Pastor Don's Ponderings

Sometimes it seems that our American culture has become so obsessed with rooting out the worst seen in each other that we have lost our own sense of the good God has placed in each one of God's own children. It is as if the Kingdom can only be that which we approve it as being. When Jesus speaks in parables concerning the Kingdom of God in the Gospel according to Matthew, He teaches about the tiny mustard seed, the beautiful pearl, the hidden treasure, the yeast . . . and of a Sower who casts seeds about willy-nilly, and of a Landowner willing to allow the weeds to grow up along with the wheat until the day of harvest. In telling His parables, I wonder if Jesus ever took into account the possibility that the created would one day weary of searching for the plantings of the Creator? That rather than seek the mustard seed we would only be happy with the full-grown bush? That instead of treasuring the found pearl we would insist on the full jewelry store? That instead of committing ou...

Every once in a while I have to take the time to walk in the pastures of our family farm. This old cottonwood tree is in our East pasture and has stood the test of time longer than I have been alive. I know it has been struck by lightning numerous times, has had multiple honeybee swarms make their home in its branches and trunk, been rubbed against by hundreds of cows satisfying an itch against its bark, and has had the land around it shaped and reshaped numerous times over the decades as our family has striven to manage the large amount of water which flows in that area of the farm. This tree is a survivor . . . and the cows still love it and the shade it provides on a warm Summer day. Coming back to blogging is a bit like walking the pasture towards this tree: It is nice to return to the places and things which are solid and standing the test of time. So much of our technological age is transitory, including the social media sites which tantalizingly draw our attention for a mom...