Tending the Garden

Tending the Garden

by | Sep 11, 2024 | Beauty, Blessing, Encouragement

Knowing God

As our long summer days end, I find myself weeding, trimming and even pulling up plants from my flower beds.

I tried to tend to my garden to keep it healthy by trimming, fertilizing and watering. Many days I found it in a hot mess.

Those potato vines went crazy this year! They grew everywhere, overtaking zinnias and other flowers in the bed, up the porch railing and into the driveway. I cut them back occasionally, but they were a bit overwhelming. Plus, those little flies ate holes in the leaves of my flowering plants!

Some of my garden plants and bushes surprised me. Who knew I had a plum tree that would produce hundreds of plums? And an elderberry bush that I could use for medicinal purposes?

Others brought disappointment. My tomato plants never produced. I blame the potato vines for that. My cucumber plants went wild climbing up a screened-in porch and flowered, to mostly shrivel up later. When I pulled those up, I found four large hidden cucumbers that weren’t edible.

My rose bushes did not disappoint. They were consistent throughout, showing out with bright red, fuchsia and pink blooms. The ginger plants with their big and beautiful white blooms provided a heady aroma on my porch. Both kept my dining room table dressed in color and fragrance.

What a day brings

I think our gardens depict life sometimes. We try to keep healthy by inviting God’s presence into our day, seeking Him and studying His word. Sometimes we still find ourselves in a hot mess.

Some days are just crazy, one setback throwing things off and overwhelming the other areas in our life. Those are the days we need to keep the right perspective . . . and keep ourselves healthy physically, mentally and spiritually.

Sometimes a day takes a surprising turn, and we enjoy the fruits of that, finding joy in the blessings that come our way.

Our personal “life” gardens surprise us and showcase a diversity of people He created to make our lives beautiful and fulfilling.

And let’s just be honest. Some days bring disappointment. What do we do when life seems to spiral out of control? If we are grounded in our faith, we weather those days. When disappointment comes, we can take time with those close to us, investing in others. We can be intentional about our relationships and stop fueling unhealthy relationships – those that bring us down instead of lifting us up and encouraging us.

Thankfully, some days bring about much joy and color to our lives. These serve as a vital part of your life’s garden. What are the activities in your life that give you joy, provide a sense of accomplishment, serve others and make your days fulfilling?

Think of the people in your life — the bright and colorful additions — who can lift your spirits, supporting and encouraging you when you need it. These people are bold enough to speak the truth into your life, who call it like it is.

Preparing for the next season

In the good and bad, the surprising and the steady, we can find joy in our season. Let’s approach this next season with purpose, discipline and endurance.

From the beauty around us to the people God places in our path, be refreshed and let the beautiful garden of our lives refresh others. 

“The LORD will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing,” (Isaiah 51:3 NIV).

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It would be my greatest honor to take your hand, introduce you and walk you through how to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and how to have a personal relationship with Him.

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Knowing God

Knowing God

by | Aug 15, 2024 | Belief, Joy, Mercy

Knowing God

We witnessed the magnificent view from a distance. Experiencing it up close was quite a different story.

After viewing Whitewater Falls in North Carolina from a lookout point, my sons and I took a side trail to the top of the waterfall. Halfway there we stopped to read a sign warning us of the danger going forward.

Pressed for time, we almost turned back but decided to keep moving forward. The treacherous path failed to deter us. We made it to the main plateau, step by step, across mud and wet rocks, and even climbing down through a rock cave. Water danced around smaller rocks upstream, surging over the menacing rock cliff downstream.

We squinted to see the lookout point where we had first stopped.

An awe-inspiring sight

If we had turned back along the way, we would have missed the source of the falls. We would have missed the exhilaration of being that close, of seeing a view of awe and wonder, far better than the one from the manmade viewing deck.

As we hiked back to our car, I voiced my thoughts. “There’s got to be a lesson here.”

Words of wisdom flowed out of my 16-year-old. “It’s like going to church but not really knowing God.”

He was right. Like seeing God from a distance or maybe through someone else’s experience, but missing the overflowing love mercy and grace He offers us individually.

We can attend church weekly and only go through the motions. We can even be in God’s presence and not even know it.

We may sing the songs and hear the teaching, but until we know Him, we won’t experience the joy, the awe of being in the presence of a Holy God.

Think on this

“It cannot but be a major tragedy in the life of any man or woman to live in a church from childhood to old age and know nothing more real than some synthetic god compounded of theology and logic, but having no eyes to see, no ears to hear, and no heart to love!” — A. W. Tozer, American Christian pastor, author, magazine editor and spiritual mentor.

We can experience Him though. The Creator of the universe wants to connect with His creation.

As believers, we have access to God the Spirit. He dwells in all believers, going where we go. He sealed us and promised to stay with us always. Why would we choose not to worship Him as the preeminent giver of life?

Being in church is one thing. Being close to God is quite a different experience.

May we no longer be satisfied to know about God. No longer satisfied to watch someone else’s God story. Let’s move beyond seeing God from a distance and find Him in a living, personal experience.

The Lord is full of awe and wonder. Our lives may be messy along the way, but when we know Jesus, we will experience the powerful, transformative and joy-inspiring presence of God.

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?,” (Psalm 8:3-4 ESV).

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Don’t know Jesus? You can.

It would be my greatest honor to take your hand, introduce you and walk you through how to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and how to have a personal relationship with Him.

Find out more here.

Embracing Scars

Embracing Scars

by | Jul 24, 2024 | Miracles, Peace, Sorrow

Squeal with delight

My son experienced a once-in-a-lifetime adventure this summer. Hiking to the summit of a 12,000-foot mountain in Colorado, he and a few other high school boys celebrated their achievement with excitement and a song.

That exhilaration prompted them to dip themselves in the icy stream alongside their campsite. The upside? The thrill of the experience and the joy of their accomplishment. The downside? My son slipped on a tree lodged 4 feet above the water. As he fell, a branch cut his thigh. He proudly showed me the 3” mark.

I told him rubbing it with vitamin E might keep it from scarring. To my surprise, he preferred the scar. It represented a badge of honor — a reminder of his mountaintop experience. “Every time I see it, I’ll remember that day.”

What our scars tell us

At that time God impressed upon me the significance of our emotional scars. While we may not like the disappointment, the heartbreak, the trial, the grief or the pain that caused the scar, that scar represents a memory or a season in our lives.

Physical scars tell the story of the body’s natural healing process. They could take up to 12-18 months after an injury or surgery to heal and fade. Emotional scars seem to hang on for much longer, like an old habit that’s hard to break.

While our inner wounds remind us of a difficult time in our lives, they can also point us to Jesus and His work through that trial. They can remind us of a fearful season, but also God’s protection through it. Scars may remind us of a time of faithlessness but also demonstrate God’s faithfulness. They can remind us of a time of suffering but also God’s love that got us through it.

Maybe you have physical scars reminding you of some trauma in your life. They could be internal, hidden inside so no one will know. Maybe an unkind word spoken left you with a scar. Or have you suffered from a disease that hinders and impacts your future? Maybe you experienced an unimaginable sorrow or a betrayal from someone you loved and trusted.

What our scars teach us

Scars serve as powerful reminders of our experiences in life and the lessons we learned from them. God sees them all and He’s working in them. That doesn’t mean we bypass the pain, but that we sense the presence of God through it, of the healing He provides in it. In those moments, we can see He was with us all along.

“The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest,’” (Exodus 33:14 NIV).

Be patient with yourself. Let God’s healing take place in your life in His way, in His time. When your scar reminds you of that difficult season, remember the lessons that have shaped you and your God who remained by your side.

“My scars I wear proudly, I want you to see. They are only life lessons that no longer bleed.” ~ April Peerless

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Don’t know Jesus? You can.

It would be my greatest honor to take your hand, introduce you and walk you through how to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and how to have a personal relationship with Him.

Find out more here.

Beauty in the Broken Pieces

Beauty in the Broken Pieces

by | Jun 11, 2024 | Beauty, Redeemed, Sorrow

Squeal with delight

His little feet raced from one shell to another. “Here’s one, mommy.” My son reached to put it in my bucket as we walked down the beach. I explained I wanted pretty shells, whole, not the broken ones.

He quickly told me those shells were pretty, too. “Just because they’re broken doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pick them for our collection.”

In Parker’s eyes, all shells were pretty.

Those simple child-uttered words spoke to me.

Do we sometimes see the broken as unlovely, not worth our time? How often do we search for the unblemished, the perfect relationship, the perfect family, the perfect church, the perfect (you fill in the blank).

The reality? Things break. Life is not perfect. No real surprise there, right?  But if we look, we can find beauty and even restoration in the broken.

God sees our hearts

Jesus saw beauty in the broken. It seems He sought them out.

He saw Mary and Martha. He healed the woman with the seven demons as well as the woman who touched the hem of His garment. Jesus saw Zacchaeus. He even invited another tax collector into His inner band of believers. He had compassion for the crowd of 5,000 who needed food.

Long before he came to live on earth, He saw a broken world and made a plan to rescue it and set things right.

Jesus sees beauty and value in us. He sees through our pain, our struggle and our rebellion. Jesus knows our hearts. He sets things right.

He sees beauty in the broken.

Am I still looking for the perfect shell? Yes. But God and a little boy reminded me there is beauty even in the broken pieces.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling,” (Psalm 46:1-3 ESV).

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Don’t know Jesus? You can.

It would be my greatest honor to take your hand, introduce you and walk you through how to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and how to have a personal relationship with Him.

Find out more here.

Stand in the Gap

Stand in the Gap

by | Jun 4, 2024 | Courage, Gratitude, Prayer

Squeal with delight

“Is your mom ok?” My friend across the table alerted me to my mom’s condition. Sitting beside her, I looked and immediately caught her as she began to fall. Holding her up, my friend on the other side and I talked to her frantically to keep her conscious as we waited for an ambulance to arrive.

A woman from across the restaurant saw our distress and walked quietly over. “May I pray for her?” We welcomed her whispered interruption. She prayed and we prayed along.

Her exact words escape me, however, I won’t forget her calming presence. My mom slowly became more alert. Thank God. She doesn’t remember much from the experience, just the awareness of the EMT and us talking to her toward the end.

We didn’t know it at the time, but my mom’s blood pressure had dropped dangerously low due to an issue with her medicine. I thank the Lord for His protection and for sending a believer who demonstrated compassion and a willingness to stand in the gap while we waited.

Courage to step out

Today’s world often demonstrates the opposite of this compassion and sensitivity. Many would look on but not take the step to help. This visitor stepped out with courage — away from her own dining experience and priorities that day— to pray over a stranger.

Our encounter reminds me of the parable of the good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37.

The Samaritan came upon a traveler left half dead on the road to Jericho. He lifted his battered and bruised body, bandaged his wounds, carried him to an inn and took care of his needs. Other people’s opinions mattered not. He answered the call to lend a hand and do what needed to be done.

Our fellow diner could not help us physically, but she gave what she could. She lifted my mom to the Father, her words comforting our souls.

I don’t know her — I’m sure I thanked her — but I hope she knows how much we appreciate her demonstration of love and care.

Is God calling you to stand in the gap for someone? Do you know somebody who needs comfort? A bandage? An encouraging word? Or a financial gift to help them get by?

Answer the call. Who knows what God will do through you?

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” (Matthew 25:35-36 NIV).

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Don’t know Jesus? You can.

It would be my greatest honor to take your hand, introduce you and walk you through how to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and how to have a personal relationship with Him.

Find out more here.

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