“Despite what happens with the many, many changes in our culture and in our lives of faith, we can always reach to nature to help soothe us, nourish us, and even guide us in faith.”
Coe, Cynthia. Considering Birds & Lilies: Finding Peace & Harmony With the Everyday World Around Us (Kindle Locations 254-255). Sycamore Cove Creations. Kindle Edition
Cynthia Coe lives on a farm in east Tennessee and also has been the Environmental Steward of the Episcopal Church. Her most recent book, Considering Bird and Lilies leads us all on an adventure through Nature and the Bible to re-connect us to the ever-present lessons Nature has to teach us about our spirituality. She gifts us to an introduction to the practice of Lectio Natura, a spiritual practice of seeing parables, biblical stories in the natural world around us and in our everyday life whether it be on the Appalachian Train or in our own backyards or gardens where peace and resurrection are abundant. These garden meditations on the sower, harvest, crowded conditions, transplanting, sprouts, first leaves, thunderstorms are “good soil” for us to plant and see fruit from our attempt to be more aware of connections between the natural world and our spiritual world.
I want to share a recent quote from Cindy about her book. “Birds & Lilies is a product of my daily walks around my farm in Tennessee. As soon as I step outside, I'm able to forget all worries and concerns. I've also gained many insights in troubling problems by observing the trees, flowers, and animals living on my farm. In researching early Christianity, I realized that many of the saints and early Christian spiritual leaders also found a deep sense of spirituality while in nature. I wanted to share this tradition of nature-based spirituality with contemporary Christians, using everyday language and a conversational tone.”
Joanna joannaseibert.com