Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Ripe Guava, Encourgement and Kereru... Coincidence?

There is  a Guava tree in the neighbours backyard... and the fruit is slowly fermenting on the branches.

Yesterday was a particularly weird Black Dog day. I found myself driving through Auckland traffic, which never helps, and asking God for some encouragement.

Last Night as I sat down for dinner with some of my kids I looked out the window and there for the first time ever I saw Kereru (NZ woodpigeons). We live in suburban Auckland and while there are two volcanic cones across the road from us and a big park down the road, they have never ventured into our back yard before. Yes they were there for the ripe guava, there is nothing funnier than a wood pigeon after they've been eating fermented berries and fruit. But one of the flew right into the tree and looked right in at us.  

In Leonard Sweet's book, Soulsalsa, he talks about mezuzah-ing your world. That is like with the Jews who put the Shema on their door posts so they will remember God's covenant as they go out and come in. I was in Dunedin when I read it so I started giving thanks for the presence of the Holy Spirit every time I saw a Kereru, as they are the native pigeon/dove like bird. If you've read this blog over the years You'll find that they started turning up at significant moments in my life in ways I have taken as God giving me assurance of his presence. Even to the point as I was wrestling with a decision about leaving a place of work a few years ago, one flew right into a window.

It may simply have been the Guava tree had ripe fruit but on the day I needed to again know of God's presence there they were.

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