I Come to the Garden Alone - Part Five

I Come to the Garden Alone

Part Five

By Judy Vandiver

This last week, we have looked at lessons to be learned from gardening mistakes. I’ve shared so many of my blossom bloopers. God has taught me many lessons in the midst of an area where I considered myself a failure. But this morning, I sat in my garden and enjoyed the beauty of his presence.

It’s taken me almost sixty years to have a garden close to what I always wanted. My husband and I have spent time, patience, and hard work on our back yard. We now have curved sidewalks, oval shaped flowerbeds, garden benches, an Italian water fountain, a rock waterfall, and many gorgeous plants. My favorites are still the roses, but to the left is a picture of a shrimp plant from my garden area. Yes, I have had it for awhile and it's still alive.

This morning all the plants are alive and beautiful. They are thriving. I can’t promise what tomorrow holds. But this one thing I know. God meets me in my garden regardless of my gardening skills. He is ever-present in my life; through the times when I’m successful and through the times when I am not.

So, what can a person who does not have a green thumb learn from Gardening? I have learned that God has important lessons for us even in (especially in) our failures. We must look for the hidden truths along the way. God has taught me to read and follow His directions, to be sincere in my faith before Him, and that His anointing oil can change me into something new and wonderful, allowing me to be a fragrant blessing to those around me. 

I encourage each of you today to let God’s word take root and grow in your heart. Even when the garden is a disaster, God is in the midst of it. Only He can bring forth the blossoms that dreams are made of. I come to my garden alone, but once there, I experience God.

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Originally I Come to the Garden Alone was going to be written in five parts, but two things happened in my garden this week and I felt God teaching me lessons about His love and His light. I'll share one of those lessons on Monday and one on Tuesday.

Personal Study Questions:

1. In what area of your life do you believe yourself to be a failure?
2. What hidden truths are wrapped up in your belief?
3. What spiritual truth might God be trying to teach you?
4. What new seeds can you cultivate in your life?
5. What do you need to do to help those seeds survive?

Copyright 2009 by Judy Vandiver