Lessons from the summer garden with Parker's Pictures

a time to plant and a time to uproot, Ecclesiastes 3:2a

This is our garden and it keeps me away from the computer. As I am writing this I am just waiting for the heat to cool down so I can go outside and weed. Our new garden is huge it is

50'x50' . We are learning how to grow all kinds of veggies for our family. Hopefully, we will be

able to grow an organic garden in the future but for now we are using the traditional methods while we learn what we are doing. I really love being in my garden

I knew I enjoyed gardening. I enjoy landscaping throughout our entire yard. Which is probably a good thing when you live on 5 acres of undeveloped land!

When I was waiting for our garden I was waiting for the

vegetables that it was going to provide. I was so

excited about the

long term savings I would

experience in our budget and all the new skills I would pick up in the kitchen. Canning,

pickling, freezing & saving our garden veggies.

Well, our garden has been attacked by rolly polly, centipede, mites and ants. (Yes, I am sure they are ants because they have bitten the stew out of me!). Many of our plants have not yielding the way I had hoped that they would.

Outside of the botany lesson I find the Lord in the garden! The other day when we were still hand picking the rolly pollys out of the garden Parker pulled out an entire bean plant trying to get to the rolly pollys. I came just started to fuss at her and tell her to be careful and that it was foolish etc... My friend Lisa Smith would look at the events in her life through the lives of folks in the Bible. This and those that know me know I love the Old Testament and I dwell often in I&II Samuel with David, Samuel, Saul, Johnathon and all. So right here I knew

"The Spirit of the LORD [did not speak] through me;his word was [not] on my tongue." 2 Samuel 23:2

It's one of those moments that I knew I had sinned that the words of my heart and the meditation of my heart was not pleasing. Then I felt d-_-m-_(I had to spell it like that because it's a no-no word here!) because why had I blown it over a plant. Who am I now Jonah complaining about a plant that I did not grow, that God had graced me with??? I'd rather not...

As I apologized to Parker I was telling her how mommy sinned and she of course forgave me and apologized for pulling out the plant. Which at that point I asked her not to apologize again. That I would have gone outside and pulled up every plant to erase the foolish words I had spoken. She told me "Mommy please don't do that I forgive you!"

Every time I go into my garden I am reminded that God is in control. That HE determines if any veggies come up or not. That HE decided that, that green bean plant had to go. As I am walking with HIM I need to learn to joyfully accept that decision. Because HIS ways and His thoughts are higher then mine. He has already seen the beginning and the end.

I thought my garden was a place to grow vegetables, I should have known that as in all things it is just another place to grow righteousness.

The tongue of the righteous is choice silver Proverbs 10:20a