Scripture ~ “They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” Genesis 3:8
Spiritual Focus ~ “The garden of the world has no limits except in your mind.” Rumi, 13th century Persian poet, scholar, and mystic
Breath Prayer ~Inhale, I am Exhale, God’s beloved
Devotion ~ A local gardening show recently highlighted a story about a man who created a lilac labyrinth in his garden. Lilacs only bloom for a short period in the spring during which he invites the public to enjoy a walk through this unique garden to experience the beauty, the colors, the scent, or to simply sit and spend time there. One of the visitors interviewed for the news story said he couldn’t exactly explain why he enjoyed the experience so much. He shared that his wife had recently passed away and walking through the lilac labyrinth made him feel less alone and that was a comfort.
The old hymn, “In the Garden,” written by C. Austin Miller, was written to bring a sense of comfort and companionship in God’s presence. This hymn has been sung at times when people are longing for the comfort of God’s presence. The verses of the song include garden images of roses and birds, but the chorus returns to the idea of God walking alongside us and claiming us as the beloved.
Our scripture also emphasizes God walking in a garden. Though we intellectually understand God to be spirit, writers of scripture often describe God with human traits to create a sense of relationship and connectedness for the reader. Gardens in scripture can represent a picture of paradise, such as the Garden of Eden. Sacred soul gardening could include imagining paradise as an experience of God’s presence.
We have spent several weeks in this devotional series connecting physical gardening practices with spiritual gardening. The garden in spiritual terms is the soul where we cultivate the growth of our Inner Self, our connection with God. We plan, plant, weed and work with the inner landscape by spending time, meditating, sitting, or walking in the sacred spaces of God’s presence. The hoped-for outcome of this loving relationship is not only for personal comfort but also to share the loving bounty of our soul garden with our neighbors and the wider world.
