Cultuvating your Garden

The signs of spring are everywhere. The days are longer; the birds are chirping their beautiful songs, even the bees are at work. Buds are swelling; and many bulbs are pushing their way up through the earth. Spring, for me, is the season when it feels as if my senses are waking from a long nap, from a long cold winter. I am suddenly more aware of the new life that is beginning to bloom all around me.


Spring is a time that we get out, get our hands dirty, and dig in the dirt. Gardening is like your spiritual growth in God. If you think about the garden you work on, does it bring you, joy? Do you like working in it? Tilling the soil, Planting small seeds, Watching the growth come out of the earth, Smelling the scents of the early daffodils,Seeing the bees and butterflies add to the garden's life? One of the first chores we can enjoy now is pruning and taking off the branches that are no longer necessary, shaping the shrubs so they show character. When you wake early in the morning its such a good time to get the tools out and shape, while the morning air is still cool. This helps them grow fuller and keeps the legs of the tree from being straggly, and or bare. This scripture comes to mind as I write this, John 15:1-2: "I am the true vine, and my father is the vine grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit." Jesus knew a lot about farming, and much of what he said related to what people did every day; he compared these daily tasks to how we should live, showing how everything we do can be related to God. It sounds simple, but if you pay attention to it, the practice can change your spiritual life. pruning is clipping away to get the shape you want; Each cut removes dead wood and allows more room for the plant to breathe and grow. how do we know what to trim, to eliminate and change? I am reminded of all the extras in my own life that I need to lessen so I can become more wholly centered. It Is never easy to prune things in our lives, we are so sentimental about everything, we are committed to materialistic things. However to make change and room for new we have to start pruning our lives to live a better life that is in line with God’s will. To start shaping each branch of our life.

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return not thither but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it" (Isa. 55:10-11)

Soon it will be time to start seeding, but before you can do that you have to get the steps in order, so we shall start with pruning. My prayer for you is that I hope each of you will see what needs to be pruned out of your life so that you can be made whole in Christ in preparation of planting seeds, eternal seeds.

You the gardener work the fertile soil for the seed, however; God provided it for you. Now its up to you to add prayer and encouragement for God's plan to take hold. As the season continues, we will discuss the planting of the seeds. Look into your life and start pruning in preparation for this seeding.