WHAT’S IN YOUR GARDEN?

“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” Robert Louis Stevenson

Have you ever worked in a garden? Did you enjoy it? Gardening to some, including me, can be a rewarding and therapeutic experience. It’s just something about- putting your hands in the dirt, digging in the soil, planting seeds, covering them with dirt and awaiting its growth- that evokes a feeling of oneness with the earth. But while gardening this time, I began to ponder the seed. What’s in a seed that encourages and promotes growth? How does a tiny little seed grow into nutritious fruit? A beautiful plant? A huge tree? Or a big bush? Thinking about these seeds, led me to wonder what types of seeds are we planting and sowing in our lives? Are we aware of the types of seeds that we are planting? Do we even know what’s in our gardens?

A few years ago, I read a booklet about seed growth in our lives. It suggested that our tongue is the seed and our heart is the soil. It explained that what we speak or profess becomes planted in our hearts. Good, bad, and indifferent statements and thoughts are seeds that we embed in our hearts. Statements and thoughts such as: “I can’t; It won’t work for me; Good things don’t happen to me; I don’t believe that; I don’t know how; I don’t deserve love; I can’t forgive my past; I won’t achieve it.” are seeds we’ve sown in our hearts. But, these seeds turn into weeds, grow and infect our soil. Can you imagine what type of harvest these seeds will produce?

In the Bible, the Lord compares our hearts to a garden (Jer. 31:12) and in a parable, Jesus says your heart is like soil; if you plant the right seeds, you will bring forth good fruit. In Galatians 5:22-23, it describes the seeds of the SPIRIT that we SHOULD be planting in order to harvest these gifts: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, meekness, faithfulness, gentleness and temperance.  Our goal should be for the garden of our heart to be so healthy that it grows good fruit. But, we need to be honest with ourselves. Is the garden of our heart-healthy enough to grow good fruit?

During a difficult time, I was talking to GOD and asking for clarity as to what was occurring in my life. While on bended knees, I vividly recall hearing HIM tell me that I had not sown good seeds. HE let me know that the seeds I was sowing were NOT growing or producing any of the fruits of the Spirit. What a moment of revelation!!! Although embarrassed, I had to be honest with myself. I realized that I had NEVER planted any of these seeds. I had NEVER intentionally tried to be understanding. I had NEVER intentionally tried to be patient, peaceful, gentle, meek, joyful, or loving. I lived my life protecting my heart and had allowed my heart to harden and as a result, my soil was no longer fertile. Through my conversation with GOD, I discovered that I had not properly prepared my heart for the seeds that I hoped and intended to harvest. Thus, the harvests I was reaping was because of the type of seeds that I had sown. What kind of seeds are you planting? What kind of harvests are you reaping? Is your life growing, producing and improving based on the seeds you’ve planted?

As gardeners, we have to pull up and remove the painful weeds- of negative thinking, old limiting thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that we know have been a problem for us– from the gardens of our hearts. In doing so, we prepare our soil to receive the good seeds that will produce results that will change us as individuals and improve our lives. Gardens, although therapeutic, require daily maintenance. Every day we should work in our gardens, watering, nurturing and protecting the good seeds that are rooting in the soil of our hearts while patiently waiting to reap the bountiful harvest of ALL the good that GOD has to offer. So again, what type of seeds are you planting? WHAT’S GROWING IN YOUR GARDEN?

SHIP TALK: What types of weeds did you pull from your garden? What type of seeds did you plant? What harvest did these seeds yield? What type of seeds are you planting now? How do you water your garden?

If you’d like to leave a comment, please scroll to the bottom of the page.