In the Garden

My husband (Keith) loves to garden. He likes the feel of the earth in his hands and watching the seeds grow into healthy plants that yield beautiful flowers and fresh vegetables for us to enjoy. He waters his garden faithfully and protects the plants from the hail we get in our area during the early summer. When he has a year that the garden doesn't produce the expected result , he is discouraged and frustrated for a few weeks.
Then, in the dead of the following Winter...when the ground is frozen and we are surrounded by snow covered mountains...he begins scouring the seed catalogs and gardening magazines looking for a different vegetable he hasn't tried or a new gardening tip. He carefully maps out the garden on paper, making sure each plant will have room to grow and plenty of sunshine. He is full of hope once again and is sometimes amazed at his success when we have plenty of fresh vegetables to share later on in the year.
Our lives are gardens too....the ones that the Lord has planned even before we were born. He has carefully laid out what each garden will look like and already knows of the thistles, rocks, and weeds that we will encounter along the way. He walks with us through our gardens, mending our wounds from the bite of the thistles and helping us pull out the weeds of sin, and toss the rocks of discouragement aside, so that our gardens can grow to their full potential. We need only accept the gift, paying attention to what we plant and what we cast aside in order to stand right in the middle of a garden more beautiful than we could ever imagine in the end.....or should I say...in the beginning?

Until next time...
Carol