The rabbis have a proverb that God writes straight with crooked lines. I take this to mean that God can take our imperfections, even our sins, and like the medieval alchemists, transmutes them to gold. I first got an inkling of this when I watched the musical of The Secret Garden. There was this spoilt, angry little girl who was regarded as disobedient and difficult. And yet, when tragedy struck, it was her very anger that fuelled her determination not to be quelled by all the dreadful changes in her life. Following the robin, she finds the key and enters the secret garden. Not only that, she finds her frail cousin and her own spoilt nature, recognising his, refuses to be cowed by his tantrums. Thus is a friendship born that will see him healed and his father’s broken heart mended. Much later, I was thinking of David and Bathsheba, one of the great love stories involving both adultery and tragic murder. David covets the wife of his general, and sends him into the front lines of battle where he dies. He then takes Bathsheba to wife, and of their partnership is born one of the wisest kings of history: Solomon. I don’t think this is a case of God approving of adultery and murder to get Solomon born. Rather, God can wring hope and justice and even goodness out of evil. And the ultimate illustration of this is Christ’s death and resurrection.
What I find consoling is that even my sins can serve me. Like the weeds that shouldn’t be pulled up lest the wheat, the grain of life, is uprooted too, they shelter the growing plant somehow. When the harvest is in, the weeds will be burnt with the chaff and returned to soil to nourish it further for another crop. What a joy that is. Amazing. Makes me wonder if God was the first recycler.
Kim, dear soul, I get more out of this site and your musings than I’ve ever received from church going. Don’t stop. Sitting quietly on your terrace sounds like a wonderful way to start each day. I walk at 8.30am as many days a week as I can fit in, but meditative time sounds like something I should try to apply. Most week days my neighbour walks with me and this has an element of accountability that we’ve taken on with one another for keeping mobile as well as assisting in weight control. We usually share some of our daily happenings, concerns and joys. It often proves a valuable sounding board about issues that crop up either on the news, work or family. I find this is a blessing in the freshest part of the day and I come inside for breakfast with the pussy cats, shower and get my day going.
Thank you so much Edith. That really cheers me up. I have started a more light hearted blog called Ageing to perfection. I’ll send you the URL when I come back. It’s on Windows Live blogs.