Plucking Grain

On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grain fields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” And Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” Luke 6:1-5

One of the very first songs I learned to play by heart on my harp was Sting's Fields of Gold. It is a lilting Irish-style melody and the strings ring with the tenderness and affection. Whenever I hear this gospel story about Jesus and his disciples walking through the grain fields on a sabbath morning, hungry and bathed in light, this song runs through my head. A sort of sappy love song for Sting and yet a powerful picture of a moment when love transcended the time constraints and restrictions of the world. They walked in fields of gold and yet the religious leaders condemned then for breaking a law. A small infraction when they were living their lives for the love and care of others. They were on a journey to bring God's love to a hungry and lost generation and to renew the world through their witness. And yet some would see only their small mistakes and not their willingness to feed and care for the suffering.

We all some times have to make decisions to break from the tradition or the culture in order to save life and to renew the world. We might not like the idea that a popular artist can describe the presence of God in our world - the presence of love and beauty. But indeed, God walks the journey in this world with all of us, feeding us in our ache and loneliness, renewing us despite the toils and tribulations of the years. We can be petty and be bound by convention, or see God working in the world - the fields around us.

Today I pray that I can rejoice in the gifts at hand, the food that is provided, the renewing brought on to day and God's love in the smallest grains of life's unfolding. May today be a day to witness fields of gold in our lives, despite (and because of) the smallness of some so that generosity and sharing might be reestablished in our time.

Fields of Gold - Sting
You'll remember me when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we walk in the fields of gold

So she took her love
For to gaze awhile
Upon the fields of barley
In his arms she fell as her hair came down
Among the fields of gold

Will you stay with me, will you be my love
Among the fields of barley
We'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we lie in the fields of gold

See the west wind move like a lover so
Upon the fields of barley
Feel her body rise when you kiss her mouth
Among the fields of gold
I never made promises lightly
And there have been some that I've broken
But I swear in the days still left
We'll walk in the fields of gold
We'll walk in the fields of gold

Many years have passed since those summer days
Among the fields of barley
See the children run as the sun goes down
Among the fields of gold
You'll remember me when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky
When we walked in the fields of gold
When we walked in the fields of gold
When we walked in the fields of gold