June in Kentucky



This week has been one of those quiet weeks in June; it is the kind of week I like when summer comes to our hills and valleys here in Kentucky. It is the time when the freshness of the morning dew gives way to the afternoon heat. It is a time when thundershowers are welcome and the trees sway in the breeze. Even flowers boast in their brightest apparel. The geraniums show off their red and white dresses, petunias raise their multi-colored faces and give the world their biggest smile and day lilies in shades of yellow, orange and gold, dance a happy jig in the evening breeze.
June is a happy month. Kindness seems to leak out at the Farmer’s Market as the smells of fresh fruits and vegetables become the backdrop for cheery discussions. Ladies sharing their favorite recipe of fruit pies, and the ole’ gents tell what their secret is to growing a bountiful supply in their gardens.
My morning walk is a time of quietness; only my footsteps break the silence as I slowly walk along the street with my little companion happily strutting along beside me. Even the birds have become silent as they nest among the trees. Only thing that seems to be stirring at all is the true pioneer of the sky the sneaky hawk as he makes a wide circle high up and   is playing a “cat and mouse” game with a timid rabbit that is hiding in the underbrush. 
 I stop to rest and watched my neighbor’s elderly calico cat snoozing in a chair on the front porch. I stood there for a while and listened to the sound of the tree music. There is nothing quite like the music I hear as the breeze hits each note on the leaves of the trees. Such a peaceful melody instills in me an appreciation for the glory and wonder of God’s marvelous creation.  
I think it is amazing how a tiny little seed grows just where God wants it. We can plant them but only God can make them grow. And it makes me think about growing things –and about faith.
When Jesus taught His disciples using the parable of the sower, He used an object familiar to them –the seed. Everybody knew about seeds. They planted them, watered them, cultivated them, and then waited for them to grow. Jesus said that God’s word was a lot like the seed.  It falls upon the soil of our hearts and depending on the condition of that soil it takes root and grows. Sometimes the soil is hard and unyielding. Other times the soil nurtures the seed for a little while, then because the soil is shallow and full of weeds the sprouted seed withers and dies. But then, Jesus talked about good soil. This soil produces healthy and abundant plants.
I looked again at the beauty around me. My neighbors had beautiful plants growing in pots on their porch, in flowerbeds around their homes, and in window boxes. They have tenderly cared for them, watered them, and put them where they would get just the right sunshine. Now, their little seeds have produced a beautiful rainbow of love.
When we hear of the good seed of God’s word through good preaching and our own Bible study, we each have a choice. Will it fall on a hard heart- soil, sucked dry by the concerns of today and be cracked and dusty, will it spring up quickly to wither and die away, or will it fall on good soil and grow strong to bloom with faith.

It is here in my Kentucky home that God has planted me in my summit of contentment – in June’s kind and gentle ways…

Comments

Popular Posts