Psalm 33:20-22
We wait in hope for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you.
When I was young, we planted a garden. A big
garden.
Dad plowed the space and created rows for us to
plant corn, green beans, tomatoes, peas, and other good veggies. And he planted
a section, down the hill from our pond, meant just for potatoes; which seemed gigantic
in my young mind. Dad hoped to grow an abundance of food.
When it came time to harvest and put up the
bounty, it was all hands on deck. My brothers, cousin, and I grabbed baskets and
plucked beans and ears of corn off those beautiful plants. Later when we
shucked the corn, I hated finding those gross, little worms that ate into the
kernels. I did enjoy the relaxing rhythm of breaking beans and shelling peas. When
the potatoes matured, we searched for them as if they were Easter eggs buried
in the rich soil.
I look back on those days and remember how we all
worked together. Dad plowed and planted, we picked, snapped, and shucked. Mom,
Grammy, my sister and aunt canned multiple quarts of tomatoes and beans and
froze bag upon bag of corn. We ran into snags along the way, too much rain or
not enough and animals and insects who feasted on the plants. Yet, we still received a full bounty of food for the winter.
In these difficult times, the hope I have in Jesus
gets me out of bed in the morning. I pray every day for peace, even as I harvest
hope and store it up for times like these.
When life goes through winter seasons of bleakness
and fear, the hope that fills my heart gives me courage to face each day.
Plant God's hope in your heart and encourage it to
grow.
