"...The life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the Lord your God..." (1 Samuel 25:29 RSV). Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn" (Matthew 13:30 ).

"The bundle of the living is the precious package of those for whom the Lord cares" (Oxford Annotated Bible). We slip out of the bundle when we insist on going our own way. Our self-assertion pokes a needle through the seal of love God has so carefully wrapped around us; finally and slowly, out seeps the preserving fluid of God's Living Water. We can't understand why we are in a dry land of self and left to face the world alone.

Life is bound in bundles, starting with our family. There is no island, physical or spiritual or mental, where we can isolate our "self," much as we wish it at times. God has declared that we shall not live alone (Genesis 2:18). Our growth depends on and is proved by our ability to bundle with--to get along with--others. Every person who touches our day becomes bound with us and we with them. It's a grand concept that should help us to interact with loving concern for all.

We are bound in bundles with all who have come before us, too, for we share in their genes and their ideas. Every time we read a great book, we are bound with the author. We are bound to the past and bound to respect the past, as well. If not, we are indeed doomed to repeat the mistakes that have caused weeds of war and wrong to proliferate through this poor, sad world.

O Father, help us to remember that we are your precious possession, wrapped in Your bundle that we may not be lost!