***In My Hand Selected Garden***

God watches our garden grow daily. We sow what we reap, this is true, however, there are times when the attacker sneaks in some weeds and our loving Father equips us with the tools we need to recognize what needs some pruning and what needs to go.



I have been very blessed to have an intimate walk with my loving Father and the Holy Spirit, and as with any garden it takes hard work and an attentive eye to allow it to flourish. When we put forth so much effort it can be painful to realize that once what was the center of our garden, has now spread it's roots so far that it is choking the other seeds that we have planted.

In life, we come into this world through a family and some of us are blessed with a deep rooted, grounded family who knows and loves God, and others of us have families whose roots grow along the surface brushing on God but not really following through on a regular basis, and finally there are some families who decide not to introduce God but their own non-belief, and risk the chance of their seeds suffocating and damaging the young flowers and plants around them, delaying them from the path that leads to their own personal garden meant for them to care for and develop.

These are the hardest of all to recognize as damaging in the growth of our garden of life, because they began our garden, our families are usual our biggest influence on how we view God and His place in our every day choices. Our loving Father knew how difficult it would be when we finally came to this revelation and warned us about it in His word.

 In Luke 12: 49-53 49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled? 50But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished! 51Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: 52For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. 53The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 

That is why we need to have faith that  waivers as little as possible. To weed out a friend or a stranger that crosses our path or enters our garden can be difficult, but much more easier to weed out of our lives than someone who we've grown up with. When it is someone who we trusted and believed to always have our best interest at heart, it can be extremely difficult to accept that we actually have to make a choice between family and God. And of course as children of God we know there is no choice, God must always come first.

That is when the Holy Spirit is such a blessing and gift in our lives, because it is in that moment, we realize we will never be alone, and that there really is someone who can always be trusted and relied upon through all circumstances.

We often hear people say that their friends are their family, that when push came to shove, it was their friends that were there. That is no accident. When we truly love and lean on our Heavenly Father He fills our garden with the unique flowers and plants that are necessary for us to grow the most fruitful, beautiful and productive garden we can.

In a perfect world everyone would have a warm, loving, understanding, God fairing family with a weedless garden. But this is not our permanent home, and therefore, since earth belongs to Satan he will make sure dissension occurs wherever possible.

That is why the Bible is so necessary to our everyday lives, as well as prayer. We need to face this world successfully, and knowing the answer key is right beside us ( our Bible), and that our liaison dwells within us ( the Holy Spirit) to talk to our Father about His plan, purpose, and will for our lives is truly a blessing and extremely comforting. I pray we all find the courage we need in the Holy Spirit to do God's will.
He never promised us it would be easy, but he did promise us rewards beyond our comprehension as long as we put Him first.

I hope this post will encourage us all to always put God first, even if that means we have to weed out people we love. And though we may need to gradually separate ourselves from them, it doesn't mean we stop loving or praying for them, it simply means we need to lay it down at our Fathers feet and have the Faith that He will do what we could not.

I pray we all have days filled with light, love, and wisdom, and that we continually feel the loving embrace of our Heavenly Father. May the below poem from my upcoming book " Poems of the Eternal Heart a Daily Devotional" bring you the joy and comfort you need for the upcoming week. Love, hugs and prayers, Patricia xx

 

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 Our Garden Will  Flourish

We each have a garden,

unique to us all,

for God chose it's content,

As when He changed Saul to Paul.

His garden started one way,

filled with thistles and weeds,

and than our loving Father,

replanted all his seeds.

He knows problems are inevitable,

so He shows us what to do,

for misery is optional,

and clearly this is true.

For though we all have issue's,

and share in earth's daily pain,

our Savior hung upon the cross,

and proved forever He would reign.

So that God's will and purpose,

would be carried out,

by all His loving children,

whose hearts contain no doubt.

That one day soon we will partake,

in our mighty Father's rapture,

and all our gardens will be one,

for all evil will be captured....

Patricia VanDenburg©

6/8/12©