I got called into work early today so me and the Beebs (Habibi, Bibi – the dog) got our walk in early. It was 33 and overcast when I got up at 9 a.m., the sun just peeking through the clouds here and there. I was thinking as I was walking and listening to a couple of geese belt out a duet as they flew across the sky. I’d like to write a forest bathing book for Christians, incorporating nature descriptive bible verses as well as commentary on my method of practicing Shinrin Yoku. I was also thinking about the fact that our first parents were gardeners, Eden’s caretakers if you will. And I wondered what the deeper meaning was behind the words “to till it and keep it.” What I found amazed me. To “till it” is from the Hebrew wore abâd. It means to dress it like a military commander forms his ranks, or a surgeon binds up a wound. Isn’t that powerful? The word also has the sense of making something suitable for your use. But the important part is that it means to work it for someone else. In this sense, it was Adam’s dressing it and working it for God. To keep it comes from the Hebrew word shâmar, and it means to guard. It also has the sense of observing it, protecting it, retaining and even treasuring it. Are we not still a race of gardeners, sprung from our first parents to keep it in good order, to guard, protect and treasure it? I think so.
a Jim Garlits blog