Welcome to Truth Treasures,, a monthly post where I feature goodness from around the web which I hope will be helpful to you, as well as some personal tidbits, and other treasures. I pray you will be blessed and God will be glorified. Feel free to pass it along!
Reflections
I planted a vegetable garden for the first time in many years. I dug up the fallow ground, scattered some seeds, and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, some things sprouted, but most haven’t.
Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of agriculture metaphors in Scripture? I seem to be more aware of them now that I’ve planted a garden. James reminded me that I was lacking in patience. “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also be patient.” (James 5:7-8a) Our labor for the kingdom doesn’t produce the fruit we pray for quite as fast as we’d like. Maybe you can relate to that impatience? The Lord has been reminding me that it is faithfulness he is looking for, not maximum productivity. It is he that gives the growth after all. (1 Cor. 3:6)
I needed that reminder. Now excuse me while I go check my garden to see if anything grew today.
Reading Nook:
I borrowed a couple of books from our school’s library as I left for the summer.
- The Red House Mystery, A.A. Milne. I love mystery books, but I’ve had a difficult time reading them since I’ve been saved. This one, though, was an intriguing murder mystery without the gore and darkness of most, and I indulged. It took me just three evenings to read.
- The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt, G.A. Henty. I enjoy historical fiction, and this one is replete with details of life in Egypt at the time of Moses.
A Children’s Book:
- The Courage of Sarah Noble, by Alice Dagliesh. I love this book. My students love this book. For many years, I’ve used it as a teaching tool in my Grade 3-4 class to deepen reading comprehension, and for writing a book review. We take a deep dive into the book using this study guide. We usually finish all that hard work with a fun activity related to the story. This year the students made log cabins. I provided the supplies, including sticks and bark gathered from my yard, as well as various craft supplies (lots of popsicle sticks). I operated the glue gun, and they did the rest. I was often in awe at their creativity and their problem solving skills as they built their little houses, adding things they remembered from the story to their houses. The girls added a verandah to their cabins and prettied it up with flowers they made from the scraps of supplies I gave them. The boys made cedar bark roofs and built a chimney. Some used brown pipe cleaner to make smoke in their chimney. They won’t soon forget that book, with its tender, brave story of a little girl in the 1700’s, and a repeated reminder of a valuable life lesson: Keep up your courage, Sarah Noble.
Around the Web:
- On Rainbow Wings, a short video by The John 10:10 Project. Hummingbirds zip past my living room windows at alarming speed now that they’ve arrived at their summer breeding grounds. I put a hummingbird feeder up last year, and for the first time I saw these delicate creatures perch, rest, and fight each other. They are an incredible glimpse into God’s creativity and care for minute details, and this video highlights their splendor.
- Relax and Enjoy the Flight, Kristin Couch. “The question is: Will I relinquish my strong affection for personal sovereignty?”
- Feeding (a poem), Seth Lewis
- One Step Becomes a Three-Day Walk, Timarie Friesen. “What started as a simple sharing of a soccer ball has become a partnership with Cabécar people who agree Jesus is worth sharing.”
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Life Through My {Camera} Lens
“Three!” she replied, lifting up three little fingers, while holding down two. “But not yet. It’s LA-ter.”
“What would you like for your birthday?”
“Hmmmm. My want a whee-hul-barro to help Mama move dirt in her garden. And to clean the horsie field.”
How do you say no to that??
A Favorite Quote:
“And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” Mark 4:26-29
Thank you for spending time here! Have a wonderful summer!
The Light for My Path 