So sorry it's been a while, but things got busy there for a while. In the hub-bub of running a house of five, we had a vacation and have since all gone back to school. I have also quit my job in order to bring more focus to the family during this busy season and to focus on a lower stress household.
I have an expansion on The Parable of the Sower Jesus talks about in Mark 4:1-20. My particular interest begins in verse 8:
"But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
Last year we ventured out to begin our first vegetable garden. We rented a plot 50'x25' that was completely entangled in weeds four feet high. We spent a lot of time removing garbage, pulling weeds, clearing land, trimming trees, and tilling the ground. In talking with neighbors, this plot of land had been neglected for the last 4 years. Our hard work was a welcome sight to the community. In essence, we spent a tremendous amount of energy to even get to the "good" stage in soil preparation. We planted immediately and took great care to lay soaker hoses in case the year did not prove to provide enough rain.
Our harvest was substantial. We were pulling 10 cucumbers a day, eggplants, tomatoes, a variety of squashes, and more jalepenos than we knew what to do with! However, halfway into the growing season, we found our garden was covered in this beautiful carpet of green grass. A weed had been activated in our soil prep and blossomed all over our hard work. We said to ourselves "If only we could grow that stuff in our front yard!" Another pest moved in- fire ants- let's just say, we never found an organic way to eliminate those suckers and they totally decimated our corn crop! (v 4:19- ...and the cares of this world the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful). Nevertheless, it was a remarkable experience that we will treasure forever.
This year, in an attempt to enjoy the same bounty, we duplicated the garden on a much smaller scale in our backyard in a 4'x9' box. We got the cheapest soil from Wal-Mart and stuck the plants in there. We relied on the kids for watering, and our makeshift deer fence broke immediately, causing the cucumber vines to get snatched up right away. So- the harvest this year: maybe a couple of thick-skinned cucumbers and some squash as hard as rocks. What happened?
How could they be so different? It's all in the soil, the care, and the water. This year has been a drought for us, last year- it was bad, but not like it is now. The heat was off the charts! But, our care was primarily what lacked. Had we invested with diligence from the beginning, we may have actually reaped something. But instead, we were haphazard about watering, soil selection, and soil enrichment.
That's the perfect parable for our faith. If we can invest diligently on preparing ourselves to receive the Word, strategically water with living water and plenty of it, and make calculated efforts to protect and build up our faith during storms (or droughts, attacks from pests) our faith will prove to be fruitful.
If you haven't tried gardening on a large scale, I wholeheartedly recommend it. It really brought us close to God through the glory of his creation and his power to sustain us. The fruit of this earth are truly a gift. When bought at a grocery store, it takes the romance away from us. We really begin to under value God as we grab what we need from the store rather than working hard, scratching at the earth to feed ourselves. I invite you to apply this parable to your life and see what condition your spiritual soil is in. Our family is on our way to shaping up our soil for the next season.
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