Old Growth

I took some time off to go visit my sister in California.  It was a wonderful time away to re-center and set new priorities

When Moses first comes down with the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai, The opening commandments are about our relationship with God.  They begin with “Shall Not” except the fourth one that commands us to remember the Sabbath and keep it Holy. (see Exodus 20:1-11)  Moses in Deuteronomy expands these commands from what not to do to what to do. “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. (6:1&2)  by the teaching of Jesus even the religious leaders saw this command as the heart of the Torah often referred to as The Shema from the first words Shema Yisrael “Hear, O Israel.” 

 

So what does an ancient wisdom from the Torah have to do with a trip to California?  There is a peace that passes understanding when I take time away from my routine or now that I am retired from concerns about health and financial wellbeing.  Such concerns are always part of our lives, but when we are employed we can set those worries aside and focus on our job.   So all of us need time away, to re-center our essence in the Eternal.  It can be true Sabbath time when we really listen for the timeless message of “Hear, O Israel.” 

 

 

Mostly I wanted time with my sister, but I also wanted to see the ocean and get my feet wet and I wanted to touch a Sequoia.  I got to do both of those.  In the Sequoia National Forest among those ancient trees, they touched my spirit with a timeless message of peace and joy.  They absorb sound and even in a busy park they create a place of profound quiet.  Now that I have aged enough to see a new purpose to my life and ministry, I want to also be a source of peace and joy.  But I am learning that my spirit has to be immersed in quiet.  Like marinating food, I will become more tender, more loving and see what God is calling me to do now in the waning of my years.  I have appreciated other friends who have made this journey before me and I dedicate this blog entry to the human Sequoia’s I have known. Blessings on you all!