Husbandry

Mmm so do I dare write about this stuff? I feel prompted to do so but surely this way danger lies!

So, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary last weekend. We had a lovely trip away to the hotel we spent our honeymoon night in. The hotel is a former vicarage in lovely grounds. The owner cooked us a lovely meal. The following morning as Debs got ready to go down to breakfast I found myself watching a program on Fruit Trees. They interviewed a man about the national collection of apple trees. They aim to have at least one tree of each variety. He was a mature man and gentle in his speaking. But he had a confidence about his speaking. I was struck when he referred to his work, which has been going on for many years as "Husbandry." I thought to myself then as he said it - I must think about that.

I grew up in a home where our father was absent. So I don't have an observed understanding of what a husband does. It means that I have missed some of life's lessons.

Husbandry is such a rarely used word these days I thought I would look it up. It turns out that it is an agricultural word about the judicious use of resources to get better crops etc. I am guessing that the better farmer, orchard keeper you were, the better husband you were to your wife in terms of provision.

God himself tells Israel "I have been like a husband to you" - so I find myself thinking about the last year and asking myself what I have learnt about being a husband.

A husband is there to bless his wife. To stand with her in life's storms as well as life's joys. To laugh with your wife as well as to cry with her.

Husbandry is also about making good use of the resources of the marriage for your joint mission. I am not just talking about material resources. I am also talking about spiritual gifting. God has given Debs and I complementary spiritual gifts. When we find our ministry niche as a couple we will be a blessing.

The husband might be required to be mission leader, vision holder, Holy Spirit fire starter. Debs is content for me to lead on some things and I know she leads better on others. We believe in mutual submission. Faithful love and as the song says "we are better together."

We are a House of Prayer in obedience to God's will for our life.

Debs and I keep short accounts. That is we don't let things fester when we argue and we forgive each other quickly. "don't go to bed mad - stay up and fight!" as the saying goes.

It is a year since our Australian Beach blessing (a week after our marriage). I will add a link below to what Kev Budge said at our blessing in Caloundra.

God showed me this today - Psalm 37:8-9 NIV "do not fret—it leads only to evil.  For those who are evil will be destroyed, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land"

We are called to life in all it's fullness. To embrace it with joy.

For reflection:

They say a couple relates to each other in the following five ways

Social
Sexual
Spiritual
Emotional
Intellectual

Which ways do you fit your partner? Is God calling you to do anything different today?

Dear Lord, please bless our lives and our love, make both more pure. Give us again the joy of your presence. Amen

Collision course

Our bird feeder is quite near the side of our house. We have been visited daily by a little chaffinch who has been visiting the feeder. At 6am yesterday, bless him, he took again to his favourite activity of dive bombing our Windows. He is the only bird doing it and we have got so used to him doing it that we know that the tap, tap, tap sound is him again and so sometimes will lurch out of bed to look at him. So we have learnt from his behaviour. He however has learnt nothing from these collisions beak first with our double glazing. They must be painful for his little beak. 

This has been going on in my week of listening to God about the future. It made me think have there been times in my life where I have been like that chaffinch. Repeating behaviours or actions without drawing any conclusion as to whether they were good for me, even though sometimes they hurt more than banging a beak against glass!! I think, to be truthful, yes at times I have been like that chaffinch. So that set me thinking on the whole area of how do I live my life?

At a logical level it makes sense to humanly concentrate on the things that build me up or fulfil me. 

There is a quote in the book Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks which captures what we sometimes realise - "There's nothing more than to love and be loved.”

To me to give and receive love is what makes the difference between a life well lived and one of despair. And that also having love in my life enriches our Spirit. 

It may not be fashionable to acknowledge it but we are also spiritual creatures. as well.  We have our bodies and our mind and we have a spiritual life which needs nourishment too. 

I am still ploughing on with the book Undaunted by Christine Caine but have had to slow down in case I miss something important. I did however get as far as this phrase  "choose to trust the Creator of the universe, the one who hung the moon and placed the stars and fixed the sky." 

I choose life, I choose love, I choose as Christine says "to trust the creator" - I hope you can too. I invite you to share something that gives me strength.

For Reflection:

"whoever loves is a child of God and knows God" 1 John  4:7 GNT

"there is no fear in love; perfect love drives out all fear" 1 John 4:18 GNT

Our loving father in heaven, sometimes we have to go  back to your feet to learn. Help me to receive your knowledge and your gifts for my life. Amen

(above is a photo of the Chaffinch - we couldn't catch him on camera colliding with the glass!  This is one of his perching looking in moments)