Handled Carefully

Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin,
but dill is beaten out with a stick,
and cumin with a rod.

Isaiah 28:27

Dill is a delicate herb of fibrous branches and yet wispy, thread thin leaves. It’s a marvelous accompaniment with salmon but its preparation requires a tender touch. A tenderizing meat mallet would crush it beyond use. It takes time, but a gentle pull from a forefinger and thumb works best. Cumin seed, on the other hand, requires the mortar and pestle that’s kept on the counter of my kitchen--different herbs require different tools.

Have you ever sat in a public place and seen just how different everyone is made? While we may have been told that someone saw our doppelganger it remains that even twins have distinct differences.

Our God is tremendously creative and his creative genius extends to how he responds to his creation. The only constant sameness is the love he has for each of us. But, how he works in our lives is as varied as the dill and cumin seed.

The wisdom of God is like the wisdom of the farmer in Isaiah. The farmer knows what to plant and how to harvest it. God knows, too, exactly what to do in the life of his created one in order to get the result he desires. Because each of us is unique there is no one way for God to work. Sometimes we may be the delicate dill and at other times we may be as tough as the cumin seed. Different times will require different tools. In God’s wisdom he will know what is best.

Father God, whether I feel like
I am being crushed or plucked
I trust that whatever You are allowing
in my life will produce the end result you desire.

Amen.