The world feels like it’s filled with scary things right now. (Now, not only is there a virus to be extra concerned about but there’s something called “Murder Hornets” that have been found in the Pacific Northwest!)
This morning I spent some time with camera in hand watching the honeybees visit the dandelions around me. (Yes, I need to mow, but I like to think of it as helping the honeybees!)
As I watched them go from flower to flower gathering nectar to take back to their hives, it occurred to me that we could learn a lot from honeybees about how to get through life in our crazy world – especially those of us who call ourselves “Christian”.
I thought of the text from Acts that was one of the daily readings for yesterday:
All who believed were together and had all things in common. Acts 2:44
The honeybees that were working so diligently to gather nectar from the dandelions (or whatever flowers they might find) were not gathering only for their use. Their sole job is to take the nectar back to the hive for the use of all the honeybees. It is that working together that allows the hive to survive.
Right now thinking about our neighbor and their needs can seem overwhelming. If we’re honest, we have to admit that we’re not always the best at it in good “normal” times. But maybe because it seems so overwhelming is exactly why we should look for opportunities to do caring acts for others.
And these caring acts don’t have to be big or hard or expensive.
Who would love to get a phone call from you?
Who would love to get a quick note in the mail from you?
Are you putting on a mask and venturing out to the store? Is there someone you know who could maybe use a loaf of bread or a dozen eggs who shouldn’t go out to the store? Why not call and ask them if they need something?
We were created to live in relationship with others. Relationships don’t just happen; they require some effort on our part. A relationship without any work being put into it doesn’t last long.
We have been given the gift of being able to be intentional about reaching out to others and living outside of ourselves in new ways – or maybe old ways that have fallen by the wayside over the last years.
God has given us a wonderful example in the honeybee of how to live in community together and care for each other. We show the world what being a beloved child of God is like by living out that love caring for others.
Let us pray...
Lord, as we live in this time of concern and worry, give us the strength to live out our love of you by helping others and meeting needs where we see them. Amen.
Tammy Heimgartner
ELCA Pastor
Grace Lutheran Church, Mountain Home, ID
This Post Has 3 Comments
I’m grateful to see a lot of those small kindnesses happening around me!
Tammy, I like your connection between the Acts passage and the community we need to be fostering now with our neighbors and those around us in the wider world.
I really appreciated your analogy about the dandelion/bee and community. When I walked in the park yesterday I had a whole new appreciation for the many dandelions, but was not fortunate enough to see one with a bee on it! Thank you for your thoughts.