value of gardening on many levels. As I look at the food we consume in American culture and the processes it goes through to get to our tables, I know that it does not have the nutritional value it should have. Also growing your own food is a way of living that will help save money in the long run. It’s an ideal principle of stewardship. 

    I decided this past year to tackle my half acre in hopes of making it into a permaculture yard that would grow the food I need. Why? To sustain myself for the long term no matter the state of the economy. To model stewardship. To become an asset to my neighbors. To be an example for the body of Christ in regards to all of the above.

    In addition to working on an overall plan for the yard, I chose to do some experimentation. I've come to realize that there are some aspects of a project like this that I might be more gifted at than another. And maybe I was remembering the year that I mis-read the seed label and planted tomatoes 2 inches apart versus the 2 feet apart and the many moments of laughter that resulted from my mistake. 

    Last Spring I went to the Farmer’s Market and purchased ONE plant from many different types of vegetables to see which one did best in my yard. I had one eggplant, one cucumber, one acorn squash, one butternut squash, one yellow squash, one cantaloupe and one watermelon plant. So, I planted each of them and waited to see what would happen.

    Well the cucumber and eggplant did really well. The squash unfortunately lost the fight with the beetles who enjoyed them greatly. The cantaloupe and watermelon didn’t do anything. So once my cucumber harvest finally slowed down, I forgot about them and went on to other things.
    One day in September, I was walking through my yard and low and behold there were watermelon growing! I was excited beyond belief. I took a picture and posted it to facebook and got more likes and comments than any other posting. Go figure!!! 

    My sister, Jessica, decided to tease me and asked would I even remember to harvest it?! I did wait a number of days but in the spirit of not wanting to see it rot, I picked it. That evening I cut it open, and it was... white! Not red, but white on the inside! 

    My mom was there at the time and we each tried a piece. It tasted okay although slightly odd and why was it white? I thought well, maybe I harvested it too early. I shared that thought with someone and they said for a watermelon to be ripe, when you knock it, it should sound hollow. I waited for the next watermelon to grow and when I knocked, it sounded hollow. Ok, time to harvest and see what happens.

    I brought this one to my sister, Heidi, with the caveat of the previous story and asked her to try it. She called me the next morning, "Wendy, the watermelon is white like the last one. It does have a watermelon texture but it sort of tastes like... squash." Her 6 year old asked to try it and after one bite said "I don’t think I like this, mom." To the deer out back the watermelon got donated. 

    In trying to figure out what went wrong, Arielle who works with me, suggested, “It probably cross-pollinated with the squash. Growing up we would always put the watermelon and cantaloupe in one garden and the squashes in another so they wouldn't cross pollinate each other."

    So, even though it looked like an award winning, sweet, delicious watermelon on the outside, the truth of the matter was the insides were not what they needed to be. Why? It was located too close to the squash in the garden. 

    It was such a powerful lesson to me: squash and watermelon are both great plants and should both be a part of a garden. But aside from just being in the garden, another key element is that to produce the fruit they are designed to produce, they need to be in right alignment within the garden. 

    Who we become will reflect not only the essence of the seeds we plant in our lives but the essence of the seeds flourishing in the lives closest to us. It’s not about right and wrong plants, but about proper alignment. 

    Grace and peace,
    Wendy


    P.S. I picked the third watermelon to get a picture for you. But alas as I opened it up, it was pink. Go figure. LOL!