Walking on the Grass

Wednesday morning was my diabetes eye test - won't find out the results till later, but will hope for the best . It was my usual Zoom session in the afternoon, and the Brighton rehearsal in the evening. I was given a lift there and all seemed to go smoothly. We all went to time - slightly under, which is the ideal really, as it means none of us has to rush through our answers.

Though even that tiny outing - a tiny bit of walking and standing - has left me in such pain this morning - left knee. I have to pray that I can make it on Saturday and not let everyone down.

We were talking about the earthly paradise in the meeting at the Kingdom Hall on Sunday - paradise meaning a beautiful park or park-like garden, just as the Garden of Eden was - and I was thinking about the parks of my 1950s childhood. Sheffield was - and is - a city of parks and trees, and us kids used to take ourselves off to the parks to play regularly, and probably more and more so as the bomb sites (our original playgrounds) began to be cleared and re-built. Though I seem to remember it was the Town Planners of the time who devastated a vast area of lovely stone-built houses and gardens to build a monster high-rise hospital just at the end of our road.

For sure, it was needed though. I just wish such lovely houses hadn't been demolished to build it.

Anyway, what I was remembering was that there were acres of well-groomed lawns in these parks, but we the public were not allowed to tread on them. There were signs everywhere saying: "Keep off the grass". And we did.

Then one day, the signs came down. It was quite strange at first, being able to walk on the forbidden grass.

I also thought of how we do try, as best we can, to carry out the commission our Creator gave us - to turn the whole earth into a beautiful garden. In spite of our imperfection and living in such a destructive world system, we have made some lovely gardens. My father always made his garden beautiful, and productive. It makes us happy to do so.

So the photo above is of the beautiful gardens at Arundel Castle, in tulip time. And the question is: If we can make such lovely gardens even now, how beautiful will the earth become during the Thousand Years when the whole earth is under the loving and perfect rule of the Kingdom of God?

Why not be there to find out?  Jehovah is extending his invitation to everyone.  As the last book of the Bible tells us:   And the spirit and the bride keep on saying, “Come!” and let anyone hearing say, “Come!” and let anyone thirsting come; let anyone who wishes take life’s water free. - Revelation 22:17