BERRY GOOD SECURITY

 My childhood home in a Western Washington river valley had great soil for growing berries. As a child, I earned money for school supplies (like a new zipper-close three-ring notebook!) by picking raspberries at the farm belonging to one of my dad's coworkers. The task taught me to appreciate the sweat equity of “doing life,” especially for a little girl who wanted a new, pretty notebook for my success in school. My parents grew up in the Depression—my mom, especially in poverty as the oldest of nine born to a farmer—so such child labor (under the eye of a parent or older sibling) matched their value system.

Okay, all this is somewhat backtracking, but early-on I developed a love-hate relationship with berry picking, favoring picking blueberries over raspberries (which smashed too easily) or blackberries (with their dreaded thorns). After going to her share of You-Pick farms for berries to freeze for our family's food, my mom talked my dad into planting our own blueberry bushes. After that first year, realizing our bushes were a favorite feeding place for the local robins, my dad built a chicken-wire cage over them, complete with a door to go in and out. He even buried the bottom of the cage wire in the soil, so the birds couldn't squeeze underneath.

Oh, the delight of blueberries! The amusement of going in the “cage” and hearing birds outside squawk because they couldn't get inside, too!

When I married and my husband learned of my love affair with blueberries, he upped his love-care and planted several bushes behind our garage. And when the robins found them, he realized we had a problem. He wasn't interested in building a walk-in wire cage, but bought a net to deter the winged robbers.

So when blueberry season came again this year, I smiled, and gingerly lifted the net to claim the blue gems that are like candy for me. (I especially like them as toppings on my morning oatmeal.) And I remembered other times I came out to pick that a robin was either fussing from a nearby tree or one was thrashing about in the net, thwarted from its plan to dine on those divine fruits.

I thought of other “barriers” we sometimes need in life. Not to discourage birds, but to find a place of safety away from demanding, demeaning, or denigrating people. That last one is a big one, meaning “to attack the character or reputation or speak ill of, to defame.” I've experienced that and have had to repeatedly turn the “denigrator” over to the Lord.

And I have found that the Bible has plenty to say about real security in the Lord. Among them, these verses:

“The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life, the Lord will watch over your coming and gong both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:7-8)

“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is as my right hand, I will not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:8)

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalm 91:1).

I'd love to hear your fav verses of security. The “comments” box awaits.....