Day 1: Dust you are and to dust you will return
The joyful exuberance of creation dances across the once formless and dark planet. The communion of the Triune God choreographs each step, creating first light and dark, and then the separation of sky, land, and sea. Vegetation spreads across the land, and the sun, moon, and stars take their place in the visual landscape. Fish begin to swim in the water, and birds hover in the air. Wild animals and livestock start roaming the earth. Finally, the pinnacle of creation, the beings that bear the imprint, the image of God, hand-made from the red clay soil, arrive on the scene: Adam and Eve. The Grand Story can now begin, and it’s very good.
It's as if time stands still for eons as the whole Creation sways and moves to the Creator’s perfect rhythm. The theme song of creative fruitfulness and loving care pulses through the image bearers. The goodness and creativity of God is perfectly replicated and multiplied throughout the earth, until one day the created image bearers choose to obey a voice saying they could BE Creator God instead of the created image. They take action to become God, and the ability to be the perfect image is broken. The “mirror” is shattered. The balance of the relationship swings wildly away from the intended loving, peaceful connection, and the Grand Story takes a dramatic turn. Death enters the story, and God’s plan to redeem the relationship, conquer death, and restore eternal life will take time to unfold.
As God walks Adam and Eve into their chosen life, God reminds them,
“Dust you are and to dust you will return.”
They were formed out of the soil, and this death they have chosen will not only send their bodies back to the soil, but death will live in their soul as well.
Many generations later, after a devastating flood destroys the results of death-filled choices, Noah, a man of the soil, proceeds to plant a vineyard and make wine. Creator God must have smiled. He transforms even the curse of death into a process that could help our return. Death becomes compost for us as individuals, and God transforms it into a process of creativity. Vineyards and wine would be a prominent theme of redemption told in the Grand Story.
Vineyard Metaphor
Soil is one of the foundational aspects of terroir which describes the complete natural environment in which a particular wine is produced.
The taste and “mouth-feel” of wine is greatly influenced by the soil in which the vine has been planted. A good winemaker tries to showcase the unique flavor profile of a particular terroir in each barrel of wine produced, and the soil in which it is planted is what largely dictates the flavor profile. Chardonnay planted in Yolo Loam, for example, will have nice minerality, and Cabernet planted in Manzanita Loam will tend to age well and have a great mouth-feel.
While most people may consider soil to be “just dirt,” it is much more complex and foundational to life. Not only are there thousands of types of soils, but also soil is a whole ecosystem, an entire universe, of organic matter with billions of tiny organisms. A single teaspoon (1 gram) of rich garden soil can hold up to one billion bacteria, several yards of fungal filaments, several thousand protozoa, and scores of nematodes.
While soil has quite a bit of inorganic matter, such as sand or rock, and even air, the organic matter in soil has all come from the death of a living thing. As plants die and are returned into the soil to create compost, they continually add to the richness of the living soil.
The death of a plant creates the environment in which a new plant will live. The soil into which Noah planted a new vine must have been rich with the compost of plants that had died.
Reflection and Meditation
The complexity, richness, and life of soil is stunning. It carries the very DNA of the earth, and, in some ways, it carries the DNA of our human existence. The metaphor of soil is equally rich. The mystery of death and the mystery of life both live in the soil.
Just as life and death are commingled in the soil that wraps the earth, life and death are commingled in the “soil” of our soul, creating a complex context for our life.
Take a moment to contemplate the “soil” of your life.
What truths has God planted in your soul? What beauty and goodness grows there?
Consider what might feed or what might stunt the growth.
What has had to die to create the rich “soil” needed for God’s truth to take root in your life? Perhaps pride or ego have had to die. Maybe selfish ambition or doubt….
Talk to God about the soil of your life.
“For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”