Taken Up by Wonder
I took up gardening a few years ago. (Well, actually gardening took me up!) It all started very innocently when a friend gave me a cutting from her jade plant. I knew nothing about plants. I had watched for years as my mother worked in her garden and I appreciated the interplay of color and texture created by the various flowers, trees, and shrubs. But, I didn't know the first thing about the process of cultivating or caring for a garden, and as far as I was concerned, the details involved in that process were best left up to my mother.
But all of that changed when I received my Jade cutting from my friend. She knew just how to initiate me into the wonders of gardening, without overwhelming me with the details. Jade plants are succulents--for those of you who do not know what a succulent plant is, it's simply a plant that doesn't need a great deal of water or attention. In other words, it's the perfect kind of plant for a novice gardener! I was amazed by how quickly this one plant put down roots in my heart. Watching this little cutting grow tiny, threadlike roots, planting it in a pot filled with simulated desert soil, and experiencing the wonder as it grew into the small Jade tree that it is today--over 15 years later--amazed me at how something so small, so ordinary could become extraordinary.
I can tell you that it didn't take long before I began to try my hand at plants that required more attention and care: African violets, cyclamen, gerbera daisies, iris, lilies, tulips, and a whole assortment of garden flora and fauna. I grew enchanted by the variety of color, texture, and arrangement each new species added to my garden. I learned about specific care regimens, their particular pests, the difference between a partial-sun and partial-shade plant, and how soil acidity impacts the color of certain types of plants.
More than all of this, gardening took me up because gardening quickly grew in me a sense of wonder. I suspect my friend knew this when she introduced me to my first, little jade plant. She knew that gardening would introduce me to the extraordinary in the ordinary. You cannot help but begin to pay attention to the tiniest details as you garden, and in turn, begin to notice all kinds of other awe-producing details all around you. The varieties of the color green in the trees, grasses, plants and shrubs, the nuances of blue and aqua hues that shimmer on lakes and oceans, and the little creatures that share the world with us--birds, rabbits, coyotes, skunk, deer, dogs, and cats.
The Scriptures indicate that the natural response to wonder is worship. Indeed, the psalmist suggests that the very detailed elements of creation proclaim the glory and worship of God: "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of his hands!" (Psalm 19:1). We are drawn into the very presence of God when we wonder in God's creation. We affirm the beauty and the goodness of God as we wonder at creation. As we wonder, we agree with God "that all he had made...it was very good" (Genesis 1:31).
Have you lost your sense of wonder? Has your life gotten too busy, too laden with care that you cannot see God's extraordinary presence in the ordinary details of your life? If so, take time to garden your soul... you'll be taken up by wonder too!
Margaret Manning is associate writer at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.
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