Last week someone said to me, "Everett, this is my 85th spring, and every single year it is still a surprise." I loved that! What a wonderful way to live life. Every year in April all the plants burst forth in colorful and fragrant blooms. Robins gather grass clippings for the nests they need to nurture their young. Gardeners turn over the soil yet again. "This will be the year of the bumper crop of veggies," they say, as they do every spring. Margaret Atwood once wrote, "In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” Every year we take this time to get back in touch with our natural, God-given, inclinations toward the feeling of bare feet on cool grass, soil under our fingernails, and fresh air filling our lungs. Every night I take my dog Eli for a walk. Last night as Eli and I were walking up Temple Street in the perfect 68 degree night beneath a canopy of distant stars and planets, I noticed something. The world smelled good. It was like the Earth had put on perfume for a big occasion. The trees, the flowers, the freshly cut grass filled my nostrils with the fragrance of life, of blessed existence. As I walked Eli (or he walked me), I breathed deeply of God's goodness in creation and I couldn't help but praise God. I put my earphones in and played the song "10,000 Reasons" by Matt Redman. Here are the lyrics:
Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes
Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
You're rich in love, and You're slow to anger
Your name is great, and Your heart is kind
For all Your goodness I will keep on singing
Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find
Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
And on that day when my strength is failing
The end draws near and my time has come
Still my soul will sing Your praise unending
Ten thousand years and then forevermore
Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
Lord, I'll worship Your holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
I'll worship Your holy name
What a glorious walk it was. God is good--all the time. All the time--God is good.
Friends, this is my 34th spring, and every single year it is still a surprise. What a wonderful way to live life. I hope this year you were surprised by it all over again. If you weren't, it's not too late.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Everett
