Roots & Soil

What a gorgeous Spring day in North Texas.  I woke early this morning and headed out to my usual perch on the back porch.  I gazed over the gardens awakening from their Winter's rest, and was amazed at how beautiful the plants were.  I never used to like roses but they like me and I have come to truly cherish their beauty.  The soil in my back yard suits them and they grow like weeds!

Speaking of soil ... what soil are you growing in?  I guess that's kind of a crazy question but I think it's pretty important.  My years as a gardener have taught me a lot about plants and about people.  Jesus used parables to teach ... it was a way to help his followers understand.  I especially like the parable about the farmer:

Matthew 13:18-23 (The Promise Study Edition of the Bible)

"Now listen to the meaning of the story about the farmer:  The seeds that fell along the road are the people who hear the message about the kingdom, but don't understand it.  Then the evil one comes and snatches the message from their hearts.  The seeds that fell on rocky ground are the people who gladly hear the message and accept it right away.  But they don't have deep roots, and they don't last very long.  As soon as life gets hard or the message gets them in trouble, they give up.  The seeds that fell among the thorn bushes are also people who hear the message.  But they start worrying about the needs of this life and are fooled by the desire to get rich.  So the message gets choked out, and they never produce anything.  The seeds that fell on good ground are the people who hear and understand the message.  They produce as much as a hundred or sixty or thirty times what was planted."

My confirmation class ... (I am 3rd from left, bottom row)

I was very fortunate ... as a child my parents took me to church and I grew in love for Jesus as my Savior.  My Christian roots ran very deep and I was surrounded by God's love and fertile soil.  I will forever be grateful to my parents for their part in establishing that growth in me.  For a long while, I wondered if I was born into the wrong family but now I know I was born into the RIGHT family!!  That has been an important step for me.  As I weeded out all the crap in my life, there was room for true forgiveness and grace. 

I've seen so many folks get bit by the Jesus bug only to burn out and forget about their passion.  It's easy to be a Christian in the good times; however, Christ so often takes the blame in bad times.  "I became a Christian and look what happened to me ... nothin' but bad stuff."  Or, the church ... "I attended church but no more ... what hypocrites!"  Well, nobody said that life was going to be easy.  Most of the bad stuff that happens to us in life is a result of our own choices.  Hard words to hear, I know.  The other stuff is "Father filtered" and He gives us strength, courage and wisdom as we deal with those.  For me, I wouldn't be alive without the grace and care of the man who died on the cross.

I have had to amend the soil many times in my life.  Walking on stony ground didn't produce good in me ... trying to plant good in poor soil led me to crop failure time and time again ... I went back to the well of life seeking change only to find I was using the same fertilizer and experiencing burnout!  Today, I seek goodness, positiveness and the deepness of close friendships.  When it was toughest, I listened to the wise ... oh how their words of wisdom hurt when I was missing the mark ... and, oh how wonderful their words were when I needed hope and uplifting!   I learned to be careful of who I listened to ...  It is so easy to pick and choose who we take wisdom from ... as for me, I took the high road and, readers, (and, as Scott Peck says) that has made all the difference in my life!

We are standing on holy ground ... and yes, there are angels all around us ... listen to this beautiful medley of songs ... Today is the day the Lord has made, let me rejoice and be glad in it!!  May God bless you with good soil today ... I declare this plant a flower day!!