An aha moment in time...

August 21, 2013

Dear Readers,

I'm sure many of you have read the columns published by The Grumpy Gardener.  I do read them and get a kick out of the way he tackles questions.  I was standing outside looking at my back yard and feeling pretty darn grumpy myself.  I sat down in the middle of the yard and, all of a sudden, my hand felt something mossy.  I looked down and, AHA, something clicked.  I've learned so much since I started gardening and today was no different.

I've been trying to grow some grass since late Spring.  I have patches where the grass looks okay (not great) and other areas where it just plain looked nasty.  All of a sudden, I began thinking about the parable of the sower.

Mark 4:  The Parable of the Sower

"The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

How could I expect to have my seeds produce much fruit if I was sowing them amongst weeds and a thatch that was covering the good soil?  I began to work ... I started pulling weeds and removing the thatch that was choking out the seed.  I filled one bag then started on another before my hands gave out.  It was a start.

I know in my own life, I've had to remove the thatch and weeds before there was room for consistent improvement and joy.  I've talked a lot about removing the old tapes.  What we think about gets bigger and bigger and if all we can experience (whether conscious or unconscious) is the crummy stuff, our attitudes get bogged down.  Make sense?

Jesus spoke a lot about reaping and sowing.  He liked being in a garden to pray.  I've wondered why he did but now I am fully convinced that it was his way of speaking to the masses ~ the farmers who feed the world.  As I read The Word, I am convicted, blessed, and propelled forward.

Today, I cleaned up an area about 12 feet long and 3 feet wide.  Actually, the dirt looks a whole lot better than the tufts of weeds and dead stuff covering the ground.  I feel better.  I did something positive towards growing grass.  Are you laughing at me?  That's ok...  I'll be posting some photos of my beautiful grass before long!!

Always remember you are loved and prayed for ... YA YOU BETCHA!  (Had to get in a little of my Norwegian heritage there!!)

Miss Dottie

PS  “However many years she lived, Mary always felt that 'she should never forget that first morning when her garden began to grow'.”  ~Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

I wonder if Mary had to remove some weeds and thatch??  (giggle giggle!)