Gardening Lessons I Learned This Year

In my last blog I said that I love watching things grow in summer and the reason I love gardening is because with just a little water, some sunshine and good soil, voile! You have bountiful produce in no time! Well, nothing can be further from that this year. I had birds pecking on my seedlings, whiteflies and ants infesting my young vines, more birds pecking on fruit buds and whoa, humans pilfering the fruits, too! By and large, a very interesting and challenging growing season! :)

May 25, 2018

Jul 3, 2018

Jul 12, 2018

By the middle of July they had already reached the top of our trellis. They grew lots of leaves and branches too, so thick at the bottom that I was alerted to check on them when a friend told me she had powdery mildew on her grape vines.  I looked up the remedy and cause of powdery mildew online and it says it is mainly dew to overcrowding. It occurs when the growth becomes too profuse and the best mitigation measure is to thin out the growth. I thought I better check on my bitter gourds, too.  True enough, I was too late! They were already badly infested with whiteflies! How did I know they were whiteflies? No, I didn't. I looked up pictures of common garden pests online and that's how I identified the unwelcome guests in my plants!

Jul 14, 2018 - Whiteflies infestation

The attack was quite bad. I could not take a good pic of the most badly affected leaves because I did not want to disturb the whiteflies in them. I quickly cut off those leaves and isolated them in a plastic bag. I did that to prevent them from moving to the other plants in the garden and come back to infest my bitter gourd vines again once they recover from the gutting.

Jul 14, 2018 - Gutted vines.

Yes, in a drastic move to save the vines I applied the "scorched earth method" - I totally trimmed off the leaves and left only the buds at the top. See pic above. This removed most of the whiteflies and whatever larvae / eggs left behind would have limited greens to feed on. I also watched a vid on YouTube where some gardeners used water to hose down the whiteflies from hibiscus plants. I did that too, but soon regretted it because it turned out bitter gourd buds are too fragile for that treatment. The water jet blew away almost all the tender buds!

I was trying to keep to the natural ways of averting the pest attack so I looked online for the best plant repellent for whiteflies. French marigold, alliums (green onions and garlic) were among those I found. I used French marigold and green onions because they were the most readily available. I planted them immediately and ten days later they were quite established and healthy. Meanwhile, I kept manually brushing off new growths of whiteflies off the leaves. I also found out online that you can make a solution of chili pepper and garlic and spray it on the vines as the smell of those spices also repel whiteflies and other insects. So, I did that, too. I also did more mulching. I discovered that tansy is a kind of flower that strongly repels whiteflies because of its strong pungent smell. I realized that the weeds I had used for mulching two years ago kind of looked like tansy. Maybe it was its wild relative. So, I looked up those weeds again and used them for mulching, as well as dried leaves and whatever plant material I could get hold of. I believe these measures did help keep the infestation at bay because the whitefly population decreased severely after that.

Jul 24, 2018 The tops bounce back.

After ten days the tops had grown to a healthy mass of foliage. There were already some fruit buds on the vines when the infestation occurred so, fruiting for this year was delayed by one week.

Jul 24, 2018 The insect repellent plants French marigold and green onions were established by now.

Soon after that  I noticed something else. Tiny reddish-golden ants had grown in number and were over-running the vines, feeding on the succulent buds. According to my readings online, ants work in synergy with whiteflies because they feed on the wastes of the whiteflies. Hence, it was only logical that ants would become my next problem.

I looked online again for the natural remedies against ant infestation. I found this site where I got tips on how to get rid of garden ants using whatever you have at home - detergent, vegetable oil, water, white vinegar, etc. So, I followed their advice: Mix one teaspoon of dishwashing liquid soap and one and a half teaspoons of olive oil with some water. Now  that was kind of tricky because I had to guess how much "some" water meant. I used only one cup of water and it probably turned out too concentrated. I also poured white vinegar on the ground where the ant nests were. Another method mentioned in the same article is by introducing nematodes into the soil. The nematodes invade the ant nests and prey on them. The only nematodes I know are those that naturally occur with mung beans. So, I thought I would plant mung beans in my garden (as I did two years ago) but I didn't have any in my pantry at that time so I grabbed any beans I could find. I planted small red beans instead and they actually grew!

The young bitter gourd leaves sprayed on got "burned"! The burnt effect didn't appear quickly but after the buds turned into fully-formed leaves the brown spots appeared and those leaves withered. The ones that were not sprayed on were good.

The first fruits were small, averaging 5 inches in length and the young leaves  were affected by the home-made ant spray.

I had to trim off the withered leaves but the vines grew healthy. The ants reduced a lot towards the end of the planting season, too. The vines flourished and the fruits that followed were bigger and did not look blighted.

Eventually, the vines filled up the trellis and bore more fruits than I had two years ago. More in number but smaller in size. The majority averaged only about 6 inches long and 2-2.5 inches wide. The ones I had two years ago were averaging at 8 inches long and 3 inches wide. Now I wonder whether it's because the vines this year were infested, affecting the size, or it's because I planted more vines this time (5 vines instead of 2). I also wonder whether it's because I harvested my fruits earlier this year because if I didn't collect them early enough they got pilfered! I had no chance to wait for them to grow bigger.

Mature vines and fruits.

At the beginning of the planting season I was lazy to do a lot of mulching and instead I thought I would just use organic fertilizer to enrich the soil.

The organic manure I used as fertilizer.

This turned out to be a bad idea as it made the plants grow lots of leaves and branches at the bottom and created over-crowding which set the stage for whiteflies infestation. Apparently, mulching is the best way to go as it fertilizes the soil gradually and keeps the moisture in efficiently, causing slow but steady and healthy growth. Of course, it probably would have helped if I did not plant too many vines. I had to cut down four vines after I discovered the infestation, leaving only five.

Obviously, I didn't know anything about over-crowding plants before this. I thought the more plants I have, the more fruits I would get.

The small red beans I planted to boost the nematode population in my garden.

With the whiteflies and ant infestations I had this year I realized my success at growing bitter gourds two years ago (without any problems with pests) was because I did many things right, just by chance. I grew celery and green onions  as early as spring. This year I found out that alliums (green onions is an allium) and cilantro are insect pest repellents. Celery is not exactly cilantro but they are kind of related. It is the essence of these plants that repel the insects. Two years ago I planted mung beans just for fun to see if it would grow and knowing that they grow fast, they could increase the nitrogen content of my garden soil and I could use some of the plants as mulch when I thin them out. This year I found out that another benefit of beans, besides enhancing soil fertility, is ant control. I may not know whether the particular nematodes that grow with small red beans  are really the type that inhibit ant population growth but i would surely plant beans again as a companion crop when I plant my vegetables. Two years ago I continually mulched my bitter gourd plants with leaves, weeds, dry leaves, etc., whatever plant materials I could find. I did not use any fertilizer, organic nor inorganic. I totally depended on the mulch to fertilize the soil. That made my bitter gourd vines grow steadily, no growth spurts, no sudden overcrowding of leaves and branches. I also found out that the underlying concept in permaculture homesteading is mulching. It is a sustainable way to feed people organically although not many may have the means to own enough land to do that.  Two years ago I grew only two vines, because those were all that germinated from the many seeds I planted. That itself prevented overcrowding. This year, after I responded to the challenges of the infestations of my bitter gourds, towards the end of the planting season I noticed I had a good mix of organisms in my garden, including ladybugs which I had taken for granted two years ago.

In summary, these are the hard lessons I learned about vegetable gardening this year:

1. Don't be lazy. Grow the spring season vegetables  in spring (celery and green onions). They set a clean and safe environment for your summer vegetables. They will slow down in growth in the hot summer season but they would have fended away the harmful insects from the summer vegetables by then. Keep them growing as they will survive when the cool fall season sets in and you can keep harvesting them till the first snowfall.
2. Don't be lazy. Don't resort to organic fertilizers from the market. They can cause growth overdrive and cause overcrowding which will attract pests. Do continuous mulching instead.
3. Don't do shortcuts. Grow seedlings in spring and replant them into your garden in summer. That's how you fend off birds pecking on your seedlings.
4. Don't let your plants leave ground without their companion crops. Farmers don't plant flowers with their crops for beauty. They are there to fend away pests! French marigolds are attractive, pungent and go well with bitter gourd vines. God meant plants to thrive symbiotically. Beans help fertilize your soil and also, apparently, fends off ants.
5. Prevent overcrowding by planting plants about three feet away from each other. Don't be simplistic and greedy thinking you can get more yields by planting more. It's counterproductive.

Companion plants (green onions, French marigolds and small red beans) - don't let your garden plants leave ground without them.

So, did I have a happy summer? Oh yes, I did!  Watching my plants grow and learning a few more gardening tricks make life more interesting than ever! Happiness is having plants! Let me know how your own planting season went in your comments below. Meanwhile,  Happy Thanksgiving to those of us in America! Hope to see you all again in my next blog!

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References:

(1) P. Allen Smith Garden Home Staff. (2014, Oct 26).17 Plants to Control Pests [Article]. Retrieved from https://pallensmith.com/2014/10/26/17-plants-control-pests/ Access Date  Jul 14, 2018.

(2) Oder, Tom. (2014, Oct 2). 12 plants that repel unwanted insects [Article]. Retrieved from https://www.mnn.com/your-home/organic-farming-gardening/stories/12-plants-that-repel-unwanted-insects Access Date Jul 14, 2018.

(3) Bogdanowicz, Richard. (2017, Feb 6). Repel Pests with Plants [Blog Post] Retrieved from https://permaculturenews.org/2017/02/06/repel-pests-plants/ Access Date Jul 14, 2018.

(4) Lohmiller, Becky and George. (Undated). Companion Planting Guide [Blog Post]. Retrieved from https://www.almanac.com/content/companion-planting-guide Access Date Jul 14, 2018.

(5) Fantastic Gardeners Team. (2017, Mar 7). Ant Killer tactics - How to Get Rid of Ants in the Garden [Blog Post]. Retrieved from  https://blog.fantasticgardeners.co.uk/ant-killer-tactics/ Access Date Aug 6, 2018.

(6) Cuervo, M. and Medina, C., et al. (Undated). Nematodes - common bean [Article]. Retrieved from https://cropgenebank.sgrp.cgiar.org/index.php/management-mainmenu-434/stogs-mainmenu-238/common-bean/guidelines/nematodes Access Date Aug 7, 2018.

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If you wish to cite this blog, citation is as follows: PureJoyLand. (2018, Nov 20).  [Blog Post]. Retrieved from http://purejoyland.com/2015/11/gardening-lessons-this-year/

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Summer Fun 2018

Summer is here! At least for us in the northeast. Surely summer is always fun, happy, bright, relaxed... Hmm, probably not relaxed for many, more like hectic. It would be relaxed for students out of school but hectic for those doing summer jobs. It’s never relaxed for people working nine to five or night shifts, part-time, full-time, having two jobs! *o*

But this time let’s focus on “happy.” Like, "happy summer." Does it bring up pictures of leisurely beach walks, evening barbecues, a lackadaisical day with the kids at the park or lazy strolls down the neighborhood, donning shorts and tees for a hike to McDonald's to get soft-serve sweet, creamy ice cream...? You probably smell the flowers along the way, or glimpse at the neighbors walking their dogs, or you meet kids roller skating on the sidewalk, or playing basketball in a makeshift goal at the street corner, or you pass by a green patch and get chased by a buzzing bee. Or you bump into a friend at the 7-11 shop or the bunch of classmates who bullied you last Spring at gym. Oh, life. No, no, let’s focus on “happy” and “positive.” By now I guess you know my mantra: physical health is very much dependent on mental and emotional well-being. Happy emotions always point to good health, more motivation and success, whereas, sadness, loss and stress always point to poor health, low energy and less results towards achievement of goals. So, let’s think “summer” and “happy”. What thoughts come to your mind?

When I think of summer I always look forward to seeing things grow. I love gardening, if you would indulge my redundancy. I love watching plants grow. It’s one of the things that give me so much pleasure. I watch every leaf, every tendril reaching out for the skies; I hover over every plant, examine every bud and get excited by the slightest sign of a bloom or fruit. Maybe because with growing plants you see the results of your efforts so quickly; it brings so much satisfaction. Imagine if you’re a teacher and you hardly see your students improve in their reading or math skills. Downer. Or, ponder if you’re a parent teaching a child how to be consistent with going to school on time or making his own bed or washing his own dish. Or, picture yourself as a pastor and you’re counseling a person who can’t seem to get over his low self-image or his rejection. Or, suppose you’re a parent of a special needs child - like me - who’s teaching his / her child the life skill of folding the laundry but every time the child does not even have half the mind of being into it. Ugh. Most often it’s hard work and slow getting results when working with humans; but with plants, just a little water, some sunshine and good soil and voile, you have verdant produce in no time!

Maybe some of you get as much satisfaction caring for pets or farm animals. I have no pets so I focus on my plants. You must be wondering whether the rose bud I had last Valentine’s Day eventually bloomed. Well, it did six days later and my, how it flaunted many more flowers after that!


It was a Christmas rose I bought on, yes, Christmas Eve last year. It was among the last ones on the shelf so I didn't have much choice. It wasn't pure red, much as I wanted a simple red rose plant. It was mottled with white for that Christmas effect. It had four flowers but they soon dried up after Christmas. Most people would just throw the pot away but I trimmed it and kept it watered to see if it would survive. It did! And that's how I got those buds I had hoped to bloom on Valentine's. It had three flowers and when those dried up, I trimmed the plant again and it produced four more!

My winter rose which added life and color to my living room last winter.

Now that it’s summer I planted the bitter gourd seeds I collected from my harvest of two years ago. Yes, it’s been two years! I didn’t get to plant my vegetables last year but this year I am back puttering round my backyard again!

Low sprouting rate: one out of six!

I chose to plant bitter gourd once more because it is the easiest to grow and I have seeds from my produce of two years ago. I also hope to harvest enough to make them into smoothies this hot summer season. Speaking of hot, it hit 95 degrees Fahrenheit for us here a few times this past two weeks!

I made 5 mounds of bitter gourd plantings, all direct-seeded. I placed 5 or 6 seeds in each mound but only one sprouted in mound 1, another one in mound 3 and three in mound 4. None sprouted at all in mounds 2 and 5, so, I replanted them. Thus, as of today they are still seedlings while the ones that sprouted at the first planting are already vines.

However, I was surprised that not all of the seeds sprouted up. I dug up the mounds where no seeds sprouted but the seeds were all gone. How did that happen? Do squirrels actually dig them up? I didn’t see any signs of digging though.

Detail of Mound 2. Two seeds sprouted at the second planting but one of them (arrow pointing) was badly pecked upon by birds.

I noticed a seedling or two turned up stunted, like they were pecked upon. I guess the birds ate the sprouting seedlings when they were tender and succulent? I never wake up early enough to catch them in the act but just to make sure that “seed viability” is not the problem, I planted six seeds in a pot in our window sill. (Yes, I threw away the dead rose plant but kept the pot and used it for this purpose.) That way I know no rodent or bird can dig up the seeds nor peck on the seedlings, the pot being safe behind the window screen. Cha-ching! All six seeds did sprout up! I believe the birds are the culprit and my two-year-old seeds are completely viable!

100% viability!

I know I had resolved two years ago to do seed starting in a pot like this but yeah, laziness just caught up with me again, I did a shortcut and this is really just what happens. (I also vacillated because I was hoping the rose plant in that pot would still grow despite the heat.) But now I understand that seed viability is not the problem, it's the garden animals (most likely birds!) that sabotage my direct seeding. Now I wouldn’t have space in my garden for these sprouts but I can keep them in this small pot and use the leaves for soups! I wish I have more window sills directly hit by the sun. I can probably proliferate this into window sill gardens! :D

Meanwhile, traipsing the parks on evening walks is so much more fun in summer because of the greens and the wild blooms! Here’s some of the stunning stills I got of those wild beauties I had spied upon! As it turned from pleasant spring to hot summer the foliage round the pond we stroll in grew thicker, and so did the wild flowers. Here they are... tada!!

Here comes the bride! The wedding colors of June.

Gold and bronze in the sun and shadows.

Morning glory in sailing colors.

Sky colors.

Teeming with life, this tranquil lake is where all these colorful weeds thrive around. It's complete with a proud pair of swans showing off their newest cygnets this summer. Just perfect!

On top of all these delights for the senses what makes this year's summer stand out among other summers is that I notice we have more fireflies! I do not know whether it's the good mix of hot and humid days and cool evenings or just the right amount of rainy days in between the hot spells, or some other peculiar reasons, but this year we definitely have more fireflies than I have ever seen before. I was kind of complaining about this muggy weather but if it brings these magnificent fireflies, I can't complain! God, our Creator God, is truly a God of balance. He created everything to work together for the good of those who love Him and He holds all things together by the power of His word. I believe He truly is the all-wise God who put us in the midst of these ecosystems, and physical laws that govern them and us, and thus, He made all things beautiful and good! It's a pity I do not have a powerful camera to capture them but they definitely add to the magic of this summer's evenings. What joy! To think our summer has just begun; I look forward to more!

Let me know your own summer joys in your very own corner of the sky by writing your comments below! (Or winter fun if you're from the other side of the hemisphere.) Summer or winter you may be in, tropical weather, or frozen ice all year through, I would love to hear from you all out there! Cheerio!

Belated happy 4th of July to my American friends!

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If you wish to cite this blog, citation is as follows: PureJoyLand.(2018, July 8). Summer Fun 2018 [Blog Post]. Retrieved from http://purejoyland.com/2018/07/summer-fun-2018/

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This is a re-blog. If you wish to read more of my blogs please log on to www.purejoyland.com

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Father Abraham

The Bible says that the fathers of the Jewish nation are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But in many instances it also singles out Abraham as the father of the nation of Israel. His original name was “Abram” which means “exalted father,” but God changed it to “Abraham” which means “father of many nations.”

Genesis 17:5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.

The footnote in the NIV (New International Version Bible) says that “Abram” means “exalted father” and “Abraham” means “father of many.”

Father of Many Nations

The apostle Paul explained in his letter to the Roman believers that anyone who has faith in the God of Abraham also becomes an offspring of Abraham by that faith, for sonship in God is by faith, and so with sonship in Abraham. Thus, through that faith God fulfills His promise to Abraham that he would become a father of many nations. He is not only the father of the Jews but also of all the believers of his God, Jew or Gentile. (Romans 4:12-18) Of course, God is ultimately the Father of all believers, the Divine Father of all believers from all nations, Jew or Gentile, through faith in Jesus Christ, an offspring of Abraham (through the tribe of Judah) and the one and only begotten Son of God (as conceived in the virgin Mary through the Holy Spirit).

God our Father is indeed the ultimate model for all earthly fathers for He is not only perfect as a Father but also perfect in everything - in love, holiness, wisdom, justice, power, knowledge, mercy, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, etc. It is indeed God’s desire that we aspire to be like Him as individuals, and especially more so as fathers, if we are fathers. But today I would like to focus on Abraham. I had often wondered why God chose him to be the father of Israel and the father of many nations, through whom all nations would be blessed. Why not Enoch, or Noah, or Job or Melchizedek, etc.? What was special about Abraham?

From the stories in the Old Testament we can tell that God chose certain personalities to accomplish His special purposes. David was “a man after God’s own heart,” thus,  he was chosen to be king of Israel, and to him was shown by God where the temple would be built, and its location was also shown to be in “the city of David.” From him also the Messiah would come, the true king of Israel, and the world - the King whose government would have no end. On the other hand, Moses was chosen through whom God would give the Torah (Teaching / Law;  the first five books of the Bible). He was known to be the most humble man on earth.

Numbers 12:3 Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. (NIV)

Noah, the man whom God chose to build the ark and to be preserved with his family in the Great Flood, together with the animals, was known as “righteous” in his age, an age of great violence and moral degradation and spiritual defilement. (Genesis 6:9) So, what was special about Abraham?

The Man of Faith

Abraham was a man of faith.

Genesis 15:6 Abram believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness.

In fact, because of his faith he became known as God’s friend.

James 2:23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.

So the narrative goes. Abraham is so highly commended in the Bible for his faith that in Hebrews 11, the chapter of the “Faith Hall of Fame,” Abraham’s acts of faith are mentioned in detail over a total of six verses in all, in contrast to the others whose acts of faith are described only in one verse each (Abel, Enoch, Noah, Isaac, Jacob, etc.) Truly, Abraham lived a life of faith as He was challenged by God in many ways to believe Him so that he could fulfill the highly important role of founding the Jewish nation that would bring forth the Savior / Messiah to the world. Henceforth, God was able to fulfill His most important promise to Abraham, that he would be blessed and through him all the peoples of the world would also be blessed. What an overwhelmingly awesome promise! Amidst the pain and sorrows of our earthly curses of poverty, sickness, wars, prejudice and hatred against one another, and one’s self, just think, God said one person will be a blessing amidst all these. That person was Abraham. In fact, for bringing forth the Messiah, Abraham indeed brought THE blessing that exonerates us from all our earthly curses, IF we choose to be exonerated! Such was the pivotal role of Abraham in the history of the world.

Personally, I believe that the most powerful evidence of Abraham’s faith was the fact that he  could believe that God would raise Isaac from the dead even if he sacrificed him at the altar in Moriah according to God’s command. For one thing, this was the son he was waiting for, the same son God promised to him through whom all His other promises would be fulfilled, one of which was that of becoming a father of many nations. There had been no event of resurrection performed by God in the history of man in Abraham’s time. The only event known in the Hebrew recorded history related to death and resurrection was the translation of Enoch to Heaven. It was close but it wasn’t exactly the resurrection that Abraham thought God would or could do. Even miraculous physical healing was not ever mentioned before Abraham’s time. In fact, the first event of miraculous physical healing was performed by God through Abraham himself when he prayed for Abimelech and his household and they got healed.

Genesis 20:17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife and his slave girls so they could have children again,

18 for the LORD had closed up every womb in Abimelech’s household because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.

The word “navi” which translates to “prophet” in English is also first mentioned in the Bible in that particular account, and it refers to Abraham. (Hence, I would say, one trait of a prophet is that he / she is able to heal the sick through prayer to God.)

Genesis 20:7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all yours will die.”

Now as I write this I wonder if the fact that because Abraham saw how God healed Abimelech’s household through his prayer it actually led him to think and believe that if God can heal then He can certainly resurrect a dead body as well. Now this illuminates how Abraham’s journey of faith, as led by God, enabled him to receive the promises that God had given him, one step at a time, from glory to glory. Actually, if we study the life stories of all the important Bible characters we would be able to see how God dealt with them and how they responded and grew in their faith and fulfilled the destiny that God had for them.

The Great Mentor

So, definitely, the most prominent trait that stood out in Abraham’s character was his faith in God.

But there is one other item that recent teachers have been highlighting about Abraham. I first heard this from Sid Roth of “It’s Supernatural!”, a Jewish believer in the Messiah Jesus who is an evangelist, teacher, tv producer and healing minister. He says that this other trait of Abraham is what made God choose Abraham to be the father of Israel.

As a Messianic Jew, that is, a Jewish believer in the Messiah Jesus, and one quite senior at that, I actually kind of look at him as a father figure of the Christian faith for our present-day generation. By taking on the mammoth task of evangelizing the Middle East through television, and the rest of the world, too, he is doing a great job of gathering the people of Israel, and the nations, to a saving relationship with God our Father. So very much in line with the call of Abraham as a blessing to the nations! What he’s saying about Abraham is nothing new. It’s right there in the Bible. But he is the first person I came across who has emphasized this. Maybe other preachers have also taught this, and are teaching this now, but I give credit to him for bringing it to my attention first.

Sid Roth says the secret of why God chose Abraham to be the founder of the nation of Israel is found in the following passage:

Genesis 18

17 Then the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?

18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.

19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”

The ONMB (One New Man Bible) version says it a bit differently and sheds more light on this passage:

Genesis 18

17 And the LORD said, “Will I hide from Abraham that thing which I am about to do,

18 seeing that Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation and all the nations of the earth will be blessed in him?

19 For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him and they will keep the Way of the LORD, to do acts of loving kindness and judgment, so the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which He has spoken of him.” (ONMB)

If we combine these two translations, it would mean that God chose Abraham because He knew him, that he would command (teach) his children and household to be faithful in keeping the Way of the LORD. The ONMB footnote says that “acts of loving kindness” means “going beyond the requirement of God to be just, to do right.” So, God knew Abraham would teach his children and his household the Way of the LORD, and go beyond just fulfilling the basic requirement of a righteous and just life, but by being truly pleasing to God. So, did Abraham really teach his children and household well?

Abraham’s Disciples

We can see how Isaac feared God, that in fact, one of the titles of God in the Bible is “the Fear of Isaac”. (Genesis 31:42, 53)

Isaac was obedient to the point of death, a true shadow of the Lamb of God, Jesus Himself, who would eventually take away the sin of the world. For truly, Isaac was a shadow or type of Christ. He was the Promised Son, and so was Jesus. God demanded that he be sacrificed on an altar in one of the mountains in Moriah. Abraham faithfully complied, wholeheartedly, without delay. The Bible account makes it sound like Isaac was a child when this happened but according to the ONMB (One New Man Bible) translation footnote Isaac was 37 years old and Abraham 137  when this happened. Isaac could easily have escaped from that sacrifice if he wanted to defy his father Abraham. Truly, he was obedient to his father Abraham and to Father God, even unto death, just like Jesus Himself. Here, in this account is exemplified before us the person of Abraham being a shadow or type of Father God Himself. Both are willing to give up their begotten son to fulfill the purposes of God’s plan for the redemption of mankind.

Eventually, Abraham too would become a father of many nations through his sacrifice of Isaac, the Promised Son he had waited for for so long, and as such he foreshadows God the Father who truly is the Father of all nations, being the Creator of the universe and all worlds and of all mankind, and the Father of Jesus Christ, the Promised Son. For being obedient to God the Father to the point of giving up his own beloved son Isaac, Abraham was proven by God, and received the confirmation of the promises God had given him in the beginning - becoming the father of a great nation from whom the Messiah would arise, the father of many nations, and the dominion and supremacy of his descendants.

That Isaac himself lived a faithful life, sired and taught Jacob who eventually would become the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, is evidence enough that Abraham taught his son Isaac well.

Did he teach his household? Oh yes, he did. Even Hagar, a servant in his household and the mother of his son Ishmael had a fear of God though she was of Egyptian descent. I believe she developed that faith through the role modelling of her master Abraham. Hagar’s faith in God was so real that when she tried to run away from Sarai (who was later renamed by God “Sarah”) her mistress, the angel of the LORD appeared to her in the wilderness. He instructed her to return and submit herself to Sarai, was told she would have a son and will have to name him “Ishmael” and that he will also be a great nation, having numerous peoples. Later, when Isaac, the Promised Son, was born to Abraham and Sarah, Hagar and Ishmael were eventually sent away and would have died in the wilderness had not the God of Hagar appear to her again and showed her a well to quench their thirst under the scorching desert sun. (Genesis 16:7-16, Genesis 21:11-21)

Even Ishmael was taught well by Abraham. He was circumcised the same day his father Abraham was, just like all the men in Abraham’s household, when God commanded that all the males in Abraham’s household be circumcised. Ishmael may have been jealous of Isaac, because the latter was made the lawful heir of their father Abraham, and for that he and his mother Hagar were sent away, but Ishmael did not turn into an outright "godless" person like Esau (Hebrews 12:16). His sons became heads of the twelve tribal rulers that God promised He would bless Ishmael with but they did not turn into archenemies of the descendants of Isaac and Jacob, unlike the Moabites and Ammonites (descendants of Lot) and the Edomites (descendants of Esau).  They did not figure prominently as hostile to the children of Israel in the Bible account, although eventually the Ishmaelites became known to have spawned the present-day Muslim nations, as they refer to Ishmael as their "father." Neither did Ishmael remain hostile to Isaac as he even came back at the passing away of Abraham, to bury his father together with Isaac. Genesis 25:18 says, "His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the border of Egypt, as you go toward Asshur. And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers." (NIV) However, the ONMB states it differently: Genesis 25:18 And they dwelled from Havilah to Shur that is before Egypt, as you go toward Assyria; he died in the presence of all his brothers.

Hence, I would say, Ishmael was well-trained by his father Abraham, too. Nowadays many among the Muslims get dreams of Yeshua, Jesus, the Messiah, and because of those dreams they turn to the God, the Father of Jesus Christ and the God of their father Abraham. It is not surprising as Hagar had declared that He is the God who sees her. (Genesis 16:13,14) Indeed, He is the God who sees each one of us, His Creation, especially in our direst need.

He didn’t only teach Hagar and Ishmael. There was also his head servant Eliezer of Damascus. Traditionally, it is believed he was the chief servant of Abraham who was sent by Abraham to the house of his brother Nahor in Aram to bring back a suitable bride for his son Isaac. Eliezer himself had such a real faith in God that when he was tasked of finding a suitable bride for his master’s son Isaac he prayed for God to guide him every step of the way and he was spot on! God guided him so clearly that he actually found the rightful bride Rebekah, granddaughter of Nahor (brother of Abraham), daughter of Bethuel, sister of Laban, the very one intended by God for Isaac. It was a perfect match and Rebekah brought happiness to Isaac and comfort to him after the death of his mother Sarah. (Genesis 24)

Then there were the 318 men born and trained in Abraham’s household. Were they his army? According to the account in Genesis 14 there were these wars between Kedorlaomer king of Elam and his allies and the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah and their allies where Lot, the nephew of Abraham, was caught in the cross-fires and was carried away as booty with all his possessions and his whole household. Abraham and his 318 men pursued the raiding party and successfully brought back Lot, his household and all his goods. It was nothing short of a miraculous rescue. Who were these 318 men?

Genesis 14:14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. (NIV)

According to the glossary notes in the One New Man Bible the Hebrew word for “trained” in Genesis 14:14 is “hanikh” and it means “trained or educated” but certainly not trained for war. Apparently, when Abraham, Lot (his nephew), Terah (his father) and Sarah (his wife) moved from Ur of the Chaldeans to Canaan there were people who came along with them. Whether they all came from Ur or they joined Abraham’s party only along the way (they tarried in Haran / Paddan Aram for a while) is not clear. If they were “trained or educated” by Abraham it looks like they were taught by him about God and His call and purposes for his life. 318 men would mean many more women, children and older men who would be with that contingent.  In the ONMB translation they are mentioned as “disciples” not trained men:

Genesis 14:14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his disciples, born in his own house, three hundred eighteen, and pursued them to Dan. (ONMB)

Abraham had disciples! He truly was a teacher / mentor of many! They were not soldiers trained for battle, as this was the only war that Abraham ever fought, but they were shepherds and herdsmen trained by Abraham to have the same faith in His God. The ONMB notes on Abraham even goes as far as saying he was an "evangelist" because those "disciples" were his converts who continued on to follow him, even moving to Canaan with him. Thus, the successful rescue operation! It was a battle of the LORD and it was a miraculous success.

He healed the sick. He had encounters with angels. God spoke to him directly. He led a miraculous combat-rescue operation. I think he was some sort of an Old Testament "apostle"!

After Sarah died Abraham married again ad his wife Keturah had six sons, from among whom were, most prominently descended, the Midianites. A daughter of a priest of Midian, Zipporah, later became Moses' wife and the priest, Jethro (Reuel) became his father-in-law. They were Midianites and were a refuge for Moses at a low point in his life when he was running away from pharaoh. It was at that juncture in time when he was commissioned by God to bring the children of Israel from Egypt back to Canaan. (Exodus 2:15-4:17) That there was a priest of God who was a Midianite whose daughter was suitable to be Moses' wife, is evidence enough that the sons of Keturah followed in faith and obedience to the God of Abraham, their father. Indeed, Abraham taught them well.

And what about Lot, you would say. If Abraham was a great mentor and role model to this great community he had brought along with him into Canaan as well as among the children he bore with his wives and concubines, why was Lot lost? I believe Lot was mentored, too, but he had his sight on the fertile lands of the valley of Sodom. His end would have turned out glorious as well had he chosen to live within the security of Abraham’s community. He had his own worldly ambitions and it led him astray. This is one example of one who may have been taught well but still missed the way because of his own foolhardiness.

How about Sarah? Was Abraham’s faith a great inspiration to Sarah? She was the one who suggested “helping” God fulfill the promise of an heir by giving her servant girl Hagar to Abraham as wife, thus they had Ishmael, which later caused a lot of problems for their whole family. I would say Sarah didn’t have as much faith as Abraham did? Indeed, God's promise of an heir was to Abraham, not necessarily a son through her but surely a son of Abraham. Probably she thought the heir didn't necessarily have to be through her. Thus, she thought of giving her servant girl Hagar to Abraham to be his concubine. However, even later when God visited them and promised that the heir will come through her, she laughed. (Genesis 18:1-15) Sarah may have had lows in her faith as they struggled waiting for their son but the Bible does give her credit for being submissive and respectful to her husband, despite the fact that he exposed her to the danger of lustful and murderous men two times! She did not give in to fear but instead trusted in God to deliver her. (1 Peter 3:5,6) 

The Heart Factor

So why was Abraham zealous for the LORD, in obedience and trust in Him and also in teaching others about him? The Bible says he was a friend of God.

Isaiah 41:8 “But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend,... (NIV)

2 Chronicles 20:7 O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? (NIV)

According to the ONMB version the Hebrew texts for these verses are rightly translated as:

Isaiah 41:8 But you, Israel, are My servant; Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham who loves Me. (ONMB)

2 Chronicles 20:7 Are you not our God, Who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and gave it forever to the seed of Abraham who loves You? (ONMB)

So there, that’s the secret. Abraham was one who loved God. Everyone is loved by God but not everyone loves God. Again, my first life verse speaks there. Jesus summarizes intimacy with God here:

John 14:21 “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”

Abraham heard the command of God and He immediately obeyed. That’s how he loved God and he loved Him so much he couldn’t help but teach whoever was willing to be taught about God. Such was his passion for God and such was God’s favor for him in return. When God shows Himself to you, you get to see His glory! The glory of the LORD is His goodness! (Exodus 33:18,19) Truly, Father Abraham is a great example to us all, especially to us who are fathers!

Happy Father’s Day Week, everyone!

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All Scripture references are from the 1984 New International Version, unless otherwise specified.

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Reference Cited:

Morford, W.J. (2011). The One New Man Bible. Travelers Rest, South Carolina: True Potential Publishing, Inc.

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If you wish to cite this blog, citation is as follows: PureJoyLand. (2018, Jun 23). Father Abraham [Blog Post]. Retrieved from  http://purejoyland.com/2018/06/father-abraham/

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