Have you ever gone on a God Hunt? A God Hunt begins when you teach yourself to look for God’s hand at work in the every day occurrences of your life. Here’s one of my personal God Hunt Sightings:
 
 
 
The cucumber vines, which I planted by the edge of the driveway, between alternating ever-blooming rosebushes, have produced just enough cucumbers to slice for salads or make into cold yogurt soup.

“Did those grow in the garden?” asks Cirillo, the Mexican man who lives in our basement and works on the estates on the other side of Indian Trail Road. On those acreages, there are enough sun-dazzled places that don’t lie beneath the constant shadow of overhanging tree limbs. Those vegetable gardens are prolific.

Cirillo felt that I planted the corn seeds too close together in the raised bed. “Farther apart,” he says, and measures the space between his hands.

Cirillo lives with us and I can’t afford to pay him what he needs to earn in order to keep his family together in Oaxaca for the rest of the year. Because he lives with us rent-free, however, he puts in an hour or 90 minutes when he can. He is such a great worker that an hour of his time is worth three hours of the labor of a lesser man.

Nor do we have enough common language for me to explain that I didn’t expect to get a whole lot of produce this first year (particularly since we planted so late), but that I am just experimenting, getting an idea of what will grow (cucumbers hugging the sunny edge of the garden by the driveway, for instance; small to medium-sized tomatoes; beans of all kinds, certainly). I keep construing what the produce in my garden might have been had I been able to plant everything by mid-May.

“You got those beans from this garden?” he asks, insinuating surprise. I have a rather smallish plastic storage-bag full—enough for a side for one meal.

“Yes, Cirillo,” I reply with some satisfaction. “And, the Swiss chard, the yellow beans (which taste just great served in a butter/garlic sauce), and the sorrel (which I chop into salads).”

Cirillo grunts as though to say, “Fancy that. And, in all that shade.”

It seems as though I picked all the cukes four days ago, and this morning there were five more ready to be plucked from the earth. We have a company dinner planned for tomorrow night; I think I will make cold cucumber soup for it this evening.

Cold Cucumber Soup Recipe

Combine 4 cups finely chopped or grated peeled cucumbers
with 2 cups yogurt, 2 cups water, 2 minced garlic cloves,
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, and 1 teaspoon salt.
Ladle the soup into individual bowls and place 2 ice cubes in each bowl
(with a frozen sprig of mint or parsley) as a garnish.
Serve immediately.

Gardening forces the gardener to consider the goodness of the earth—that is rarely a feeling I get in grocery-store aisles. Here is cause for awe. I hold it in my hand—green and long with a pale underbelly, slightly weighty in my palm. Here is elation, exaltation, ecstasy, transport, exhilaration, here in this slight Cucumis sativus.

“From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature.” –Romans 1:20 NLT

Next year we’ll try a trellis. Next year we’ll plan to put up pickles. But for now, this first year of vegetable gardening, we’ll spy His handiwork and just enjoy the work of God.
 
 
 
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Award-winning author Karen Mains has long had an interest in spiritual formation and the obedient Christian walk. She has written about the God Hunt in her book by the same name, The God Hunt: The Delightful Chase and the Wonder of Being Found. A hardback copy can be ordered from Mainstay Ministries for $10.00 plus $4.95 shipping and handling. Contact Karen at info@mainstayministries.org and she will be happy to autograph a copy for you.

Karen continues to write content for her Christian blog, "Thoughts-by-Karen-Mains." In so doing, she desires to touch the lives of Christian women and men and help them find ways to walk closer with the Lord Jesus Christ. In addition, through silent retreats, spiritual teaching, women’s retreats, Christian vacation opportunities, and other ministry activities, Karen helps each Christian woman and man receive vital spiritual food.

Through her Hungry Souls ministry, Karen serves as a spiritual coach to many Christian women and men, and teaches a mentor-writing class. And, through the Global Bag Project, she is working to develop a network of African women who sew exquisite cloth reusable shopping bags, Africa bags. This microfinance women opportunity helps provide a much-needed sustainable income for struggling African families. For more information on this critically important project, please click here.

For decades, Karen and her husband, David, have served God through religious communications—radio, television, and print publication. The are the co-authors of the Kingdom Tales Trilogy: Tales of the Kingdom, Tales of the Resistance, and Tales of the Restoration. To find many valuable resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries main website, please click here.

Likewise, pastors will find special resources to help them prepare effective, life-transforming Sunday sermons by visiting David Mains’ website by clicking here.
 
 
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