Elizabeth and Aunt Gertrude have been working on the backyard garden for several weeks now.  And Barabas has been a great help!   Maybe you heard about when the big spider landed on Aunt Gertrude’s head and Barabas chased her around the yard and knocked it off!

This afternoon there was an “incident” when a snake slithered out from behind the bush and both Elizabeth and Aunt Gertrude screamed and ran.  Once again, Barabas came to the rescue!

“Aw!  That’s just a garter snake.  It is harmless.” he said and they watched as it went across the alleyway. 

After that, Aunt Gertrude went into the house to prepare supper.  She is fixing her favorite!   Sweetbreads! You don’t want to know what that is.  Elizabeth hates them and Barabas won’t even try them.  Sweetbreads are a favorite food from Tanzania where Aunt Gertrude grew up. 

So, Aunt Gertrude is in the kitchen and Barabas and Elizabeth are working on the path to the garden.  But each time, when they get all the rocks lined up just so and then they stand back to look at it, they can see how crooked and untidy the path is.  And they don’t want a crooked path, they wanted a straight path to a beautiful garden.  They are having a difficult time.   

Aunt Gertrude was watching from the kitchen window. 

God is watching also.  Sometimes I like to picture God at his kitchen window, watching over us as we are living our lives.  He rejoices with us and he cries with us and he sees when we are having a difficult time. 

“What those children need is something to follow that will help them with this task” thought Aunt Gertrude.

“What my people need is something to follow that will help them with their life” thought God.

Aunt Gertrude turned down the burner on the stove under the sweetbreads, took off her apron and got the clothesline out of the clothes pin basket.  As Elizabeth and Barabas watched, Aunt Gertrude, with wisdom and insight, laid the clothesline down on the ground in just the right places.  And Elizabeth and Barabas could see that the rope gave them a line to follow when they placed the rocks.  NOW the path would be straight!

God turned down the burner on the stove under the great banquet feast he is preparing for us.  He took off his apron, and with all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ.  God sent his only Son, Jesus Christ to be the line that we follow!  Jesus shows us the path.

Aunt Gertrude, and God, not only watch from the window, they come out and enter into our life to lead us on the path to a beautiful garden.   THE END

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