posted Mar 30, 2018, 8:24 AM by Lois Kerchner
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updated Mar 30, 2018, 8:25 AM
]
It all began in a garden. In John's Gospel (18:1), Jesus leaves the upper room and goes to the garden to begin his passion and death. Here he would pray a sorrowful prayer, be betrayed by a friend, be arrested by his enemies, and abandoned by his disciples.
It all ended in a garden. John's Gospel (19:41-42) tells us Jesus' body was buried in a tomb in a garden.
It began again in a garden. The garden setting was a place of burial and resurrection. Indeed, when the risen Lord appeared to Mary Magdalene, she thought he was the gardener!
How interesting that everything began in a garden (Genesis 2:8) and in the last chapter of Revelation, the Bible's last words, we read that we will live with God forever in the Garden of Paradise.
As we look at the many gardens we pass, or when tending our own, may the Bible's words remind us of the sacred nature of a garden. May God encourage us to "tend the garden in our heart" and bring forth the beauty of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control...the fruits of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians.
See you Sundays at The Gardening place!
---Pastor Tom
“Diving
with Friends” Book Recommendation
“Strong
and Weak” by Andy Crouch
Holy
Land Pilgrimage
October
29 – November 8, 2018
If you or someone
you know would like to learn more, see Pastor Tom for a detailed
information brochure
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“We don’t usually aspire to be both strong and
weak. But we see the value of it in those who use their influence to
benefit others in the face of suffering. We see it in Jesus, who wielded
tremendous power yet also exposed himself to ridicule and death. Rather
than being opposites, strength and weakness are actually meant to be brought
together in every human life and every community. Only when this happens
do we find the flourishing for which we were made."
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