The Fifth Sunday after Trinity, 2014. Luke 5:1-11. The Miraculous Catch of Fish

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity, 2013

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time


The Hymn #  375       If Thy Beloved Son                         3.41
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual     
The Gospel             
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn # 132  O God of God,                  3.55

Made the Rules, Breaks the Rules

The Communion Hymn #307 Draw Nigh            3.72 
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #  649        Jesus Savior Pilot Me            3.80

KJV 1 Peter 3:8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: 9 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. 10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: 11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. 13 And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? 14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

KJV Luke 5:1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, 2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. 3 And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. 4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. 5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net. 6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. 7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken: 10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. 11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.

Fifth Sunday After Trinity
O Jesus Christ, Thou Son of the living God, who hast given us Thy holy word, and hast bountifully provided for all our temporal wants, we confess that we are unworthy of all these mercies, and that we have rather deserved punishment: But we beseech Thee, forgive us our sins, and prosper and bless us in our several callings, that by Thy strength we may be sustained and defended, now and forever, and so praise and glorify Thee eternally, Thou who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Made the Rules, Breaks the Rules

KJV Luke 5:1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon Him to hear the Word of God, He stood by the lake of Gennesaret,

In evolution, there are no rules. Everything happened by chance, so there are no miracles either, because the evolutionists imagine chaos sorted itself out and simply began being extremely orderly.

We have seen crowd scenes where so many people are gathered that threaten to crush the person up front. That happened with Bill Clinton and it terrified him. In this case, people loved to hear Jesus preaching, so they kept moving closer. That would also stifle the carrying of His voice, so the reaction had to make matters worse as the crowd kept moving forward.

 2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. 3 And He entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. 

These flat-bottomed boats were quite stable, so they were ideal for what happened next. This miracle is based upon the preaching of the Gospel and the faith that the Holy Spirit stirred in  the hearts of the fishermen. Jesus entered Simon Peter's boat, so the preaching that followed was especially personal. That was his boat. He could not miss the message.

This shows how God comes to us through the Means of Grace. Often when we are too young to think about it or have a say, our parents place us where we can hear the Gospel and believe in the Savior. Infant baptism is the primary way this happens, and it is also develops because of parental teaching.

To have a more convenient place to preach, they pushed out from the shore. Jesus asked Simon to push out from land. The land rose above the lake so there were natural bleachers and the lake as a sounding board to project the voice. Old-fashioned pulpits have curved wood behind the pulpit to push the sound forward and outward. They were often tall enough to be eye level with the balcony in large churches. That was when congregations emphasize the Word rather than secular rock bands and expensive electronic keyboards.

3b And He sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. 

Sitting was the normal posture for the rabbi in those days. 

The order of this miracle is clear. First Jesus preached the Word, and the fishermen believed. Because of faith in Him, they went out seeking fish when they knew from their recent labors that none could be found.

From this and many other examples we know that faith comes from hearing the preached Word, as Paul wrote in Romans 10, reflecting the Gospel of Isaiah 53. "Who has believed our report?"

Without the Word, faith dwindles because bad displaces the good. Man's word creates so much space in our thinking that God's Word does not govern our thoughts and actions. In time, man's word prevails and a distrust and loathing of God's Word builds up.

Halle University was built to teach Biblical studies, but man allowed rationalism to enter the teaching of the faculty and Halle became the capital of rationalistic attacks on the Bible and UOJ in Europe. Wittenberg University no longer exists, because it was merged into Halle, so one more example of Lutheran doctrine was erased from modern history.

I get to teach Biblical studies to a vast assortment of graduate students earning a master's degree. The first things I emphasize in Old Testament class is Jesus as the Creating Word (Genesis 1 and John 1), the Creation, and the efficacy of the Word.

I only teach Lutheran doctrine, so I write about the work of the Holy Spirit, exclusively through the Word. The students are exposed to a lot of opinions and dates and ideas in the readings they have. The discerning ones realize that the Bible judges all books and is not judged by any book of man.

Creation and Miracles To Together

The more we experience the natural world, the more we see the power of God's Creation. Jesus, the Creating Word, established all the rules at the beginning. Not only that, all the creatures and plants obey His design. The rules are exceedingly complex and inter-related. 

The rules are always obeyed, whether man understands or comprehends them or not. For instance, dead organic material will always attract the creatures of decay the moment those materials appear. A fledgling bird died in our yard. Bacteria  begin the breakdown, but also those specific colorful flies that take care of dead animals - not house flies. This begins the removal of the body and the next generation of flies as their eggs hatch on the body. 

As soon as shade is created, or night falls, soil creatures come up to devour whatever is above them. A block of wood may look normal and hard, but it will crumble into sawdust in time, from the sowbugs, pillbugs, and earthworms that enjoy the shade, the moisture, and the food.

Organic material must be broken down so plant roots can use ion exchange to transfer soil nutrition into the plant. The same process is used in water softeners. We put table salt in softeners, so the hard or insoluble salts are replaced by table salt. I pointed this out to one member decades ago, and he was aghast.

If the soil is not balanced, it binds up those ions and does not let them move into plant roots via water. But God has arranged all this to be fixed by soil creatures who restore the balance over time, by pulling down organic material and blending it with soil. Earthworms pull down dead plant material, devour soil, and blend the ingredients in their casts. Stones in their gizzards grind the soil so it is finer, and its unique calcium glands add that chemical to the soil. 

Why does calcium matter? Acid soil is good for blueberries and a few other plants, but most plants like sweet soil - more calcium. And calcium helps release those other minerals in the soil, for transfer to vegetation.

A side note for fans of racehorses. Kentucky is favored for breeding horses because of its limestone deposits, which provide high levels of calcium and strong bones for the horses. Above the ground - racetracks. Below the ground - limestone caves.

Design Plus Timing

The fact of the relationships is proof enough of design, but there is far  more to it than A causing B, such as soil creatures causing soil improvement. The most astonishing part of this management system is timing. When a pile of compost is high in nitrogen, it heats up from heat loving bacteria. But once it moderates to a lower level, the moderates step up and continue decomposition. 

Those who watch football and hockey all winter think nothing is happening outdoors under the leaves and snow. But  in fact, the cool temperature bacteria take over at the right time. They are even at work, right now, in your gallon of Whitey's Ice Cream. Even in a deep freezer, bacteria will increase in ice cream, so it is best to consume it fresh. Healthier, too.

All the right things happen in decomposition:

• At the right time.
• Among the right creatures for that time.
• For a good purpose - better soil.

An old compost pile will be teeming with higher level creatures who live from the lower level creatures that attack the raw elements, or mold or bacteria. Once those higher level creatures stir the ingredients, birds perch nearby to snag a centipede or earthworm. The earthworms wait until the pile is cool, because they cannot tolerate the heat from the early buildup of a high nitrogen pile. The lower order creatures populate the pile and make it palatable for the next group, and so on. And we need this because healthy soil produces healthy plants for man and animals alike.

If we add the noun purpose to this, everyone begins to smell the roast, as Luther once roast. Each component, even among the chemicals, has a purpose. That is a religious statement, that one scientist said he cannot make. He can observe but he cannot assign a purpose.

But this word purpose cannot be removed from such a complicated, choreographed ritual, one that ends well for all concerned. Clearly the Creating Word established these rules for a purpose - ultimately for us, the pinnacle of His Creation.

4 Now when He had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. 5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at Thy Word I will let down the net.

There were two parts of this boat trip. The first was to put out from shore so Jesus could address the vast crowd coming to hear Him. This exchange shows that Simon became a believer during the sermon.

Fath comes by hearing the sermon about Jesus.

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?

17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.

Because Jesus is the Creating Word, He can also change the rules He established. Simon experienced the miracle of faith, where the preaching of salvation through faith took root in his heart. They fished all night, when the catch should have been good, but caught nothing. He was willing to go to the same place during the day, simply because Jesus commanded him to do that.

Unbelievers are either shocked or irritated by faith. They cannot understand someone sacrificing comfort or popularity for something so abstract. Of course it is abstract, that is what faith means.

6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. 7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

With this faith comes a miraculous answer or result. God shows us miracles in this way -

• They are far more than we can expect, imagine, or hope.
• The abundance is spectacular.
• We are certain this could never come from our own efforts.

Instead of, "You were right. There were some fish here," we see them experiencing so vast a catch that both ships, designed for this, began to sink from the weight of the catch.

Man says, "We need money to do God's work." God says, "You only need to seek the Kingdom and its righteousness" - that is, you only need the Word of God to accomplish His work.

8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken: 10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. 11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.

Do All the Earthworms Die in the Winter?

Dandelion is the tap-rooted herb no one can eradicate,
so why not include it in compost?

The Michigander asked about the survival of red wiggler earthworms during the cold winters up north. In a search of the literature, I found a number of experienced vermiculturists on the Net. They said that the red wiggler does not like the cold and will probably die in the winter, but will survive in compost, where the temperature is warmer. Egg cases survive cold and drought, throughout the yard.

We can only speculate about the depth of the next winter. We had a very mild winter followed by last year's harsh winter for NW Arkansas.

Some organic gardeners consider the best contribution of compost is the distribution of egg cases, which survive cold and drought. I have hauled wheelbarrows of compost and distributed earthworms the hard way - I would rather handle the little sack from Uncle Jim's Worm Farm.

I like composting on the spot, with mulch from newspapers, wood, and grass clippings. Weeds also make good mulch. If you think that will spread weeds in your yard, look again - they are already there. Make them pay the ultimate price while shaming them. Weeds have high nitrogen content plus minerals, so they might as well give back what they stole from the garden and borrowed from the sun.

I often put used coffee grounds in the wood mulch, especially if the kitchen trash is ready to overflow and spill it on the floor.

Small gestures do not seem to mean much at first, but over time the recycling of organic matter does add up, and the soil creatures thrive. The soil improvements that are started now will continue during the winter, under a blanket of snow.

Instead of scratching all the stuff from under the bushes, spread cypress mulch around the base to suppress weeds and feed the soil. Bare soil around the bushes will only grow up with weeds, evaporate water faster, and let topsoil blow away in the wind.

This is from Dave's Garden.
Ours is a single bush to be shaped like a vase with a narrow bottom.

Pruning bushes will make the roots start growing again. Some gardeners will jab a spade into the soil to cut the roots, which is another jump-starter for bushes. Our crepe myrtle bush continues to be in full bloom, with full pink flowers covering it. The top continues to reach upward while forming new flowers.

Fall Anticipated
I have pile of branches in the back of the lot, thanks to another round of trimming. When the leaves fall this autumn, the mulching lawnmower will combine grass and leaves in fragments to feed the soil. Raking leaves was more fun when we burned them along the curb. The backyard leaves will be raked over the garden areas and held down by the branches. Most of the leaves will be consumed by spring and the branches will be hauled away.

Our grandson had a great time again with the roses. He got the rose shears and cut off all the spent blooms. We spent a little time explaining why that helped the roses bloom even more. He learned to distinguish the ones about to bud and those on the way out. A little bump on an old bloom will scatter the petals. I saw him doing that to test some iffy roses. At the end he said, "I learn a lot from you, Grampy."

Queen Elizabeth Rose -
the ultimate bud transforms into the perfect bloom.

Abusive Narcissists Attractred To Mark Driscoll

I Photoshopped a Mark Driscoll prophesy several years ago.
Now it is coming true.

 A recent outpouring of accounts by former church members of Mars Hill, Seattle's own homegrown megachurch, are painting a picture, both fascinating and horrifying, of outrageous and psychologically damaging behavior that's been happening inside the church for many years.

Women's Training Day at one of Mars Hill's Seattle meetinghouses. Photo: Mars Hill Church

There are emerging stories of sensational kangaroo courts and "sex demon" trials, like something out of the Salem witch hunts of the 1600s. Even more devastating to individual members are the ways in which they are shamed, taught to blame themselves and each other when they see problems, and to formally shun people who step out of favor with church leaders. Shunnings, both formal and informal, have caused the outcast to spend years in isolation, cut off from friends, sometimes suffering deep clinical depression, nightmares, disillusionment and shattered faith.

More at the link directly below:

http://crosscut.com/2014/07/16/religion/121033/inside-mars-hills-big-meltdown/?page=single

Tim Glende and Ski went to a
Mark Driscoll conference some years ago,
hiding the facts in the church bulletin,
making it appear to be a WELS pastoral conference.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Driscoll_(pastor)

Recovering Mark Driscoll True Believer

Mark Driscoll's disciples
show the same contempt for women.
They posted these photos with sex-tart Katy Perry on their Facebook Accounts.

I predict the same conclusion for WELS celebrity shrinkers as Mark Driscoll is now experiencing. Glende has already ruined one congregation, turning a thriving campus church into foreclosed property with only a few members. Sure, Church and Change let him vamoose before his precious coffee bar church was built, but the stench of failure was already in the air when he packed his bag faster than Jonah. But it was Mark Jeske--rather than a whale--who vomited him on the shores of Dead Horse Bay.

Church and Change has bailed out Ski three times in a row. Like Glende, he had to change districts so everyone would forget what happened in the last place. Like Glende, he worked for Mark Jeske.

Are they like Mark Driscoll?

1. When an attorney proved that they were plagiarizing Craig Groeschel, that Glende lied about it, they excommunicated him.
2. When the husband of their victim spoke against their behavior and Ski's return to the pastorate, four staff members sued him in court.
3. Do they shun and shame anyone who questions their power grabs?
4. Did the District Pope threaten any pastor who doubted their divine status?  

Little Rain - Many Birdbaths. Birds Love Elbow Room and Variety

We have been following the disappearing rain news all week. Others are flooding, including southern Arkansas, but we are dry. Two days of rain predicted turned into a tiny bit of rain last night.

I have pictured a fancy birdbath above, and my birdbaths below. Some people build one fancy birdbath and stop at that. They have something to clean and fill, so why would they buy ten of them, or even five?

We are going to be watering for the next month, so I have about 12 birdbaths stationed to catch the extra water. 

• Two are under faucets, 
• One catches the AC water condensate. 
• Quite a few are under the suspended drip hose along the fence. 
• The rose garden has two more and the tomatoes have one.

The humble plastic dish above can be bought for $1 or so. Similar items are offered as dishes to catch the water under a flower pot. A container is worth $10 when it is listed as a birthbath, so look for these trays instead.

Our helper dug up a metal pot in the backyard, where one area was likely used as a dump, complete with broken glass. He threw the pot away. I saw another birdbath in the rough, so I placed it under the faucet for washing and filling.

These dishes almost clean themselves and fill all the time from the necessity of watering.

The result is a wide variety of birds using them throughout the day. They have a much greater need for water than for food from us. Most birdfood is the equivalent of Cheetos for birds, and they do not eat much of that for their diets. Experts say the amount is 15% at the most.

But water for bathing is essential and hard to find around here, apart from natural sources. Birds are defined as animals with feathers. Even those evolutionists with Darwin tattoos admit that "feathers are a miracle." They are lightweight and required for flight, but specialized feathers also provide warmth and waterproofing.

The robins who look so puffy in early spring are simply using downy feathers to create a sweater effect, trapping body heat in the air spaces created.

These feathers have to fit together just right to work, so bathing and preening are essential for flight, for life, for comfort and health.

So when I run the Elevated Soaker Hose, 100 feet from the faucet to the end, along the top of the fence, birds gather above and below. For those birds who miss official bath time, dishes catch water on the ground, along the path of the hose.

Grackles crave water, and they dig for pests with their powerful beaks. I hear their rusty hinge call in the trees. In Midland and Phoenix, two types of grackles were quite visible. Now I hear them more than see them, but they are always welcome.

Starlings arrive in flocks, and I want them eating insects and weed seeds in the yard. If you have never seen a murmuration of starlings, your life is not complete. They create mathmatical patterns in the sky that cannot be ignored. I will post one below.





Birds provide endless delight in their habits and songs, but they are also extremely useful in their feeding habits. They need the most meat (insects and grubs) in the spring, when most of them are raising young. Some, like doves will raise numerous broods. But spring, in warming and budding, feeds the baby birds, and the parents rid us of insect plagues.

The Little House on the Prairie books were written to recall the time when the author lived in Southern Minnesota, not too far from the little Schoolhouse on the Prairie. The locusts came in and ate everything, including blankets thrown on crops to protect them. We saw the location of the Plum Creek home, and visited a demo sod house there.

I remember grade school teachers saying "We would be up to our knees in insects without the birds eating them."

Doves and starlings also eat seeds. Since most seeds escape the birds by germinating, the rest of the seeds are weed seeds. Why not share some. They know what they need for their diet and they find it.

That another reason for having a variety of plant life in the yard, including a trashy area where big leafy plants and tall grasses grow. Each bird has its own type of feeding and the nesting area. They gladly share with other species of birds, but not with their own kind.

Sassy leaves the birds alone, showing no interest in scaring them into the air. In the rose garden, where robins often patrol, the birds will stay a few feet from me, ducking behind a rose, but not leaving the place where more protein is served birds than anywhere else in NW Arkansas.

Our helper is a little distraught that the birds have torn up our newspaper and mulch decor around the roses. I figure they are eating and picking up nesting material, so I laugh about it.

Sassy Sue's Continuing Adventures

We saw this photo on the rescue group's website,
and we had to have this three-legged dog.

We think Sassy is the greatest, but we enjoy seeing how much others enjoy her personality and talk about her silky fur, which looks German Shepherd (top half) and Red Healer (bottom half). My neighbor on the corner would love to have her pups, but she is spayed.

Sassy has a combination of personalities and voices. She guards us night and day, even turning around while sitting on the grass, to keep her eye on the perimeter (GS).

Like a Cattle Dog (or Healer), she is a talker and a singer. We sing the Cattle Dog Blues in the car and for select audiences. I am teaching her Waltzing Matilda so she knows one of her two cultures. I had to learn the words and the meaning - a unique national song, not about a girl, and not about waltzing.

Many German Shepherd owners are puzzled by her, because she is off-spec for a GSD. She does not wear that worried look that so many GSDs have. Instead, she smiles all the time and really tries to make friends with everyone. Most adore her, especially when they learn she has three legs.

I was waiting for some attention at the Walmart drive-through for prescriptions. I said quietly to Sassy, "Bark." She let go a big bark and I had an instant reply from the pharm tech. At the bank she got a bigger response, which led to three treats. That was her own idea.

If I go inside, I crank down two windows and position the car so she can watch the front door. I usually say something like, "Guard the limo while I am gone." She usually barks happily to say, "Hurry up!" This time she licked her lips to remind me about getting her snacks.

Our helper's family is used to seeing her twice a day. In the evening Mrs. Helper loves to coax Sassy into her loud, happy barks.

Her are some funny communications from Sassy:

• Staring at me with a big smile on her face - she wants something and I know what it is.
• High-pitched sounds every so often - time for a snack.
• Switching her tail so it beats against my arm - late for a snack, and I should know that.
• Half closing her eyes - I am not doing my duty. If I respond, a bad daddy tirade starts. I argue back and forth about how I do my best. She barks back that I am neglecting my tasks, especially the walk. She is more impatient for walks than for food.
• Lightly chewing my hand - do not pluck my shedding hair. I like it there.
• Ear flapping - this is an alert so I do something for her, like take her out, without waking Mrs. Ichabod.
• Banshee squeal - this is her loudest bark, far louder than her Wake the Dead bark. I went back to sleep inside after letting her out one evening (good weather, backyard). She used the Banshee on me, and I woke up. She knows how to go to the right window for effect.

That missing leg makes children love her.

Today Sassy asked permission to chase a squirrel. I said, "Our little girl is growing up." She is much better at asking permission. When she wants to walk down another street, she stops, looks at me and smiles, and looks down the street. "Do you want to go there?" She jumps forward for some exploring and seeing favorite spots.

Sassy usually asks if she can meet someone new. She looks up at me, looks at the new person, and smiles. We have had experiences where a new person is frightened or annoyed, so we are more cautious. Most start by admiring her, so she picks up on the affection or smells the dog on their pants. The stranger must like dogs, so she waits for the compliments and gets them.

Sassy friends cats now, but she began her career
on our block by sending a cat up the tree and into its garage.

Early on I took her to a dogpark, and I had her run a lot. As you can see from that early picture, she was rather weak from her neglect and then her amputation. Running at me became a big game.

Almost every day, she holds back, a half-block away. Then I say, "Go, go, go." She runs at me grinning and I grab at her. She evades me at the last minute.

Sassy is a Packer fan and does not mind rubbing it in.

By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them

Atlantic Giant bloom.

The Michigander wrote:

"Imagine my surprise at what I thought was a curiosity search about Epsom Salts would become such an inspiration for you, and even for others on Ichabod.  I'm glad I sent the quotes along."

Another Lutheran wrote today:
"I love to hear the stories about Sassy. What a wonderful pet she is for you!

Keep the gardening reports coming. I'm trying out some of the methods on our reluctant soil. I'll be laying down newsprint."

Warty gourd bloom.

Interest in posts shows up two ways. I watch the numbers daily and look at what people read the most. If they look up old posts and those go up quickly in views, I assume a post was linked to others. Some recent surprises are the Yale Egyptology story from a year ago, and a quote about Mary commanding her Son as the Queen of Purgatory.

Secondly, I get phone calls and emails, which have concentrated on gardening and Sassy stories. 

Crepe myrtle, like all bushes, enjoys prunes.

Today the Epsom salts email led to Walmart and the purchase of an 8 pound bag for $6. Rain is starting, so I scattered it in every area where I am planting - and on the crepe myrtle bush, which is the superstar of the entire neighborhood.

I believe earthworms, some extra watering, and pruning led to this great display of flowers. If they all looked the same as mine, I would give credit to our early rains. Pruning a flowering bush after the blooming season will shape it, open it up to air and sunshine, and promote root growth.

God mulches his plants. Pine trees mulch pine needles, which are good for pine trees. A bush is going to shed quite a few leaves in a year. Rather than scrape them away to bare soil, I add worms to the base and throw wads of grass underneath when the lawnmower gets cleaned. What is better than soil and grass under a bush, with red wigglers waiting to pull them under?

I suggested to both gardeners that the increase the organic matter going into their soil. Just as the church consultants say "Rock group" as the solution for everything, I say, "Mulch with earthworms." 

An old gardener's aphorism - "Every shovel of soil should have one earthworm in it." The soil population will build up quickly with soil amendments, including Epsom salt and wood ash, grass clippings, leaves, small twigs, wood mulch, sawdust, and animal (but not pet) manure. 

Composting on the spot will take place all winter, since God has three teams of bacteria at work, one for each temperature of organic matter - hot, medium, and cool. When the organic matter is the wrong temperature for the current crop of decomposing bacteria, another team will take up. Hot is faster but it never stays hot, since the high nitrogen ingredients that feed the warming up are used in the process.

Earthworms are "cows that graze on high protein bacteria." 

Soil creatures and organic matter will encourage more saturation of the soil by water, instead of runoff, and the soil will hold moisture better with the soil population and the sponge effect of humus. 

We will either compost or mower/mulch all our leaves in the yard. I may get bags of leaves from neighbors, too, if family shunning is kept to a minimum.  I can fill the compost area many times with leaves and still have room for more as they reduce in volume from decomposition.

Dave's Garden Blog

I was in a hurry to plant seeds, especially when I had seed packets in a dish and thunderclouds overhead. I did not mark them. I have pumpkins growing and warty gourds flourishing. Which is which? The fruit will tell me in the long run. The flowers are almost the same, as shown above and may cross pollinate between warty gourds and Atlantic Giant pumpkins.

"Would you like a 500 pound warty gourd for your Thanksgiving cornucopia? No?"

I also have spinach, New Zealand spinach, and Malabar spinach growing. The first is real spinach. The second is a leafy vine. The third is a spinach substitute for hot weather. Real spinach loves the cold while New Zealand spinach loves the heat and abhors the cold. No plant can serve two masters. Each one has its own growing preferences.

Seedlings like very much alike. I planted bush beans and pole beans along the fence, because it was easy to do and not new garden space was ready. The pole beans are climbing now and the bush beans will stay low and produce near the ground.

Some of the weeds confuse me. The suspicious looking ones may be some of the new plants, so I am hold off on cutting them. I still remember the person who kept trying to get rid of this weed, and it kept coming back. He learned before it was too late that it was the rare and difficult to grow, trailing arbutus - or mayflower.

Trailing arbutus, by Rich Stevenson

One of Jesus' parables is not emphasized much - the Parable of the Tares (Weeds). The crop comes up but weeds are growing in the crop. The owner warns that rooting up the weeds will damage the good plants, so the separation will take place at harvest time.

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”

The weeds are related to the classic parable warning - 

Matthew 7:15-21King James Version (KJV)

15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Planting and Harvest.

The clear teaching is difficult to miss, when read with the Sower and the Seed.

The work of the Christian Church is to sow the living seed, the pure Word of God. Nevertheless, false teachers will arise from outside and from within the congregations. Non-believers will find it convenient to remain in the Church without faith in the Gospel, and clever ones will use the trappings holiness to acquire wealth, power, and harems.

The harvest will come at last. The Gospel seed will bear fruit for eternal life, and the weed seeds will grow abundant fruit for destruction.