I Believe

No man believes that the Bible means what it says: He is always convinced that it says what he means.

George Bernard Shaw

The photo above is my feeble attempt at gardening. I have found that grass is forgiving, so I plant lots of it. I wish I could be more like my friend, Barb , who not only knows about plants, but the dirt they’re planted in. In late spring, I go to the nursery and plant what I have bought in its designated pot. I try to pay attention to how much water it will need and hope it gets enough sun. Amazingly, my half-hearted attempts usually turn out okay. More to do to with God’s Grace than my gardening skills.

Which brings me to some thoughts on belief. I do not believe in fire and brimstone , the fate of the unfaithful. My feeling is that it is something man manufactured to accomplish his will, not God’s. The God I know is not vengeful. I don’t think he kills my plants as retribution for not following His will. In my opinion, that’s more about my choice in the way I take care of what I planted. That doesn’t mean I don’t ask Him for his help. It means, I do so with the understanding that His response might be, “This was your choice. You can continue to do things the same way, or choose to learn from this experience and do it differently next time.” So far, He’s been forgiving and allowed my plants to survive, if not flourish.

The God that I believe in is not vengeful or jealous. Those are human emotions. He has no need for them. The terrible things that happen in our lives, and in the world, are creations of men, not God. Does he allow us to make destructive choices? Yes, that has always been true. However, my experience has been that he is, unfailingly, there to help us pick up the pieces when we make bad decisions.