A Red Clay Run

I was out on a long run the other day and happen to notice a freshly plowed corn field. My run routes include several of these type fields but I seldom allow myself to give them much of a thought. It was a little different that day due to my mind started to think about the winter months and how the barren red clay field was in transition. The once thriving corn field lay turned under and useless.

We see our lives that way sometimes. Every thing seems to be running smoothly and then one morning we wake up to discover somewhere along the way, the heat on the job, a family disagreement or maybe a nagging health issue has caused us to become ineffective with every thing we do. It wasn't a sudden change but one that wore us down one day at a time. Our lives appear to be plowed under.

The one thing I also realized was our lives are in need of rest at times just like the crop fields. It is good to stop and be still. To allow time to think, ponder and determine where our lives are heading and if a change of course is required.

As I was headed back I passed another field that was almost directly across from the field I had passed earlier. I noticed that this field had also been plowed under at some time but it had also been raked and re planted. It appeared to be a winter hay or oat planting. The fresh green sprout had lifted their head about 1 inch up from the nurturing soil. A new birth that had probably repeated itself hundreds of times. I found an encouragement with this newly planted field. Sometimes our lives may seem empty, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Maybe we are in a season like the empty plowed corn field; waiting for the next great planting. I guess it depends on who you consider your farmer to be.

So lace em up and get out there. There are red clay fields out there that can provide an answer.