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Second Chances
Joe Killian • February 26, 2016
We really enjoy landscaping our yard. But when we started almost 20 years ago we were totally overwhelmed. We decided to hire a landscape designer who created a beautiful layout that provided colorful blooms from spring through fall. One of the focal points in the front yard was an ornamental tree that was supposed to be covered in blossoms at the start of spring each year. I waited for blooms for the first three springs before losing patience and moving the tree to the back yard where it shriveled and seemed to die.
This week's Gospel is also about a barren tree:
Some people told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. Jesus said to them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none so cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’” Luke 13:1-9
Jesus tells the parable of the fig tree to drive home a point to the concerned people. They seem to be looking for some sort of sinful justification that caused the death of the Galileans and 18 others. Without the parable to make His point, Jesus' words to the people seemed harsh. "But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did." Once Jesus tells the parable of the fig tree the people learn of the merciful gardener who offers a second chance.
We hear this Gospel during Lent as we seek to turn away from our sinfulness. Lent gives us a season to cultivate the ground around us and to be enriched by the Merciful Gardener. It is important that we remember that behind the scenes we have an advocate who has provided us with a second chance. We need to flourish and bear fruit for Him.
A couple of years after I moved the tree to the back yard I noticed something amazing. A couple of unique blossoms appeared. I now know that the Red Bud was prevalent in biblical times and was known to herald the coming of spring with its beautiful blossoms that covered its bark and branches. I am glad our tree made the best of its second chance. It brings us great joy each spring. Make the best of your Lenten season!
The story continues...I'm still working on the pondless waterfall in our front yard. I shared this project with you two weeks ago in Playin' In the Dirt. Since then I've had to rework sections of the stream three different times because we were losing too much water. I am now an expert on evaporation rates and excessive splash, two causes of water loss. This morning I tore the whole thing apart and I'm starting over.
Have you ever watched DreamWorks Animation's Kung Fu Panda? I stumbled across it recently and thoroughly enjoyed Jack Black's performance as a bumbling, noodle selling, kung fu enthusiast, giant panda named P o. Set in ancient China, it is more than a humorous slapstick comedy. The core message of the story jumped out at me as I have been focusing recently on the concept of being. Po is shockingly identified as the Dragon Warrior and he reluctantly enters training. The goal of the training is to receive the Dragon Scroll, which is believed to hold the secret to limitless power. Now I don't want to spoil the big reveal but I will say that what Po realizes is the same as what I speak to in the concept of being and authentic identity. So, where do we find the secret to our "power?" I praise You, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works! My very self You know. Psalm 139:14 God knows it; and we must seek Him with all of our hearts in order to find it. As it was in the movie, the answer is stunningly simple. Our authentic identity is already within us. The challenge for Po in the movie was in seeing himself accurately and not the way others saw him. Even his teacher scoffed at the idea that Po was anything more than an underachieving dreamer who overate when he was anxious. Po's problems are rooted in the fact that he believes the lie of his false identity much more than he does his authentic one. Is it possible that you do the same? Who could have imagined that beneath all of Po's girth lived the Dragon Warrior? What's hidden from view in you? Seek God for understanding as to who He created you to be. Spoiler Alert: the secret of your limitless power is already in you. God placed it there and He wants you to be who He authentically created you to be.
Maria and I have been playing in the dirt a lot recently. First we replaced our French drain and then we embarked on a creative project intended to change the entire look of our front yard. My brother Jeffrey and I installed a new front step.
