APRIL 25TH, 2020 "WHAT'S IN YOUR GARDEN?"

“WHAT’S IN YOUR GARDEN?”

“Are you planting and developing flowered thoughts, as well as, flowers?”

Or

“Do you need to weed things out that are causing distractions and choking out God’s plan for your life?”

by:  Shirley Faith Souder                                                                    Date: April 24, 2020

            Most likely you got as excited as I did a few days back, when we had those 70-degree days with sun.  It was amazing to see people out walking, and getting things at Home Depot, as well as, Walmart to start on garden and other work projects.  Sunday morning, I went very early to the grocery and it felt like the good old days. I saw plants boxes and flowers pots, hanging fern pots were swaying in the breeze.   The shelves were stocked, and just a hand full of people were there.  I did see one person with a mask, which brought me back to reality and that we are still in this very serious new normal.  After I watched the sermon on Sunday, it got me to thinking about how we long to get into spring and start planting everything new.  To watch it come up in its colorful array is something I can’t wait to see.  It got me to thinking about the Garden of my heart.  What is planted there that is about to spring out?  What weed will come along and distort that or crowd it out?

            Instantly, I thought of the parable of sower.  Matthew 13: 3 through 9.  Seeds are important for growth.  We put the seed in the ground.  We want good ground with fertilizer, and watering is key.  Paying attention to and guarding whether the soil is moist and receiving the nutrients.  We do NOT want that seed to fall on hard, parched by the sun ground.  We do not want to forget about the silent weeds that will also choke our new plant.  When you apply that to what’s going on in the Garden of my heart, I could see a real parallel.  The ground is my personal relationship with Jesus.  The seed is the inerrant Word of God, and then we fertilize that relationship by pure thoughts and actions.  The final act is of watering that with prayer, and worship for our Holy Father God.  Sounds really easy doesn’t it? Simple, Flawless! 

            So, I am making this simple this week.  1). Read Matthew 13: 3/9.   2).  Ask yourself these questions:

What seeds good or bad am I planting that require me paying attention to and guarding?  What outside things or people could be distracting, hindering or choking out my ministry, God’s purpose for my life?  Am I harvesting good, colorful, healthy, thoughts and actions wherever I am?  Am I making good choices about what I think, do and pray about?

And finally, 3). Remember Phil 4: 8.  Whatsoever is true, pure, right, noble, lovely, admirable, praiseworthy and excellent, think only on these things.