Revised and rewritten from my archives…

Today was a beautiful blue sky day. Warm sunshine and time for much porch pondering before I retreated inside to pack for a visit to the grandchildren. They’ve had so many adventures this summer. I can’t wait to hear about all Handley’s birthday travels with her mama and the boys and their daddy’s life on a sailboat for a week in the Atlantic Ocean. I know they have tales to tell. And I can’t wait to hear them. “The most precious jewels you’ll ever have around your neck are the arms of your children,” Unknown. Such a beautiful quote! And so true!

Watched Mother Nature last night during the sunset hour and she color washed the horizon a beautiful pale pink champagne. The princess sun set as a glowing white light, sliding down the horizon in her beautiful golden gown, kissing the day goodnight as she lay her head down. Father Sky gave the sun a goodnight kiss, woke the night, hung a bright white luminous moon, and set a million stars to shine as nightlights in the navy sky canopy. I will never tire of watching these magnificent sunsets and always think of Rosie and Chief and wonder what they see at sunset and sunrise. I think the sunset would have to be glorious and breathtaking being viewed from heaven.

I was cooking supper this late afternoon and using one of my mason jars for a measuring cup. Haven’t had a measuring cup in years, just always a use a pint jar. I started thinking how our lives and God can be compared to a mason jar. Today my jar is filled with happiness and joy in looking forward to seeing my children and grandchildren tomorrow.

A mason jar is clear and fragile. We can screw the lid on tight or leave it loose. We can see through the jar and know what’s inside. When I was a child I stored my marble collection in mason jars. The older mason jars are marked with cup measurements. Don’t think the new jars have the measurements on them. Mason jars are ordinary but what we put in them makes them special. My jar is running over with love for my family.

The jars let us enjoy the bounty of fruits and vegetables from our summer gardens in the winter months. We can put our treasures in a jar, save our pocket change in a jar. We can fill our mason jars with delicious jelly, zucchini relish, or homemade vegetable soup; use our jars for bacon grease drippings; or sit in the porch swing and sip sweet tea from them. I have mason jars filled with tiny treasures I found on the beach when I’ve vacationed with my grandchildren.

Life is like that, we choose what to put in our jars. Some of us fill our jars up with every day blessings, leaving the lid loose to keep adding God’s gifts. Others tighten the lids, stingy with life treasures, always waiting for the big shiny objects to catch their eyes, not willing to add their everyday little blessings to their jars, afraid their jar will overflow. As they keep waiting, their daily blessings go to the wayside instead of filling their jar. Others of us gather our prizes daily, thankful to wake up with breath for another day, going through life with God as a treasure in our mason jar, pouring out his love and grace by our words and actions, filling our jar with prayers and thanksgiving.

In the Bible, jars of clay, easily breakable, were used to hold treasures and keep things safe. God gives us treasures and his treasures last forever. We can fill our mason jars with God’s light, remove the lid and share his light with others. God doesn’t measure his love, he gives it freely and unconditionally. He pours his spirit and blessings on us. In Isaiah Chapter 44, God says, “I will pour out my spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your descendants.”

Don’t be stingy with things you put in your jar. Every blessing we have comes from God. We should be grateful for these blessings and share them with others for the more we give the more we receive. Fill your jar up with scriptures and stories of God’s blessings, too. When the going gets tough unscrew the lid and pour God’s grace and love on yourself. Share your jar’s faith with others. God loves a cheerful giver. Be a blessing for someone else’s mason jar.

“We are all jars of clay, fragile and poor, yet we carry within us an immense treasure.” — Pope Francis