Month: April 2022

Weed Cloth

It’s late April, time to get the summer garden growing. I get the tiller out again and all the fencing and begin to tear up new ground. It doesn’t take long before my hands and shoulders hurt. I call in help, but he is not Nick. All this tilling, all this hard labor, Nick did all this. Suddenly, it is all beyond my ability. I lay on my back on the ground and cry. Take me now, Lord, it is too much. I can sense His gentle smile: silly child, you can do this; look at the sugar snaps growing. And rising, I look at the growing garden, and get back to work.

The sugar snaps are growing. The tilling and fencing and planting involved have produced growing plants. Surely, if I can grow sugar snaps from seeds, I can grow tomatoes and cucumbers and peppers from starter plants. Right?

His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” Matthew 25:23

And I’ve learned something about myself. I don’t like to weed. I yank out weeds, dig them up, and the next day they reappear. Looking at my pretty sugar snaps, I see weeds all around them.

Nick didn’t like to weed either. We designed our garden specifically to take advantage of a wonderful garden product – weed barrier cloth. Weed cloth is 3-4 feet wide and covers the tilled ground, suppressing the unwanted plant’s access to sunlight and air. Basically, the cloth prevents the weeds from ever gaining purchase in my garden. And preventing a weed from growing is far easier than pulling it once it’s grown.

I wonder if I could do this in my life. I can’t stop weeds from sprouting; I can’t stop negative unholy thoughts from springing up unwanted. But I can deprive them of sunlight and air. I can prevent them from ever gaining purchase in my life. All I need is a layer of protection.

Isn’t that what just happened? When the task seemed overwhelming, when the wave of self pity and grief overtook me, I cried out to God. I lifted my eyes and saw the sugar snaps, green and growing. God has been faithful in the past, rewarding my efforts; God will be faithful in the future.

Those sugar snap plants, the evidence of God’s faithfulness, encourage me, literally instill me with courage. I can do this; with God’s help, I can do this. I pray for strength and help. I remember Paul’s words to Timothy.

For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

And that is my weed cloth. It is the Holy Spirit reminding me of all that God has done for me, for people I know, and for generations before me. It is recalling the stories of God’s faithful love as recounted in the Bible and in thousands of years of testimony. I can read any of a million books of other’s stories; I can recall my own story. As I lift my eyes from my present troubles, I see those sugar snaps, green and growing.

I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord; I will remember your deeds of old. Psalm 77:11

Today, I till up more ground, put more fencing, and lay weed barrier cloth the length of the garden. It is a lot of work, but past gardens encourage me. Victory is within reach.

Betsy

Thank you for sharing your time with me. I appreciate your encouragement. Thank you for following this blog and sharing it with others. Enjoy the Spring!

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Psalm 32:1

Upward growth

If you’ve been following along, you know that I have overcome my inertia and started a garden. I have bought seeds, set aside a place to grow them, tilled the ground to battle weeds, fenced the area to combat predators and given the seeds time and water for their transformation. I now have sugar snaps growing in my garden! Yay!! Success!!

I get to celebrate for about two weeks before I realize that those little sugar snap plants are not growing up right. They are sending out tendrils searching for something to cling to and are finding nothing but each other. They are becoming entangled with each other and weighing each other down, falling to the ground instead of reaching to the sky. The plants need some structure around them; they need support.

The traditional structures for peas and beans are bean poles. I use tomato cages, which work just as well. As soon as I place a tomato cage over or near one of the young plants, those tender tendrils reach out and latch on, wrapping around and around the sturdy bars and holding on as if their lives depend on it. Maybe it does.

Without structure or support, the sugar snaps wrap themselves around each other. Instead of growing upward, they bring each other down. It’s like the drowning person who climbs upon his rescuer, drowning them both.

But with the structure, with the support, the sugar snaps grow toward the sun. They hold on to the cage and depend on it for support. Reaching upward, there is plenty of space for growth. Success for one plant does not mean failure for another. With the proper structure and support, all the plants can thrive.

Are you with me here?

I need God’s Word. Without God’s Word as structure and support for my growth, I will reach out to other people and cling to them. My dependence on them will not only limit my growth, it may also limit theirs. A Christian community that clings to a person instead of clinging to the Word of God can sometimes slip into cult status. And if that person to whom we are clinging is not himself clinging to the Word of God, the entire community can fail.

The only way a person or a group of people can ensure healthy Christian growth is to have the Bible ever present as a source of support and The Truth to which everyone can hold fast.

The Lord your God you shall follow, Him alone you shall fear, His commandments you shall keep, His voice you shall obey, Him you shall serve, and to Him you shall hold fast. Deuteronomy 13:4 (See also 2 Timothy 3:15-16)

Sugar snaps thrive best when lots of them are growing together, each holding on to the cage nearest them. Several plants use the same cage, but they are individually clinging to it; growing together. Perhaps this is how the church thrives best as well. Lots of us growing together; each of us individually holding on to the Word.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. Proverbs 3:5

And upward growth is critical. Upward growth allows the plants to absorb as much of the sun as possible and ensures their fruit will be visible and accessible. And accessing that fruit is the main reason I planted those sugar snaps.

You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last. John 15:16

So I get those tomato cages around and among my sugar snaps as soon as possible; I want those plants growing in the right direction from the beginning. There is fruit at stake.

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Betsy

Nothing can separate us from the love of God. Romans 8:38-39

Disappointment

This year, I planted my sugar snaps in the middle of the garden. Last year, I planted them closer to the creeks; last year we flooded.

It was the night before Palm Sunday. Triumphant? Not that year. I live in a floodplain and love my creeks, but about every ten years they become a raging river and flood my garage and surround my house. 2021 was that year.

The little sugar snap plants had come up, bursting through their seed coverings and the tilled ground to reach their tendrils toward the sun. And then the flood came. Rushing water pressed the landscape timbers against the fencing. The water submerged the tender young plants for hours; pushing and pulling them. Strong currants re-arranged the dirt, emptying it from some spots and piling it high in others. 

For days I had to deal with more pressing concerns – cleaning up, replacing the damaged appliances, dealing with workers and insurance companies. It was several days before I could turn my tired and achy body to restoring the garden. I’d lost some plants. On top of all the other losses from the flood, this one almost crushed me – these plants, unlike the water heater, were irreplaceable. Disappointment loomed large.

In the world you will face tribulation; but take heart, for I have overcome the world. John 16:33

I once heard that the key to happiness is low expectations. Disappointment results from life not living up to our expectations. I had prepared the garden and cared for those little seeds in expectations of a wonderful crop of sugar snaps; and now that expectation appeared to be dashed. Likewise, our friend may let us down; our marriage may falter; our job may not work out; our child may struggle; some mysterious virus may come along and shut down all our plans. We had expectations; and now we have disappointment.

Walking with God and growing in His likeness does not rid us of disappointments. Even Jesus faced disappointments. Judas and Peter disappointed Jesus. James and John disappointed Him by arguing over who was greatest; and the religious leaders disappointed Him with their hardened hearts. I am sure I disappoint God when I am attracted to things that aren’t holy. If God and Jesus face disappointment, why should I think I would not?

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you… rejoice insofar as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings. I peter 4:12-13

For here’s the beauty of the Christian life – there is hope. I can restore the garden, and some of the sugar snaps will continue to grow. If not, there is next year. Peter repented and Jesus made him head of the church. James and John learned from Jesus’ teachings and example, and we can do the same. Hardened hearts can soften, and my attention can return to things that are worthy.

And the joy when that happens is priceless. Like the flower that blooms in defiance of the asphalt surrounding it, joy leaps from disappointment. Our relationships are repaired or replaced with better ones; there are moments of breakthrough and connection; we learn to prioritize our activities and treasure those that are dearest. Those first sugar snaps are exquisite.

….knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint. Romans 5:3-5

Faced with repairing the garden, I turned my disappointment of lost plants into efforts of rebuilding. I nurtured and supported those plants that were left. In the hope of future joy, I did the work to repair the flood damage and bring back the garden. And it was worth the effort. Because even though my Palm Sunday last year was far from triumphant, Easter still came. Jesus rose from the dead and sent His Spirit to abide with us. There is joy; there is triumph; there is Victory.

Thank you for reading the Victory Garden. I pray you have a joyous Easter.

Betsy

Emmanuel – God with us. Luke 1:23

What’s on your mind?

As I wait for the sugar snaps to grow, I think about what else I want to grow. It is almost time to plant my summer garden – the tomatoes and cucumbers and bell peppers. Do I want to add summer squash this year? Do I want to grow yellow tomatoes for my friend who is allergic to the red ones? Should I rotate my crops?

When should I will plant? Never until after tax day, but perhaps even later than that, depending on the weather and my schedule. Unlike the sugar snaps, summer plants won’t survive a freeze.

When should I till? Do I have weed barrier cloth? Do I have enough straw? How early should I buy the starter plants? Where will I keep them until I plant them? Do I need a soaker hose? Do I need a water timer?

I think about the garden a lot. It’s better than other things I could think about. I could self-obsess and consider my personality traits. I could relive the past or wonder what the writer of Yellowstone‘s family is like. I could be concerned about the Kardashians. More likely, I could wallow in grief. Instead, I am thinking about the garden.

What we think about has power.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds; so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2

I see the world through the lens of whatever fills my thoughts. When gardening fills my thoughts, you can tell me whatever is going on in your life, and I can tell you how that relates to gardening.

Jesus tells us to “Love the Lord… with all your mind.” (Luke 10:27, Matt. 22:37). Paul instructs us to “pray without ceasing.” (I Thess. 5:17). My mind is to be engaged in my Christian growth. I am to see the world through the lens of His Word. I am to think about God and Jesus. Because what I think about has power.

But that thinking, that imagination, needs to be based on biblical truth.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. Proverbs 3:5

Just as I need to trust professional gardeners, millennia of experience, and proven techniques when I garden, so I need to trust God, the Bible and reliable witnesses when I am growing closer to God.

And the best way to get my brain actively involved is to read the Bible and think about it during the day. Ponder it. Meditate on it. Let it soak in. Keep reading that difficult verse and praying over it until the Spirit explains it to you.

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything. John 14:26

So, while the sugar snaps are growing but it’s not yet time to plant the cucumbers, I will take this time to ponder all I want my garden to be. I will engage my mind and my imagination; and I will think about the garden.

So, while I am growing closer to God, but it’s not yet time to be with Him in heaven, I will take this time to ponder all I want my relationship with Him to be. I will engage my mind and my imagination; and I will think about God.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Philippians 4:8

What are you thinking about?

Betsy

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By this they will know that you are mine, that you love one another as I loved you. John 13:35