Lessons from a Garden 11

Lesson11: Beware of Rabbits

Both our vegetable garden and our flower garden were doing well. In early spring the crocus shoots peeked through the ground. Shortly afterwards they began to disappear before developing blooms. I took a close look and discovered the shoots had been bitten off. Then early one morning I caught sight of the thief. A rabbit from the park across the road. Two months later when we planted our vegetable garden I had forgotten about the rabbit, and when the vegetable shoots began coming through the ground my carrot, lettuce and beet shoots began disappearing. Then I caught sight of him (or her) again. The little varmint was persistent...I had a battle on my hands.

In our Christian life there are little things that eat away at our faith. If we are not careful these things will destroy or seriously damage our Christian witness. In a previous generation Sunday school children would sing a somewhat silly song with a thoughtful message: Root them out, get them gone; all the little bunnies in the field of corn. Envy, jealousy, malice, pride; they must never in my heart abide.

As your faith begins to grow, be aware of the little things that may rob you of your joy and peace. And do all you can to protect yourself from these spiritual predators.

Song of Solomon 2:15

Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards,
    our vineyards that are in bloom.

Lessons from a Garden 10

Lesson10: Weeding

It was not long after the vegetable shoots came through the ground that weeds also began to appear. In fact in some cases they appeared at the same time so that it was hard at first to tell which was a weed and which was the vegetable plant. So we had to let both grow until we could identify which was the weed and which was the vegetable. After a while it became obvious which was which and we then dutifully extracted the weed. But they never gave up easily and kept coming back all summer long so that it was a constant battle to keep an eye out for them and to keep removing them.

The lesson here for us Christians is obvious. The weeds in our life are those things that should not be there. They are the things that choke our faith and hinder our spiritual growth. These "weeds" are things like bad habits. Watching too much TV, being overly involved in sports, having a negative attitude, grumbling, laziness etc. The "weeds" can be sins. Addiction to alcohol, drugs, or porn. Telling lies, gossip, decitfulness. Whatever hinders our spiritual progress is a weed and needs to be removed.

Luke 18:14

The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.

Lessons from a Garden 9

Lesson 9: Care for the First Shoots

Almost every day after planting seeds in our vegetable garden my wife, Shirley, and I would check the ground to see if anything was growing. It seemed to take forever before anything green poked through the earth. And then one day it happened. Shirley came running to me shouting, "Something is grown in our garden!" I checked, and sure enough, a row of little green shoots was peeking through the ground...and then another...and another. Our garden had begun! It was now our responsibility to care for these tender shoots and help them to grow.

In your life too there are probably "little green shoots." By that I mean people who are new to the faith, people who have only recently begun a relationship with Jesus. They may be older in years, but as Christians they are "babes in Christ." Or there may be children in your life, whether part of your family or your friends' families. They also are tender shoots even if they don't yet know Jesus. If God has placed such people in your life it is because God expects you to help with nurturing them. Do all you can to help these "little ones" to grow in their relationship with the Lord.

Mark 6:14

He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

Lessons from a Garden

Lesson 8: Water Often

Everyone knows how important water is to plant life. Without water ground become a desert, plants shrivel and die, crops fail. Once we had our seeds in the ground we had to make sure that we watered the soil daily and continued to do so once the young shoots appeared. In fact watering was something we had to do throughout the entire growing season. Sometimes rain came and the plants were watered naturally, but with the hot, dry summer we experienced we had to do the watering ourselves most of the time.

In the Bible water is a powerful symbol used in various ways. The Holy Spirit is symbolized as water being poured out upon God's people and being poured into our hearts. In that instance God is the one who is watering our souls. Water is also used to symbolize the care that Christians give to one another. Through their encouraging words and uplifting attitude they refresh each other's souls. As a Christian you need both God's Holy Spirit filling you daily and the support of other Christians to encourage you. Seek to be spiritualy refreshed each day and find ways to refresh others.

1 Corinthians 3:6

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.

Lessons from a Garden

Lesson 7: Transplanting is Sometimes Necessary

In the course of planting our vegetable garden it was necessary for me to transplant two perennials and a bush. The bush was in the corner and tended to spread out onto the garden area. The perennials were in the middle of the ground where I wanted to plant vegetables. With a great deal of digging and a lot of grunting I managed to uproot the bush and transport it to the front of the house where it covered a bare spot. Moving the two perennials was easier. These went into a garden of perennials to the side of our property. Now everything was where it was supposed to be for the purposes we intended.

During our more than 40 years as Salvation Arm Officers my wife and I were often "transplanted" from one community to another. Like those plants in my garden we did not have any say in the matter but we put down roots and did our best to do our duty in each new place we lived. In your life, too, there will be times when you will be transplanted, sometimes by your own choise and sometimes by circumstances out of your control. It is wise to remember in such times that God is the Divine Garderner and although decisions seem to be made arbitarily by others, God's purposes for us will work out in the end.

Psalm 1:1-3

Blessed is the one... whose delight is in the law of the Lord

That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.

Lessons from a Garden

Lesson 6: Plant in Hope

We'd decided what to plant and where. We'd prepared the ground and purchesed seeds for the vegetable garden and plants from the nursery for the flower garden. Now it was time to plant. We started with the flower garden. We sorted out the tiny flower plants and laid them on the ground to create a pattern of colors that we thought would look good. Then we dug shallow holes in the earth and carefully place each individual plant into its place. When finished, it looked very promising. For the vegetable garden we dug shallow trenches and filled each one with seeds. A row of carrots here, a row of beans there etc. Then we covered the seeds with a shallow layer of soil. When finished all we could see was a flat area of soil... and a lot of hope in our heart. We also put in some tomato and rhubarb plants and a raspbury bush.

Christian witnessing and evangelism has often been described as planting seeds. In fact Jesus compared himself to a farmer who was scattering seeds on his land. Although not all the seeds would germinate, take root, and produce a crop, some would. For that reason the farmer did not lose heart. Jesus planted seeds of faith as He preached the gospel and ministered to people. One of our responsibilities as Christians is to plant seeds of faith as Jesus did. Plant in hope.

2 Corinthians 9:6

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

Lessons from a Garden

Lesson 5: Cultivate Vegetables

Vegetables are practical plants. They are necessary for life and health. Growing your own can save you money, which may be the real reason I wanted to grow them instead of flowers. The truth is that both my wife and I like the idea of going to our vegetable patch and harvesting our own, home-grown food. We chose mostly root crops—carrots, beets, turnip, and radishes—but also some veggies on the vine—tomatoes and beans. And some green onions and lettuce, which I don’t know how to classify. It was sheer delight for the both of us when we harvested our first radishes and lettuce for a salad after only a few weeks.

Perhaps you would like your Christian life to be all roses and tulips, full of color and pleasure. While those days will come, there is also a practical side—the vegetable side— to our faith. Enjoying pot luck suppers at church, dancing to praise and worship songs, and watching kids perform in a biblical drama are the flowery parts of the Christian life. The real meat and potatoes parts of our faith are the day to day things that build us up spiritually. These are things like daily prayer and mediation on the Word of God, participating in a serious Bible study group, and being part of a Christian ministry team. Enjoy the flowers, but don’t pass over the vegetables.

James 1:22

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.