More Lessons From The Hillside

I love Isaiah 40:11: "He tends his flock like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart, he gently leads those that have young."

Through His Word, we have God's promise that when we experience something painful, he will take care of us, He will provide comfort and I love it that we don't always know the form that comfort will take. I have written about my wildflower hillside before and that is where I received my comfort this summer. I didn't even care for gardening and knew next to nothing about plants until about a year and a half ago. Then suddenly the business of landscaping became something I wanted to learn more about and, oh, boy, but I have learned a lot. My wildflower hillside started out as sort of a fun project and it became my place of peace and joy, rest and contentment; all the things God promises when our world is shaken. And God continues to teach me almost every time I am out there. These are the things He taught me yesterday as I was weeding and watering:

1. Patience. In May, when the world around me was turning green, there was not much happening on the hillside. At the time, I didn't know that wildflowers bloom from July to October. So in May and June, when I saw very little activity out there, I decided to "jump start" things. I went to the greenhouses and bought a bunch of plants and put them out on the hillside; I got cuts from friends that immediately went out there. Then as the wildflower seeds began to grow and bloom, they were practically on top of the things that I had planted. So now I probably should go out there and dig up some things and put them in a new garden I have planned which is more work for me and probably stress on the plants. It's the same way with us and God. Too often we want to "jump start" God's plans. Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." What a promise, plans to give us hope and a future. I spent days in the hospital waiting for things to get better for my dad, but instead God gave me hope and the reassurance that I will see my dad again in the future.

2. Protection. I have been bitten by bugs from head to toe this summer and the thing is, I don't feel anything biting me until the next day when I am covered with itchy welts. And they do not discriminate on where they bite you. I have a bottle of "OFF" right on my deck, but I'm always in such a hurry to get out to the hillside I forget to give myself a good spray and then suffer the consequences. In life, the Bible and prayer are my protection. They are my weapons against things seen and unseen. Ephesians 6:13-18 tells us about the full armor of God. "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. (Eph. 6:10).

3. Getting to the root of the issue. That crown vetch we had out there is some tough stuff. Part of the problem is because it has rhizomes, which isn't something I knew much about before this summer. Rhizomes are root systems that spread all over the place. It sort of reminds me of a subway, tunnels going all over the place and you don't even realize it's going on right underneath you. Because of the rhizomes, it's very hard to get the entire root system out. Dandelions aren't rhizomes, but they have very long roots and rarely can I pull the whole thing out. It has to be very muddy to have much success at all. I can see the plants where I was unable to remove the entire root system. There is about half a plant, they still have a little bit of green leaf and they are most definitely alive, but they don't look like a normal plant. Ephesians 4:26-27: "In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold." In other words, don't sweep things under the rug. If there's a problem with someone get to the root of the problem and do your best to work it out. When we have issues going on, we can still live, we can still have a more or less normal-looking life, but it isn't whole, parts are missing.

4. Identification. I have a lot of this plant on my hillside. I waited and waited for it to do something, get some sort of flower buds and it never did. So I cut off a leaf and brought it to an expert and learned, that, yes, it is a weed and I have to remove it. While I don't think it's a hideous looking plant, it's not what belongs out there and it's getting in the way of other plants being able to flourish and be all they can be. It's like my life, there are things that I do that aren't bad, I'm not hurting anyone, I'm not breaking any laws, but are they the best use of my time or are they getting in the way of letting me grow to be all I can be? Could I make better use of the time I spend on those activities? I believe it's important to identify those things in my life that keep me from growing, from learning, from being the person God intended for me to be. 2 Thessalonians 1:11: With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." Summer is coming to a close, my hillside will no longer require my attention; I am right now trying to identify ways to continue to be as teachable as I am out there.

I am so grateful for the lessons I've learned this summer; I'm so grateful for the peace and comfort God provided in a way I never would have guessed. My prayer for me, and all who read this, is that we would all be open to God's lessons, to have patience with His plans for us, to build up the body of Christ through our relationships and to do all we can to bring Him Glory.

Don't. Stop. Believin' .....