Margaret Feinberg - Scouting the Divine: My Search for God in Wine, Wool, and Wild Honey

ZONDERVAN

Scouting the Divine

Copyright 2009 by Margaret Feinberg

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Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

ISBN 978-0-310-33154-4 (softcover)

ISBN 978-0-310-77339-9 (audio)

ISBN 978-0-310-56402-7 (ebook)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Feinberg, Margaret, 1976

Scouting the divine : my search for God in wine, wool, and wild honey / Margaret Feinberg.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 205).

ISBN 978-0-310-29122-0 (hardcover, printed)

1. Agriculture in the Bible. 2. Symbolism in the Bible. 3. Agriculture Religious aspects Christianity. I. Title.
BS680.A37F45 2009
220.8'63 dc22 2009029010

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org).

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

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Published in association with Yates & Yates, www.yates2.com.

Cover design: connie gabbert | design + illustration

Printed in the United States of America

Contents

Part I: the good shepherd

Part II: the harvest

Part III: the land of milk and honey

Part IV: the vine

hidden bonus tracks

When Scripture comes alive in our hearts, it doesnt inform us as much as transform us. As I read Im discovering that faith isnt about becoming good its about becoming godly characters in a greater Story. Somehow, words on a flat page become the passageway to living encounters with ancient saints and sinners, and with a God who was, and is, and ever will be.

While some dismiss the Bible as a dusty old book, I view its pages as portals to adventure. Not only is the book chock-full of clever plots and compelling stories, but its laced with historical insights and literary beauty. When I open the Scripture, I imagine myself exploring an ancient kingdom. As I cross the narrow drawbridge into this distant land, I picture a castle with too many banquet halls and bedrooms to count and enough secret corridors, underground passages, and trapdoors to occupy the most inquisitive visitors for a lifetime.

At every turn I meet kings and queens, scribes and poets, all sharing their stories of courage and faith. With every encounter, I learn something new about their life journeys and am reminded that the Bible is more than a record of the human quest for God: its the revelation of Gods quest for us.

Some of the accounts are downright despicable and shockingly frank in their disclosures: a father offering his daughters to be raped and a woman who nailed a mans head to the floor. Others are simply astounding: men who wrestled with bears and lions, women and children who saved nations, and an unforgettable man who walked from life into death and back again.

The more time I spend in this ancient land, the more I notice that every persons story even the most unexpected is a chapter in the greater Story that reveals Gods glory as well as his unabashed love for humanity. At times this narrative is clearly displayed in a queens words or a prophets proclamation, but Im slowly beginning to recognize its more subtle inflections the tone of a raspy voice, eyes dancing wildly with expectation, a long pause before a painful reply. Infused by the Spirit, the chapters enliven my heart, reminding me once again that the Bible is extraordinary. As I read, the Author changes me reigniting my imagination and rekindling my hope.

Sometimes a single phrase or sentence echoes in my heart long after I close the cover. Other times I discover a passage that seems like it was written just for my particular situation. On occasion I stumble upon transformation.

Yet many days I feel separated from this ancient kingdom by an impassable moat. The accounts are distant and even dull. Though I relentlessly circle the same story a dozen times, I cant find the bridge to the life-giving truths I know are locked inside. I dont connect. I dont understand. In quiet misery, I shut the book, secretly hoping and praying that the next time will be better. Sometimes days roll into weeks and months.

The longing for those spiritual aha! moments has become what I can only describe as a dull ache with occasional shooting pains. Youve probably felt them too those twinklings of yearning to connect with a God who, despite prayer and searching, still seems far away.

Some might say its all in my head; I think its all in my heart. Deep inside, I long for the sense of wonderment that comes with knowing God, for those occasions when I wake to find the drawbridge down and the King beckoning me into a castle .

Though I pray for and try to practice faithfulness, its been so long Ive started feeling antsy. Lately Ive noticed that the day-to-day life described in Scripture is radically different than my own. Though Ive lived near farms and ranches, my suburban experience is far removed from the agrarian society of the ancient world. In biblical times, the produce of the land was part of everyday life as a source of food, a sign of wealth, and a foundational element of religious life. Yet my modern world is sharply different. What does it mean to know Jesus is the Good Shepherd and the Lamb of God when the only places Ive encountered sheep are petting zoos and Greek restaurants? How do we learn to wait for the harvest when we live in a culture of easy access? How can I understand the promise of a land overflowing with milk and honey when the only honey I buy comes in a bear-shaped bottle at my local grocery store? Can I grasp the urgency of Jesus invitation to abide in the vine when I shop for grapes at Costco?

The hunger in my heart and mind compelled me to begin scouting the grounds in order to better understand God and his kingdom.

Scouting the Divine tells the story of my attempt to understand some of the nuanced brushstrokes in the portraits of God that Ive glanced past all my life. Its an intentional search for ways to move from reading the Bible to entering stories that can be touched, tasted, heard, seen, smelled, and savored. Scripture is sweetness and sweat, bitterness and blood, tremors and tears. Scripture is life and we are called to live it.

In some ways, arent we all scouting the divine? Isnt each of us looking for those ordinary and extraordinary moments when God intersects our world?

This story began nearly a decade ago with a shepherd I met in Alaska. My path meandered its way to Nebraska and a farmers fields before turning west to the residence of a Colorado beekeeper. My latest sojourn was in the vineyards of Napa Valley though I know this wont be my final stop.

My journey led me alongside people whose experience cultivated my faith. During my time with the shepherd, I watched firsthand as a flock followed its leader with complete trust to new and even frightening places. A farmer reminded me of Gods faithfulness and timing. A beekeeper gave me a closeup look at the intricate details of Gods creation, while a vintner revealed the meaning of fruitfulness in a way I had .