Vineyards and Olive Groves

“So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.” Joshua 24:13

Forgive me for being redundant but when you live with a realization of something you have been given through the grace of God it grounds you with a spirit of constant humility. We live in a world where so many fathers do not take the raising of their children as a life calling. Children are raised with a distorted view of God based upon their experience from their father-child relationship.

I was born into such an amazing spiritual home which I was reminded of yesterday. My dad called me the day before while my family was on vacation and couldn’t remember why he called but just knew it was important. Yesterday I received another call from him happy to remember the reason for which he had called the day before. He explained that the original thought had come to him as he was walking from one room to another. My dad has declined mentally as a result of the all of the medicine he is on for his cancer. His failed memory bothers him as much as the side effects of his cancer if not more. He explained that over the past day he had been walking between the two rooms in an effort to retrieve the important message he had for me.

The message he finally remembered both humbled me and touched me. He explained the importance of coming together as a family for five minutes each day on vacation to acknowledge that the Lord had given us this privilege of vacationing with all the blessings it brings such as health, fellowship as well as the means to afford the vacation. As I sat there listening to him like I have done for 48 years I experienced a freshness of the “vineyards and olive groves” in which I have been fortunate to live.

The way my father has always exemplified Christ is still being displayed and remains active and faithful to his Father even in grief, illness and pain. The good news is that even if your earthly father has not been an experience from which you want to base your life upon, each of us has a heavenly Father that will nurture, love, protect and choose us every day of our lives.

Through Him, though we did nothing to deserve His privilege and favor, we enjoy the sweetness of the Vines and experience the bounty of His olive groves.

“But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15b