Walk This Way, Please
This classic pun has been used by comedians since the 1930’s, since our English word “way” refers both to direction and to manner. It’s great comic fodder, as well as a vehicle for understanding how we are to live our lives as Jesus-followers.
I have an unusual way of washing dishes that puzzles newcomers to my kitchen. I start with just a bit of hot soapy water in one of the larger dirty dishes. It is sitting in a plastic tote that fits my sink. (No, there is nothing wrong with my plumbing.) Having washed the dish, I turn on the hot water to rinse it, letting the water flow into the ersatz dishpan. This process continues for all the items that need handwashing, or that won’t fit into the dishwasher. By the time the dishes are clean, the dishpan is full of scuzzy dishwater.
Now the tote gets taken out the front door, and the dishwater poured on the plants I have growing near the porch. “EW! Gross!” I may hear you saying.
Maybe, but there is method in my madness. It has to do with how I view stewardship, the role that God has given to mankind in regard to the planet we call home. Here are the facts I considered in taking this path.
I live in a desert climate. Very few of the things I have growing in my ground would survive here without the water I add. Since it really is scarce here, and we have to pay for it, I try to use water for as many uses as I can get from it.
I learn much about the heart of God and my own heart by the process of tending growing things. Jesus understood this connection and referred to it often in His teachings: vine and branches, seed and soil, pruning, fruit-bearing, and more.
The soap I use to wash dishes actually becomes fertilizer as it degrades. I am feeding the plants as I water them. The picture with this post is a single nasturtium volunteer that is one of the grateful recipients of my dishwater!
This direction of walking is not for everyone, but the manner is. Stewardship of our spaces and resources is part of following Jesus. Ask Him how He wants you to walk your paths today. You may be surprised by the joy you will find!
Following Jesus every day in the everyday,
Christi
P.S. (If you want a few giggles, search the internet for movie clips with this gag in it!)
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