 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 1 Corinthians 3:6 KJV
It is one of my favorite times of the year, spring garden season. My grandpa had a garden when I was growing up and I have always loved the idea of having one myself. When we were newlyweds I attempted container gardening but never had good results. Then the 2020 shutdown happened. I was one of those bored out of their mind people who tried gardening. My husband built me a cute raised garden bed in our front yard. He bought good soil and let me get to planting. I had no clue what I was doing. Most of my seeds came from the free seed libraries. My friends and I had so much fun texting and sending pictures, especially since we couldn't meet up. I actually ended up with a beautiful, fruitful garden. God has taught me a lot through my gardens. Sometimes it is the actual garden that illustrates something to me, other times it is in the stillness of the garden that I can slow down and hear Him.
1 Comment
 I was never what you would consider an outdoorsy child. I didn’t like to get my hands dirty, the heat or bugs. Give me a book and air conditioning instead. That being said, I do have a few memories of playing in the dirt. Spoons and measuring cups now became tools to dig holes and make mud pies. At the time, the spoon served the purpose of digging just fine. If the endeavor became more serious than just play, like digging a hole to plant a tree, the spoon would soon cause some serious frustration. A spoon’s created purpose is to stir or ladle. A shovel was created to dig.
All over Instagram there are reels showing “new” ways to use everyday items. Your water hose sprayer breaks, poke holes in a water bottle and use that. Ideas like that can help in a pinch but if you use that everyday you will get frustrated. A bottle was not created to be a water sprayer. The word purpose is a noun meaning the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists. Many times when we get frustrated in life we have lost the purpose of what we are doing.  We live in a world of distractions. We are constantly bombarded by people and things wanting our attention and wanting our attention now. Things that seem urgent can take the focus off things that are important. As a society we have forgotten how to disconnect. Phones are constantly going off with notifications from apps and social media. We have a constant stream of news and opinions flooding our consciousness. With so much vying for our attention we can lose focus on what should be a priority.
When Jesus heard [of it], he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard [thereof], they followed him on foot out of the cities. And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick. Matthew 14:13-14 |
