Lessons from the Salt Marsh

Having recently returned from South Carolina, I am thinking about the salt marshes of the Low Country, and specifically about spartina grass.  Spartina grass grows in the mud, called "pluff mud", of the Low Country.  When it dies, it provides food for a number of animals, creatures such as oysters and crabs.  Without this sustenance, they would not be able to live.  The spartina grass is an invaluable part of this ecosystem.  Within this muddy environment, all kinds of wonderful things are happening, things of which we could easily be unaware.  But it is important to know that they are happening, and that each element in this process plays a vital role.

During the Lenten season, we examine our lives to see what parts of ourselves--unhealthy habits, destructive thoughts, etc.--we may need to give up in order to more closely follow our Lord.  Sometimes we get caught in the mud, in the places we would rather not examine, but God works in those places even when we are unaware of it.  The habitat of the Low Country salt marshes is a good reminder of how God works to bring about new life in the midst of the murky areas of our lives, and how God provides us with resurrection hope when we are mired in uncertainty.  It also reminds us that the Spirit calls all of us to work together, to help each other walk through the darkness and into the Light.  Each of us is called to work with God, to bring about the rebirth and wholeness of all creation.  Every person plays a vital role in God's kingdom here on earth.  May we trust that God is working in the muddy, murky areas of our lives, and may we help one another to see the miracles that are happening there.