From our porch, we view our little garden and mark its growth. It is consoling to cooperate with nature’s enduring quest for life and fruitfulness. The earth indeed sustains us. The ever-present grace of creation can be found in the silent growth of a small garden.
We have become increasingly efficient about where and what to plant over the years. The garden is small by design as our simple need is to enjoy the hobby and taste the tomatoes. We plant cherry varieties since, for whatever reason(s), the garden has taught us that it is better space for the smaller fruit.
Learning from our experience keeps us growing.
When our children were young, we carefully structured their “good space,” where to study, read, play, and rest. As they matured, we tried to support their own discernment about good spaces in their lives. We encouraged them to use what they had learned to anticipate what paths would yield good fruit.
I think family life is “good space,” actually, holy space – where, through the give and take of family relationships, the Lord’s grace is always growing us closer to Himself. Within our families, we learn to participate in the larger community. It involves many dimensions, including friendship, listening, forgiveness, and the will to love generously.
Often in the Gospels, the narrator tells us where Jesus was, the name of the place, in someone’s house, on a mountain, at the shoreline, in a boat, and many others. Space seems to draw us into the stories.
Our prayer is always from a particular space – wherever we may be. Maybe we have a prayer space at home, the family table, a favorite seat in church, a shoreline or hiking trail, maybe a surprise encounter with someone, co-worker, or neighbor, where God’s presence seems closer – where grace embraces us. Words seem inadequate when trying to describe such instances, these prayerful spaces.
We believe the Lord is in our midst wherever we are.
At the Transfiguration of Jesus, Peter makes the observation, “… Lord, it is good that we are here …” (Matthew 17:4).
Perhaps these are also our words, an insight we hope to teach our children to know and feel.
In all the various life spaces we find ourselves – “it is good that we are here.”
Let our family prayer be a celebration that realizes that every space is a good space to pray.