Lessons from a Garden

Lesson 3: Preparing the Ground

We decided what to plant and where, but we couldn't just scatter the seeds on the ground. Nor could we just dig holes and put the bulbs in. We first had to prepare the ground for planting. For the backyard vegetable garden this meant removing several large, flat patio-type stones and levelling parts of the ground. For the front yard flower garden this mean digging up a lot of ground cover that was choking up everything else. On both sites the ground had to be broken up and made workable. We also added ten bags of topsoil to the sites.

Sometimes in our eagerness to witness for Jesus we forget to prepare the soil before we plant the seeds. By that I mean that sometimes Christians begin to testify about their faith to people who are not yet ready to listen or who don't even know the vocabulary that the Christian is using. Before we can begin to plant the seeds of faith in the lives of others we first have to build trust and let the other person see that we are real and that we care for him or her. We may have to remove obstacles to faith such a negative conceptions and a judgmental attitude. We may have to create more level ground between "us and them." We have to add something to our relationships before we can plant those seeds.

2 Corinthians 9:6

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.