Nature

Our Personal Rainbow from God

/ Bill Jones / 4 Comments

          As my wife, Sharon, and I drove home from the grocery store, we passed in and out of areas of hard driving rain. As we turned into our driveway we echoed each other: “Wow! Look at that!” There was a rainbow in the backyard! It was lightly raining and the sun was peeking through the clouds just enough to make a perfect combination to split the light into the different colors.

          The bow started at the blueberry bushes, arced up twenty or thirty feet and came back to the ground about two hundred feet away in the old pasture. The band of colors was at least fifteen feet across and you could clearly see the transitions from the vivid red at the top to the soft violet at the bottom.

            We marveled at the sight a few minutes and then took the first load of groceries inside. The thought struck that it might be visible in a photo so I grabbed the camera and hurried back outside. I opened the lens cover….and it fogged up. Going from the air conditioned house into the hot, humid air outside had caused a thin film to form on the lens. By the time I wiped it off enough to get a clear picture, the clouds had blocked the sunlight and the rainbow had disappeared. But, boy was it beautiful while it lasted – what a blessing from the Lord!        

          In the Bible, we read of an ancient rainbow blessing from the Lord. Genesis, Chapter 6, tells that God grieved over mankind’s continual evil to the point He determined to destroy all the living creatures off the face of the earth. In judgment, He brought the Great Flood and wiped out almost every living thing on the dry land. One of the most wonderful verses in the Bible, Genesis 6:8, tells us why the devastation wasn’t complete: “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” In His mercy and grace, God saved Noah and his family by shutting them safely in the ark Himself. 

            For forty days and nights the rains came down, the waters in the earth came up, and the world was completely covered. But the ark floated safely through it all. After many months of waiting for the waters to recede, God finally told Noah to bring his family and the animals out onto the dry land once more.

            At that time, God promised that as long as the earth remained there would be seedtime and harvest, summer and winter, and day and night.  The Lord made a covenant with Noah (and us too) that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood. He told Noah that a rainbow in the clouds would be a token of His covenant.

            So, when we see a rainbow we can remember God’s mercy and grace in that He saved a remnant for Himself from the flood – and realize that we came from that remnant. We can be reminded that unless the end of time comes first, God will cause the sun to rise tomorrow morning and this season to pass into the next.            

            After our back yard show had ended, Sharon and I talked about the fable that says you can find a pot of gold buried at the end of a rainbow. Since one end was in the blueberry bushes we laughingly said that maybe we should dig them up. But then we agreed that the blueberry pies she makes from their fruit are worth more than the gold we might find.

            The other end had been in the grass of the old pasture next to our backyard. There were no valuable bushes or trees around to disturb, but there was also nothing in particular to mark its location. It would have required that I dig a lot of holes in hope of finding the right spot. That sounded like too much work, so we decided to forget the gold and just keep the memory of God blessing us with our own private rainbow. We gave each other a kiss, thanked the Lord for the mercy and grace he continually shows us, and went inside to put up the groceries He had blessed us with.

God is Glorified, Even as the Garden Fades Away

/ Bill Jones / 3 Comments

         Since it’s the third cold snap of the year and all the flowers except a few mums have faded away, I thought I’d ponder the garden and gardening a bit. I’ve also added a Garden Pictures page with some of the successes this year (check it out!).

          My wife, Sharon, and I usually declare it the “year of the…”, based on whichever plant or flower stands out the most. This year there were multiple choices. Early on, it was the “year of the purple verbena”. It survived the extreme cold last Winter (at least extreme for here) and exploded with blooms at the first hint of Spring. A month later, the peach tree limbs were sagging to the ground from the weight of the fruit, so it was the “year of abundant peaches”.  Then we had two new plants later in the summer – moonflower and devil’s trumpet. Both were covered in huge, brilliant white blooms for several weeks – so it became the “year of the moonflower and devil’s trumpet.” We could call these our successes, but what they really reveal is that it was yet another “year of God’s grace and glory!”

         It’s a wonderful blessing to have the time, space and energy to do a little gardening. I sometimes get frustrated with my efforts to grow certain plants or flowers, and feel guilty when I fall behind in caring for the garden, but overall I stay amazed at God’s creation. What beauty, how intricate the process, what a marvelous variety – all pointing to the goodness and greatness of God.

Two Scriptures come to mind:

“I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” 1 Corinthians 3:6. Paul was writing about spiritual things, but I consider it applicable to physical work in the garden too – any “success” is from God.

“Consider the lilies, how they grow; they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” Luke 12:27. This is Jesus speaking in a passage that encourages us to not be anxious about everyday things. A God who would “clothe” the lilies so beautifully, even though they last a very short time, will certainly care for His Children.

     As we ponder the garden, we can be reminded of our Heavenly Father, who gives us every good and perfect gift from above. (James 1:17). The garden is one of the good gifts and the perfect gift He gave us was His Son, Jesus Christ.

Devil or Angel?

/ Bill Jones / Leave a comment
Devil's Trumpet

Devil's Trumpet

In the garden, as in life, there are angels and there are devils – such as the angel’s trumpet and the devil’s trumpet plants.

If you look closely at each plant with its beautiful flowers, it’s easy to distinguish between them. The structure of the bush and shape and texture of the leaves make it obvious the flowers are from different plants. But, if you take the flowers away from the plants and compare them, it’s not so simple. That’s a good analogy to what the Bible tells us – when a new and beautiful idea or plan (or person) comes into our life, it’s good to make sure what “bush” they’re coming from. (“And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:14.)

Angel's Trumpet

Angel's Trumpet

 I don’t know how each plant got its name but there are two characteristics that possibly led to it. The bell end of the devil’s trumpet comes from the  ground and points up – as if from Hell, blasting out at Heaven. The angel’s trumpet is the opposite – as if from Heaven, blasting out at Hell.
The most interesting fact is, while the angel’s trumpet flowers remain for several days, the devil’s trumpet blooms at night and the flower dies the next morning after it sees the light of day.
(“For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.” John 3:20)

The Patience of Toads

/ Bill Jones / 1 Comment

We often hear about the patience of Job, but have you ever considered the patience of toads?  Our house must be located in prime toad territory because we have a multitude of the little critters that hop out from under bushes and other hiding places each night in search of bugs.  There’s a group that gathers under the light on the carport and another group that fans out across the patio finding the patches where the security light on the power pole shines through the birch tree limbs.  Two of the toads spend the day under the moss roses in a planter on the back porch.  At night they scramble over the edge of the container, plop down on the bricks and hop to any light that is shining through the glass in the back door. 

The toads are not alone in their search for tasty bug treats. The green tree frogs also hang around – literally.  They’re the ones with enlarged pads on their toes that give them the ability to crawl up the side of the house and even stick to the ceiling upside down. 

The tree frogs attach themselves to the glass in our back door and spend the night waiting a short time and moving, waiting a little more and moving – they rarely stay in one spot for more than a minute or two and then impatiently move on in search of better hunting.

But the toads don’t seem to feel the need to do much moving.  A toad can sit for an hour in the exact same location, waiting for a wandering bug to land in the few square inches in front of him that are within range of an outstretched tongue and a quick lunge.  I don’t know how many bugs that a toad can catch in a night but apparently there are enough to make them fat and keep them coming back and sitting patiently night after night.

It’s written in the Bible that God provides for all of his creation – that would include bugs for toads.  While not realizing it, the toads do acknowledge that fact and trust in it by going each night to a good spot, sitting and waiting, and then acting when the opportunity shows itself.

Perhaps we could learn from the toads’ example.  God provides for His children too and gives us blessings and opportunities to serve Him, but we can’t find those while sitting alone in a hiding place.  We must first move closer to the Light, drawing nearer to God by studying His Word, communicating with Him through prayer, and exercising our faith through obedience.  During this process we shouldn’t be rushing about like the tree frogs trying to find what God would have us do.  Instead it requires patience like the waiting toads.  God will lead us in what He wants us to do but the timing will be up to Him.  If we wait patiently and trust in His faithfulness He will give us opportunities and when those are presented, that’s when we must act.  If we wait on God and then follow His purpose and timing, we will receive blessings from above – and they’re guaranteed to be better than those that the toads receive!

“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”  Isa 40:31 KJV