Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Matthew 6:25

I’ve had a lot on my mind lately. Unsaved friends and family members. Uncertainty whether one of my part-time jobs is making the best use of time (see Ephesians 5:15-16). Frustration this former gym-rat can’t even do three reps of 10-pound weights for a week without causing a crash. Concern for friends and loved ones who are sick or in pain.

A crazed world addicted to entertainment, sex, fury, and power as its residents seem to operate in a bizarre digital fugue.

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

Matthew 6:27

To be honest, there’s not much I can do about any of it, so I take the names and the questions to the throne of grace and lay them at the feet of the One who controls the wind and the waves. He knows what to do. I only need to wait and trust Him.

And maybe ask for His help to bolster my fragile trust when it cracks under pressure.

One way I do this is by unplugging; by spending time outside in the world He created and ruminating on His Word, His goodness, and by no means least, His creativity and care for the world He created.

And as I engaged in this exercise last week, I had the pleasure of discovering not one, but two edible plants growing right in my own yard. The research was fun, the tasting more so, and the whole experience reminded me that the God who feeds the birds and clothes the grass of the fields in splendor will take care of His children, too.

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

Matthew 6:31

Although we’ve had the kousa dogwood for years, I’ve somehow overlooked its odd-shaped fruit. Perhaps the time yours truly once threw a vehicle into reverse instead of park and only realized ther error after said vehicle continued to move and drag our hapless heroine into the branches of the little tree at the beginning of the dogwood’s maturity may have something to do with it. But who can say?

Either way, this year I did notice, took my pics (not my best work, I admit), and did my research.

After harvesting the fruit, I cut a couple open and found the inside to be very sweet, if a little grainy. Unfortunately, I believe the deer discovered the edible nature of the berries before I did, so my harvest was light this year. Next year, I’ll be watching.

I stumbled upon my next foraging adventure while investigating the fence line recently exposed by our neighbor’s newly-declared war on a ravenous wisteria vine. Small, blackish berries caught my eye and I bent down to find the unripe versions resembled miniature watermelons.

Captivated by these beauties, I took a few shots. Then I took a few more due to my own irritation at my failed Kousa pics combined with furry bestie’s helpful schnoz keeping the fruit from stillness. After banishing the beastie to the indoors, I finally managed some less blurry and less furry shots of the fruit, though the breeze and the tremor of my hands were such that the tiny flower eluded me.

The plant turned out to be black nightshade, an edible wild relative of tomatoes and bell peppers. I harvested a few of the ripe berries and was pleasantly surprised by the flavor of a sweet midget tomato. I’m watching for the next batch to ripen and hope to grace my next salad with a handful.

All the exploration served to remind me that my God is truly good. Even if the world completes its journey to hell in a handbasket, just as the Book says it certainly will, my Father will continue to care for His creatures and His children. There is no hell in His presence, and by happy coincidence, that is precisely where I desire to dwell.

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Matthew 6:33-34

Oh me of little faith…