Nope, There's No Mistake

One time, Grandma Billington got Karly this cute little puppy dog purse with flowers on it.  We were all out one day and Karly had her purse with her.  She was sitting by me so I was looking at her purse more than I had before and I noticed that by one flower was a skull...that kind-of freaked me out because upon first glance at the little purse it just looked like happy little puppies and zany flowers, so I thought it was a mistake, but upon further study, whoever designed the fabric also designed a darker side to it as there were little skulls by each flower.

Golgotha, "the place of the skull" where Jesus was crucified, was right next to the garden where Jesus was buried.  There is not too much mentioned in scripture about this garden except that it was very near the place where Jesus was crucified and the garden tomb had never been used for anyone.  In those days, tombs were usually used for multiple bodies of members of the same family line.

It also seemed a big mistake for our Savior to promise eternal life and then go and die...right?! But,  I think what Jesus accomplished in this garden is kind-of illustrated in the life of every seed....how it has to die in the ground before it can take on the new form of a healthy and vibrant plant.  He even spoke about this concept in John 12:23-24:

Jesus' death was the seed of redemption for all mankind and it broke through three days later as a full-fledged, life-bearing, resurrection :)....to show us that sin and death do not have the final word.  That is why Jesus is referred to as the first fruit in 1 Corinthians 15:20...He was the first to rise out of death.  And, it is NO MISTAKE that by this same power, we will also rise. When sin dies in us, we also become equipped with the ability to exponentially increase our faith and be used by the Holy Spirit to spread our faith to others....like bulbs in the ground that keep producing more bulbs and popping up all over the place.  Isn't it interesting that God can use our sinful pasts through our stories of redemption to open the doors for others to believe!!!  He no longer sees them as sins, but as life-giving plants.  It's weird because the seeds are still present in us that have to die, but now their purpose is realized in our creator....they still have to die for life to continue, but he becomes like our gardener...pruning us, planting us, uprooting us and moving us...helping us bear much fruit.

Speaking of mistakes....I've always thought it was funny that when Mary saw Jesus in this garden she mistook him for the gardener....irony, right?   I wonder if since He forgot His grave clothes in the grave He had to borrow some...kidding!  But, I still love that He went for a bit without telling her who He really was....I think I would have really liked His human personality...is that weird to say?  Of course I would have liked him, right?!  I'll stop talking now  :P

(oh, but one more thing)...
 Happy Earth Day.....plants and animals are evidence of our creator in so many ways and God has given us the responsibility to manage this wonderful world He has given us.