How Does Your Garden Grow?

Have you ever walked by someone’s house and had to simply stop dead in your tracks to admire the beauty of their yard?  Their flower beds, bunches of color straight from the rainbow.  Their grass neatly manicured... each blade of grass precisely the same length, the colors all so vivid and rich. 

...Then after that first thought of beauty and awe that stopped you, silently, from out of nowhere, it seems, the coveting slips in.  I wish I had a garden like that.  I wish my flowers were so gorgeous. 

...Then the feeling of disappointment at yourself that you don’t or that you could never do that, you could never have that. 

...And then the feeling of bitterness that leaves a slight sour taste in your mouth. 

...And then the emptiness that leaves you feeling a little hollow and alone. 

 All in a matter of seconds, all with no conscious thoughts of your own dragging you down that dirty back road of your mind.  And then you begin your walk again and let the fleeting moments pass.  Your thoughts drift back to the everyday distractions of life.

But what if after you first pause to admire that beauty, the very next thought you train yourself to have is to ponder, what did it take to get a garden like that, rather than immediately, I want that.  That first question, if properly considered, may just wash away the second altogether.

What does it take to have a splendid garden?

What does it take to have that great physical body of the woman casually passing you by in the grocery store?

What does it take to have a clean and organized home?

What does it take to be that mother laughing, head tossed back in joy as she pushes her child on the swing?

What does it take to be that published author?

What does it take to be that strong woman of faith that leads your bible study?

It takes hard work.  It takes discipline.  It takes dedication to the cause.  If you want to have a beautiful garden, guess what?  You have to get your hands dirty, in the mud, in the soil.  You have to get down on your knees and pull the weeds, which threaten to choke your hard work.  You have to bend over and till the earth until your back is sore.  You have to daily water and feed your tender charges so they will flourish and grow.  That person with the beautiful garden did not wish it into existence.  They worked it there.

So tell me, my friend… how does your garden grow?

"But as to this, he that sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; and he that sows bountifully will also reap bountifully."  2 Corinthians 9:6-7