Last week Jeff’s parents were here from Chicago. We took them on a grand tour of the area from Astoria to Mt. Saint Helens. At Mt. Saint Helens we stopped at the Forest Learning Center. It is run by the Weyerhaeuser company and tells the story not only of the eruption, but of how Weyerhaeuser replanted their land near the volcano. The whole story of Mt. Saint Helens is one of scientists learning new things as they witnessed the awesome power of nature at work. This was no different when it came to the natural progress of the forest or to the work of the timber company. Forestry scientists undertook experiments in the ash covered land. It was a whole new world in many ways. The scientists had to develop methods to work in the changed landscape to create the vibrant growth they wanted. Early on they realized that in order to grow, the new seedlings had to be planted in soil. This meant digging down into the ash to plant. It was much more labor intensive and involved different strategies then planting in a normal logging site or even in a burned forest.
As a result of my worldview I saw this as yet another analogy of the way forward for those planting churches. The world has radically changed, and sometimes it can feel like the ash covered, unrecognizable landscape of a volcano eruption. But life can still grow here. We just have to figure out how to plant here in this place. We can learn from what has worked other places, but to really grow here we have to be present and learn from this environment. We use our imaginations and engage our creative reason and before long something will be growing.
-Eilidh
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