To everything there is a season...

It seems that winter jumped on us suddenly this year in Pensacola. Must be because the dog days of summer lasted well into fall. One day it was a beautiful beach day; the next I'm snuggling down under the electric blanket.

In Ecclesiastes 3, Solomon said, "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to sow and a time to reap." Such times are obvious in a garden. But they are also true in our lives. Of course, we know we are all born and we all die. But we also sow and then we reap.

Verse 4 continues, "A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance." Sometimes we may feel like all we're doing is weeping and mourning over some loss. But things will always turn around. We will laugh again. We will dance again.

I used to think that a person's life is like the seasons. Childhood and adolescence are like Spring, with rapid growth abounding. The 20s and 30s are Summertime, full of focused activity alternating with fun-filled lazy days. The 40s and 50s are like Autumn, full of harvest celebrations and hayrides in your lover's arms. And then comes the Winter, where we just wither and fade until we die. Now that I'm approaching 60, I want to move the boundaries a little to the right. I don't want to think that my days of production and fun are nearly over.

Maybe life is a little like that. But maybe we're more like the garden, with all of those things cycling around over and over again. Every year what has been previously planted grows green and lush. Then comes the time to focus on warmth and fun, while keeping an eye out for weeds that need pulling. Next the days of Autumn require the work of harvest, whether of good fruit or the clean-up of weeds and thistles. And Winter is a time to rest and reflect, replenish the soil of our hearts, prune what we want more of, and to decide what we want to plant for the next go round.

I know I've had a season of weeping and mourning the things that didn't work out the way I wanted. Now I'm planning for a harvest of laughter and dancing. It's time to get my bulbs in the ground. What are you planting?

Spending Christmas and New Years in snowy Boise, Idaho, has given me not only a new appreciation of living in Paradise, but an awareness of how incredibly beautiful Winter can be.

Doesn't look much like a garden to me either!

I admit that I've been ignoring my child. Last Spring, I helped birth the Serenity Garden part of Iris Park. In case you've never been there, it's pretty much the area past the fountain, under the two huge live oak trees, way off to the right when you're walking from the church to the admin building. It's safe to say that it's definitely off the beaten path.

A small handful of church members spent many days digging, planting, watering, weeding, and mowing the area for several months. While the weather was welcoming, I worked out there many days until sunset, which was often awesome across our field. Serenity was a natural name for the flower garden area. One day, I even saw a double rainbow arching over the church building! It was an incredible work of art that only God could do! I took several pictures of it with my cell phone, and as soon as I can figure out how to transfer them to my computer, I'll email them out.

Alas, for the last few months it's been too hot to spend much time out there. Other things have captured our attention for now. The neglect is apparent -- the sunflowers have lost their color, with nothing left of them but bird seed. Some of the tender annuals have withered. At least I'm learning what not to even try to grow. No more impatiens! (Pun intended.) The survivors, and amazingly even some thrivors (is that a word?), have received what they need from the hand of God rather than from a human gardner.

But I know the weather will soon enough be cool and the outdoor work inviting. Again I'll be able to walk with the Lord in the cool of the day in a garden that we are co-creating. You know, my life is a lot like that little garden.

Whose weeds are you pulling?

One of the first lessons that God taught me in the garden was probably 20 years ago. After a time of moving around, I had a cute little rent house in Podunk where I had a chance to plant some veggies.

One day I was babysitting a friend's kids. While Austin and Michael played GI Joe or some other guy thing, 5-year-old Crystal and I decided to work in the garden. My goal was to get a start on pulling weeds, and she was eager to help.

After we'd worked side by side for a while, I noticed that Crystal had moved to a new section of the garden and was busily pulling up some tiny weeds that were curiously growing in a row. She was proud that she was doing a great job as a helper. Suddenly I realized that she had pulled up nearly all of the tiny carrot sprouts! I knew it was my fault because I had failed to point out what was NOT weeds.

The Lord then told me, "Katy, that's what happens when some of my children get overly eager to 'help' in other people's lives. Often only the Master Gardener can tell the weeds from the sprouts." I've tried to remember that lesson whenever I want to help someone else clean up their act. Sometimes what looks like a weed to me might actually be a sprout of growth that I don't recognize.

So when you help others tend to their "gardens", leave the "weed-pulling" for the One Who Knows.

Learning Curve

I don't know about you, but I can feel like a total idiot when I try to learn something new. Something that is so simple to someone else can completely mystify me. That's one reason we need each other. Each of us is given particular gifts.

Unlike many of my friends, I can plant things and they usually grow. I learned most of what I know about plants by asking for advice from those who know, then through trial and error, mostly by just digging in and getting my hands dirty.

Now I'm learning how to blog by pretty much the same method. It ain't as easy as it looks, but probably not as hard as I'm making it either. Thank God Donna is patient!

Church Grounds Maintenance

The Board of Trustees will hold a yard cleanup on Saturday, August 29 from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Bring yard tools, lawn mowers, weed eaters and help us get the yard ready for Friendship Sunday. Your help is greatly appreciated. See Robert Bellanova for more information.