How Does your Garden Grow? Part 1

As we continue to renovate our old house we have finally got around to ‘doing the garden’. After many years of neglect it was clear that drastic action needed to be taken and so in came a man with a digger! After two days of digging, moving, burying and levelling, we were left with a huge expanse of good looking soil ready for grass seed to be sown.

With our newly purchased seed, we excitedly sowed the grass and then we waited. And we waited. It was in this waiting period that we realised just how good it is to live in Scotland where you famously can experience four seasons in one day, or even one hour! The weather was just perfect for our grass to grow; glorious sunshine one day and heavy rain the following day. The next day would be sunny in the morning and raining in the afternoon. Our grass was being treated to all it needed to grow.

And so we waited some more. Each day we would go out and scrutinise the ground and, oh the excitement when we saw our first tender grass shoot – we would have a lawn soon! Sure enough, the grass grew and continues to do so.

Yet, the grass wouldn’t have grown without both the sun and the rain. And so it is in our lives. We often bemoan the ‘bad days’ we have, wishing we could have good days all the time. Yet, without the ‘rainy’ days we will never grow. They are just as important as the sunny ones.

So next time you are having a bad day or a bad afternoon, remember to give thanks to God because this is an opportunity for growth. Just as I am excited about the growth in our garden, so we should all be excited about growth in our lives, even if it means rain every now and again.

Prayer: Father God. I know that I have bad days and good ones. Please help me to see the bad times as an opportunity for growth so that I truly can count every day as a joyful one. In Jesus’ name. Amen.