Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.  Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

     And why do you worry about clothes?  See how the lilies of the field grow.  They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.  (Mt. 6:25-34)

This spring I decided to improve the appearance of my front yard.  I cut down the shrubs that were beginning to have more wood than green. I also cut off all the limbs— as high as I could reach with my chain saw— of the two Spruce trees that grow on my front lawn.  Now I must admit that things look better, but the above activity left a pretty large space with

no grass.  Besides that, my front lawn did not winter well.  There were some rather significant patches of brown when the snow finally melted.

     With fear and trepidation, I decided I would have to plant grass seed.  I have never had much luck with growing grass.  Oh it will grow well enough where I don’t want it, but it hardly ever grows where I want it.  I asked everyone I knew for advice and then I reluctantly made the journey to the hardware store.  I explained the situation and was told the perfect seed to buy for a shaded area.  Then, of course, there was fertilizer and three bales of hay and hand held fertilizer/seed spreader.  Of course, I would need a plastic drop cloth to keep the hay out of the carpet of Carolyn’s van.  After writing a substantial check to the hardware guy and watching Carolyn’s face turn white when I told her “how much”, I was ready to plant.

    I planted, fertilized, and covered with hay.  That was three weeks ago.  Since then it has rained almost every day which should be perfect conditions for rapid growth.

     I have a 5’x 5’ area which is doing pretty well, but the remaining 80% of the planted area has nothing but a few weeds, probably seeded by the hay.

     I have decided not to worry.  That won’t do a thing except create anxiety. God will provide plenty for dandelions and weeds which are, after all, green, for the most part.  From a distance it will look like a lawn, at least after I mow the flowers.

Grace and Peace