Gardens in the Desert: The Oasis

We know full well that our spiritual life is and should be one of joy, contentment, and fullness. However, we also know very well that life also leads us in directions, some of our own choosing and some by circumstance, that instead of flourishing we are floundering; instead of enjoying peace and contentment, our minds are contorted by series of discontent and troubles. We often think of these in terms of dryness, dearth, and desert. In those times I'm tempted to ask myself, "Okay, where is the garden now??" "Where is the fullness of life; where is river of joy and blessing?" Life becomes arid, the sun is blistering, and the winds unrelenting...and we wonder, "Is this really what God intended for me??"

There is a phenomenon, although not mentioned by name in the Bible, that has been depended on by desert caravans and travelers for many centuries. We know it as the oasis. The one pictured to the right is a part of an oasis in Ein Gedi, Israel. By comparison to many others it is very small, but sometimes it is the small oases that become most significant to us in our spiritual travel through life.

The oasis was life giving and life sustaining for the weary travelers who had crossed miles and miles of parched arid desert, often walking into the face of wind blown sand and desert dust. As I contemplate Grace Gardens, I realize that we are provided an oasis or streams in our time of desert experiences!! God gives us Gardens in the Desert!

I recall the first time I ever flew over the land of Egypt, it was late evening and I had slept most of the way from Rome over the Mediterranean, but awoke and looking out noticed little but brown parched dryness below. In the distance to the left was a small ribbon of green that seemed to have no end. As we flew nearer and nearer, the ribbon appeared more distinctive and one could see that it was a river, and on either side for some distance there was green vegetation. Upon asking I was told, "That is the Nile River." I would learn later that the Nile valley and delta is claimed as the "World's Biggest Oasis," by the Guinness Book of World Records. What an awesome sight to see...the barren waste of the desert turned into lush and beautiful gardens by the flow of the river!!!

For the most part I have observed in life folks always searching for the Nile oasis...that "Big River" experience. As far as I know Ezekiel only found it once, and after a nice swim he said, "Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river." From that point on the emphasis was upon the the fruitfulness of the terrain along the river. I have long decided that the river is not about the swim, but about its fruitfulness. As far as I know, not much grows on the river bottom, but its waters provide growth along its banks and through its delta.

God has given me few Nile experiences in my more than 64 years, but MANY have been the Ein Gedi spiritual refreshing and blessings. The spring pool in the picture is not comparable in some ways to the mighty Nile, but observe the lushness that it produces!!

Most of the vegetation of the oasis was for food. The large date palms provided their fruit along with being a canopy for smaller fruit trees. Often even various grains were cultivated in the area of the oasis' influence. The traveler not only enjoyed "fresh" food, but could resupply his travel stock of food.

Now I make a point that is essential in understanding how Grace Gardens is our oasis in our life journey. The oasis is not a place to go, or to reach...but it comes from an inner flow! Remember Christ proclamation at the Great Day of the Feast, "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." The Samaritan woman at the well was privileged to hear Him say, "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be IN him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." IT IS OUR INNER SPIRITUAL CONNECTION TO CHRIST THAT PROVIDES THE RIVER (OASIS) IN OUR TIMES OF DESERT BARRENNESS!" While people go here and there looking for the river experience...it is within!! If we believe in Him, we need not search for the river, it flows out of a heart and soul that believes on Him!! That why I stated in the first posting that Grace Gardens is not about a literal place, but it is in my heart and spirit. May I quote myself? Now I live and move and have my being in, "Grace Gardens!" And the more each moment is in the garden, I realize that the river of grace flows from the inner being outward and touches all those around us.

I am free from searching for "The Place," searching for God and "More" of God, searching for sustenance in my spiritual life journey! He is with me, He is in me, His love just keeps on coming! Methinks we search for God and the river without, because we do not perceive Him to be within us! So if you are struggling in a desert, be still in the garden...and enjoy the water, the shade, and the fruit! Much Love to All, Len

If I could be Anywhere...

This bit of prose was handed to me the other day by a friend...apparently the writer has been in the gardens! This is how the gardens adjust our attitude toward where we are in life, and what life is really about! Enjoy!!

If I Could Be Anywhere
I Would Not be Here!
If I Could Be Anywhere
I Would Not be Here.
I would be where everyone was nice
and kind to each other.
I would be where nobody threw stones
and nobody cried.
If I Could Be Anywhere
I Would Not be Here.
I would be where no one was lonely
and everyone had at least three friends.
I would be where no one would laugh
when I made a mistake
and no one comes in last,
and everyone gets a prize just for trying.
If I Could Be Anywhere
I Would Not be Here,
but, I am here.
So I will bring where I want to be
to where I am.
I will find one that makes a mistake
and encourage him to keep trying.
I will look for the lonely
and say, “Can I sit with you?”
I will look for tears of hurt and sadness
and offer my towel of peace and joy.
I will search for the heartless
and give them part of mine.
So, if I bring where I want to be
to where I am,
then this is where I need to be.
Jeff Liles

THE GARDENS ---- EDEN

"Garden of Eden," Thomas Cole, 1828, Public Domain

The Eternal God, Yahwey, who we believe is eternally pre-existent, began His relationship with man by creating a garden in which to fellowship with the man and offer man a peaceful and serene existence. The Garden of Eden is the object of many legends and other unprovable stories, and is even mentioned in the Qu'ran as the Garden. The Mormon Church believes the Garden existed in what is now Jackson County (Independence), Missouri. Hmnnn, that's a strange one! (Kelly, you may be closer to paradise than you know!)

Anyway, I'm not writing a history lesson today, nor concerned with fable...the fact is "Eden" in the Hebrew simply translates, "delight." It was also called paradise, and was known as the delightful place that God placed His first human creation. The beautiful garden containing the tree of life was where God intended for the first humanity, Adam and Eve, to live in peaceful and contented innocence, effortlessly reaping the fruits of the earth! Figuratively, the Garden of Eden, is any state or place of complete peace and happiness!!

As we know temptation and rationalization led to sin, and thus to separation from the Garden. There was a void or separation between God and man. The work of grace was to restore man to relationship that had been lost. Nothing man could do would bring back the Garden. It must be an act of the Creator, God. That was accomplished on a craggy hill outside of Jerusalem over 2000 years ago! The cry of Christ, "It is Finished," did it all!! Was the Garden recreated that day in its original form? Yes it was, but this time it was to be in the hearts and spirits of those who received His work, not in a geographical spot. Remember Christ's words to the thief beside Him, "This day you will be with me in Paradise"? Paradise has often been used interchangeably with Eden!! Now I realize that was a spiritual place beyond this life, yet (and now I get heretical) Matthew tells us (27:52-53) "And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many." Now into some Wardology that is giving me giant goose bumps...just what if that thief was one of those seen walking in the city??? Would not that have been a sight; those in the city seeing this guy walking, healthy, very much alive, and hearing them say, "We killed that guy 3 days ago, how could he be here??" After all, remember he was the very first fruit of the completion of salvation, the first redeemed under the new dispensation of grace!!! I know I can't prove it, but no one can prove I'm wrong either!!! One way or the other the guy made it into the Garden of God that day!! He is ever the great example to us that it is, "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us..." (Titus 3:5)

The Garden was and is ever about relationships. There are maybe more, but I see at least 3: Relationship of God to man, Relationship of man to man, and relationship of man to the rest of creation. Salvation, or the act of greatest grace, addresses all of these in the spiritual realm. Since its meaning is, "delight," leading to peaceful, innocence, happiness, etc. all of these relationships should have that embodiment! By grace we are restored to relationship with God, which is moment by moment, not just a feeling on Sunday morning. I find myself humming or singing often as I rest in my garden, "and He walks with me and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own." It is a relationship of love, and He is always there with me and for me! I am not chasing or seeking His presence, He is with me! Relationship with God in the gardens has nothing to do with rules, regulations, personal righteousness's...it is understanding His heart towards us!

Secondly, one can only be at peace with others as they are at peace with God. We are told to love one another, to care for one another, to extend ourselves to one another, and to fellowship with one another. God knew from the beginning that it was not good for man to dwell alone. He restored that relationship..in the garden there is love to go around. It is there that we truly understand the loving words from the beatitudes, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you..." Whew, that rids me of hatred, resentments, and all sort of negativism!! Love your spouse, love your family, love your co-workers, love your neighbors, love your enemies...the garden harbors no ill will!

And finally, in the garden there is a unity between man and all creation. The promise is in the world we can now only dream and speculate, "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together...They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." There is nothing more peaceful in the gardens than to enjoy all creation! Sunrises and sunsets become a spiritual experience. The playful squirrels and rabbits, a joy; the songs of the birds our hymns; the storms and the rains a revealing of the Creator's power, the grass, trees, flowers a confluence of the paintings of His finger! In the garden all things are beautiful in their own way!!

Often we make life more difficult than it has to be. There are sorrows, pain, struggles, and cares for sure...but even those reap joy when the golden sun rises in the east and we understand all things have their purpose! Those are things we, "go through," but the peace of the garden reveals their purpose and gives us the knowledge that, "All things work together for the good of those that love Him, and are called according to His purpose."

Wherever you are, join me today in the marvelous Garden of God's Grace!

Paw Paw---The Angel of Grace

Welcome to my world that I call "Grace Gardens!!" I grew up hearing of grace, at least one interpretation of grace that seemed to meet the needs of the religiosity of that time. As I developed what some call, "ministry," I often spoke of and preached on grace. However, to my disadvantage I had never needed to taste of grace deeply, smell the fragrance of her flowers, drink from her fountain, nor taste her fruit. In my third pastorate someone told me that I was living under the law and, of course I scoffed. After all, yes salvation was a free gift but if you received it there were strict rules to follow, you had to be "holy," live holy, dress holy, and talk holy. Anyone who didn't had their name stricken from the Book of Life by the angry hand of God. Through the years grace tolerated my misunderstandings and yes, arrogance. Then it came...the time I needed grace as never before!!! I can now say I've tasted, I've smelled, and I've drunk so profoundly from the depths of its fountainhead, and I now know the fulfilment of, "taste and see that the Lord is good," "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink...and out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water."
Now I live and move and have my being in, "Grace Gardens!" And the more each moment is in the garden, I realize that the river of grace flows from the inner being outward and touches all those around us. No Grace Gardens is not a physical place, it is in my heart and in my soul...it is where only I can go, and in doing so release the grace of God in me to others.
We met someone last Wednesday who also lives in Grace Gardens. As we pulled up to the old cafe, I stopped to let Nora out near the door. As she has been experiencing difficulties with her lower legs, her step was unsteady and from out of nowhere a knarled hand reached out and a voice softly said, "Here, let old Paw Paw help you young lady." There he stood in old bib overalls, unshaven for a few days, and a toothless grin. I thanked him and moved on to park the car. When I got to the creaky wooden steps, he was already tenderly assisting Nora toward the door. Insisting on holding the door for us, he spoke again, "I love ya'll...God bless you!" Nora turned to him with a gentle hug and "thanks." I turned to him and said, "And God bless you Paw Paw, you're truely an Angel of Grace." Again, the toothless grin and parting words, "When you're 78 years old you are blessed to be able to help someone!" With that he was gone!
We are told that there are those who have entertained angels without knowing it, well we were entertained by an angel of grace!!! Could it be??? Yep, maybe so!!!
More from Grace Gardens next time!!! Love and Grace to All!!