Jesus tells us not to worry about our lives. This is easier said than done, so he gives us the example of the birds for reassurance: “they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them” (Matthew 6:26).
It is good to be generous, but it is also good to be needy. We are all called to depend on God through our relationships with our neighbors and the earth. If you find that you need an ingredient for a meal or a tool to fix something, praise the Lord for an excuse to ask your neighbor for help!
It is easier to receive when we remember that everything is ultimately a gift from God. Likewise, we need to remember that our ability to love our neighbor depends on our care for the earth which is our common home. This is why Pope Francis introduced Caring for our Common Home as a new Work of Mercy.
By caring for creation, we sow the seeds for other works of mercy. When we give the land a Sabbath rest, we increase the soil’s fertility to feed the hungry in future years. When we invite farm guests to visit our animals or walk through the woods, we counsel those who are doubtful and have lost hope in the earth’s future.
Creation care is also the fruit of the other works of mercy. When we have been nourished and counseled, forgiven and comforted, we have the strength and peace to more fully participate in our vocation to care for God’s earth.
This month we thank God for the beautiful interdependence of creation: for the yeast that leavens our bread, for the neighbors that help harvest our crops, and for the grace of wind that brings rainwater from the ocean.
Julie Laudick Dougherty is the farmer and co-owner of Oxbow Farm in Parkton, Maryland, USA www.oxbowfarm.net