I prefer to look backwards at the holiday season. This hairy woodpecker is the symbol of all that happens under the title “Holidays”. We travel more, eat more, laugh more, cry more, want more, give more and all this affects the rhythm of our families and our lives.
The reason I like to look backwards is because it give me a better perspective on the hairy holidays. I can remember the good and forget the bad. The task list which is so big late in the year in now finished, forgotten or not applicable any more. I can take a deep breath and believe again.
What bothers me is the energy that is pushing the holidays. I want to believe that it is a spiritual energy, but I think it is consumerism. I want to turn off consumerism and not feel guilty. It is hard.
This gorgeous Hairy Woodpecker helps me remember even something beautiful can peck away at our lives and be destructive. This family friend from my yard gets suet balls to keep him off my wooden swing. He’s back every day with beauty and a little bit of pecking to remind me that everything is not good or bad, just real and inspired by a loving presence.

Happy Post Holidays! I hope your time was full of love and life, crying and laughing and reminds you that family is a gift even as it pecks away.

School begins and church programming goes into full swing. It interesting over the years how faith communities try to change a few things each fall as member return from summer. Sometimes everything is new; staff, buildings, programs. Sometimes nothing seems new. And more often a few things have changed.

Old and new pieces work side by side in the faith garden. This is an old pine branch from a dead tree that I laid in the garden under an arbor. The annuals on it climb and sneak under the old branch to make a new creation each day. I have to look carefully for how the blooms have changed.

This fall as you return to full programming at your faith community, ask members to look for changes. Put a poster on your door and ask people to write a short description of all the changes they see. It is good for faith communities to look for subtle changes. It is even better for them to realize that change is a constant.

Well, the robin who is the harbinger of Spring is getting ready to crash this party. It is still warm, but those of us in tune with nature know that Fall is here. This robin knows, too and is thinking about the path to somewhere else.

So what does this mean? For those of us with seasonal allergies, it’s leaf mold. For those of us with children it means backpacks or new supplies. For those of us with church affiliation it means signing up and getting back to the choir or education time.

If you are “falling” today, take a moment to think back to Spring. What are the blessings? What are the excitements? How can you transfer those to fall? I guarantee this little robin is hoping he remembers the previous path!

This is a tiger swallowtail butterfly. I spent hours with my little Identification book and that’s what I decided. If you know better, let me know.It’s such a beautiful butterfly, it reminds me of the grace and beauty of my mother. Mom was what society called “a lady”. As I grew up I had no idea what that meant. Did it means dresses and panty hose at all functions? Does being a lady mean politeness? Well, I wasn’t sure then and I’m still unsure.

For me, some descriptive words like “lady” are so subjective. Being a lady might be a sexist term to some. It isn’t a behavior term. Being a lady is more about service. Not that baking pies for the potluck is being a lady, more that seeing the potluck as a gift to lonely people and inviting those who have nothing to bring.

Recently I tried to get some silver place settings from my Grandmothers appraised for insurance. The guy actually laughed at me. He said, “Lady, nobody uses that stuff. Melt it down and figure out how much it’s worth.” I was being a lady when I saw the bigger picture. Of course, behavior wise I didn’t hit him either!!! I went right home and polished the silver for my Grandmas and for any use they might get or just because I could care for something. Maybe that’s the real definition of “lady” –someone who cares enough to try.

Advocacy is as integral to discipleship as prayer and worship.

Weaving a Just Future for Children is a fascinating book by Diane C. Olson and Laura Dean F. Friedrich. Written from the perspective of the United Methodist Church, it has something to say to all of us who work with children and families. I know so many children and family workers who are true advocates, but do no see that as part of their role in the church.

This guide uses weaving images to discuss child advocacy from Biblical/Contemporary Stories, Practices /Tools and Discipleship/Vocation. I’m sure this has been brought out somewhere before, but it is the first time I have read this unique combination of the parts of being in service to God by advocacy.

Here’s some questions from each section. I’d love to know what others think.
1. Do you see these characteristics as part of the job description of people working with children in the church? Catalytic Connection, Persistence and Speaking Truth to Power, Initiative and Assertiveness, Courage and Strength

2. What do you think of the SWOT Analyses on page 85? SWOT stand for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. These are forces outside of the church that affect advocacy.

3. Do you consider advocacy for children as a vocation?

Even if you have not read the book. Find a question to comment about and then go buy the book!

This is a hairy woodpecker. He’s sitting in a dead branch checking out the horizon for any enemies. He’s also waiting in line for the suet feeder in our yard. Way up there, he’s seeing lots.

As I sit at the table in our Church Wide Assembly this week, I am amazed at the outlook. We are really unable to see very far into the future of the church. Statistics have changed how we do faith. Economics have changed how we do faith. The expectations of the people of faith for what the institution of the church has NOT changed. Much discussion is around control issues with services, money and beliefs.
We go to worship and let God bring us together. Then we return to tables and disagree. This is the process and it needs to happen.

Because I work with multiple denominations, I know that this push and pull of our wants and God’s work is evident in all denominations. The day-to-day existence of the building called church is dependent on money and there is fear that there will not be enough. It’s a hairy outlook, but it the reality of church today.

So it may be time to quit looking and just fly. We might need to let God send us forth with others and free ourselves from hanging onto dead wood. Hmmm…

This is a picture of a large blue scabiosa. I have mini yellow scabiosa and medium pink scabiosa in my garden. But I love these big blue guys. They give a whole different dimension to my garden both because of their size and because of their color.

Today I begin a weeklong journey called “Church Wide Assembly”. I will gather with others mostly sitting and listening. What makes this different than a church council meeting or a Christian education meeting is the size and the color. Smaller meetings that include Bible study, time with others from our Synod and time with complete strangers, surround the large group plenary sessions. The Church Wide Assembly gives a new dimension to my faith.

I hope there is something really large in your life that brings a new dimension to your faith. Maybe a mission trip overseas or writing a faith based curricula from the start or maybe even standing in front of others and talking about your faith journey. These “big” blooms in our faith life help balance our everyday faith experiences and relationships.

I think anticipation is the best feeling. I wish everyday I could wake up with anticipation-and most days I do. It’s like that almost opened flower. You know the day will open into something exciting, but you don’t know what it will be. You are not in control but you are along for the ride.

When a faith community comes together there is also anticipation. People may or may not have seen each between times. The thing is that if there is NOT anticipation for members of a faith community, you won’t see them. People are busy and their week is controlled by work and worries. When they come together as a faith community they are looking for security of God’s love through others and anticipation of new life.

Make a list this week of what you anticipate in relationships and experiences through God as a faith community. Pray with the list or give it someone else to for prayer. Then anticipate your next entrance into the community of faith believers.

Blogging is like journaling into a black hole. I love to write. Not so sure about blogging, yet. Perhaps it is the absolutely no interaction between writer and reader. The topics that I blog about are visual so maybe that’s the problem.

So we are looking through a new lens. Once a month I will do a video that visually says what I need to say. Once a week I’ll write as usual. Several times a year we’ll try a book study together. Maybe the issue isn’t the blogging. Maybe the issue is the frame around the blogging.

As you enter into a new season in the life of the church and the life of nature, look at this picture and think that sometimes when we change the frame, we change the scenery. And when we change we can see farther into new horizons.

Blessings,
The Faith Gardener

I don’t have many friends. Saying that in a world where one email makes people think they are friends forever is very dangerous. This week my daughter will be married and my best friend is coming for a week to celebrate, help and share in the joy.

I know it’s old fashioned to have one good friend. What about facebook and all those faceless people who read this blog. But friendship to me comes as a gift from God when experiences are shared. You know someone will be a friend almost immediately. The Celts called this spiritual friendship. Friends of the heart.

When relationships are whole is it one way that we understand God’s holiness better. So while I am negotiating the dangerous waters of family and life events, with me will be my friend.

Thank God for friends!