Joel Salatin is the founding farmer of Polyface Farms in the Shenandoah Valley (of Virginia?). His work in sustainable farming became “famous” when New York Times writer Michael Pollan wrote about him in his book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma. When he visited Polyface Farms, Pollan expected to be given a tour of the entire farm. Instead, he noted the first 90 minutes were spent with Joel out in a field, lying on their bellies, inspecting the ground. Joel told him “I am a grass farmer. But before that, I am a dirt farmer. Before we raise chickens and cows, before we grow tomatoes and cucumbers, before we harvest corn and okra, we cultivate the soil. It starts with the soil.”

Years later, Joel Salatin presented at a Project Peace Speaker Event in Berkeley, with Michael Pollan introducing him. During the Q&A portion, Joel was asked about his own faith journey and had this to say:

“Here am I, standing on my own two feet, looking out on the farm. I can see everything above the surface of the ground. But, then you get on your belly, down on the ground… you put your ear to the ground… or you take a spade and shovel up a little dirt… or you might even take some of that soil and place it on a slide to look at it with a microscope… and you see these creatures, these microscopic creatures… a bulbous little guy ambles across the slide, then another mosies over with these pinchers by his eyes… You begin to notice something. This isn’t inert dirt! The soil is alive! There is an entire world existing underneath my feet and I don’t even have the eyes to see it. That’s how I think about my faith. There is an entire world, a spiritual realm, existing right here, right now in this moment, albeit in a different dimension. And sometimes we don’t have the eyes to see it. But, we must learn how to open our eyes differently!”

There is so much glory, truth, beauty, and goodness to glean from Joel Salatin’s work. Yet, for our purposes, suffice it to say here: The soil is alive and it starts with the soil!

Each year at WCPC we embark upon an exploration of Stewardship, the reminder that everything we have in life—from the breath we take to the bread we eat to the resources we use—is a gift from God. Ownership teaches us that what we have, we’ve earned. Stewardship teaches us that what we have is a gift from God. Ownership says what we have we must cling to. Stewardship says what we have is available to others. Ownership says we are reservoirs. Stewardship says we are rivers. Ownership says to spend or save in pursuing status or security. Stewardship says, first, you share. Ownership says I own my life. Stewardship says my life is on loan from God: “I am not my own, but was bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:19,20). 

The more we see ourselves as stewards and the less we see ourselves as owners, the less entangled we feel and the freer we will be. The pressure dissipates when we know all we have is a gift from God. Anxiety melts away when we trust in God’s extravagant giving rather than in our earning potential. Joy abounds when we experience generosity breaking our shrink-wrapped heart and growing it bigger and bigger. We are owners of nothing and stewards of everything! Imagine, if this truth begins to take hold of us more and more, how life-giving it would be!

This year, for our Stewardship Series, as we wrap up our teaching on the Sermon on the Mount, we take up Matthew 7 under the title: GroundWork- Tilling the Soil of Stewardship. The Scriptures abound with agrarian metaphors and farming illustrations. Jesus’ parables are full of them. This is not merely because Jesus taught in an agrarian society, but also because Jesus is the Creator of the world. He knows how the world works. He created the “dry ground” and called it “land.” He summoned the land to “produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds” (Genesis 1:11). Jesus regularly uses soil as a metaphor for the human heart and encourages us to cultivate a heart that will be receptive to God’s instruction toward a flourishing and fruitful life. Jesus knows: 

The soil is alive and it starts with the soil!

Each of the three teachings we will explore in Matthew 7 draws our attention to this GroundWork. 

• Week 1 – Matthew 7:1-6 – Avoiding the Comparison Trap
• Week 2 – Matthew 7:7-12 – Trusting in Our Heavenly Father
• Week 3 – Matthew 7:13-23 – Bearing the Fruit of a Generous Life

Further, each Sunday as we take communion we will consider Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus’ capstone illustration of his Sermon on the Mount, the wise builders who build their house upon the rock of God’s Word and provision, and the foolish ones who build their house on the sand. This stark story also distinguishes the life of stewardship from that of ownership.

This Series is in conjunction with our Stewardship Pledge Campaign. We invite all who consider WCPC to be their home church to work through the journal reflections and to make a pledge of intent toward 2025.