STEP ONE: BREATHE

Take a deep, cleansing breath. Allow the air to fill your lungs and expand your body. Exhale and empty yourself into the room. Repeat three times - once for the one who Created you, once for the Incarnate One who walks beside you, and once for the Spirit whose life fills your being.

STEP TWO: DWELL IN WORD

The Parable of the Rhubarb:

A young man went to his uncle’s garden. At the edge of the older man’s yard, there stood a large patch of rhubarb. Through decades of the uncle’s gardening, the rhubarb grew and grew. The green leaves of the rhubarb were as large as the ears of an African elephant. The red stems of rhubarb were as thick in diameter as a quarter. Each rhubarb harvest from his patch produced dozens of pies and jars of jam.

The uncle invited his nephew to divide and take a few rhubarb roots for his own garden. With a spade and bucket, the younger man carefully extracted the coveted perennial. He brought home the roots and gently planted them in a section at the edge of his garden.

For the next two years, the young man nurtured the rhubarb plant, allowing it to slowly increase in size. He refrained from harvesting the tiny stalks, which were no thicker than a pencil. Instead, he added manure and compost and allowed the rhubarb to grow. He was patient in his waiting.

In the third year after the transplant, the young man finally picked a few stalks of rhubarb to make his first pie. Over time, his patch became as full as his uncle’s patch. From uncle to nephew, the legacy of rhubarb continued in the family. Each year, that same plant produced an abundance of the sought-after fruit-like treasure, which was made into the most beautiful and tasty pies.

A Question to Ponder:

What in your life needs your patient nurture so that it can grow over time?

STEP THREE: PRAY

Gracious God,

nurture me in your steadfast love so that I might grow as your child. Root me in your justice so that I might pursue right relationships with everyone I meet. Settle my restless soul in you so that I might dwell in your shalom.

Through Jesus Christ, Amen.