| He walked between the rows, every plant in every row He knew. Every seed He had planted, every plant He had watched grow. Every row He had carefully and faithfully tended. He walked between the rows and as He did, He stooped to pull a weed wherever He saw one. He knew that if He let them remain, they would choke out the tender plants He cared so much about. Some weeds came out easily but some would break as He pulled,leaving the root in the ground. He knew that that weed would grow back. He also knew that if the conditions were right, even this deep-rooted plant could be removed. He walked between the rows and as He did, He tended what looked like a lifeless plant. Dry and weathered, this plant had no life in it that I could see. I watched Him with great curiosity as He carefully trimmed it. By the time He was done, there was almost nothing left. So I asked Him, “Why don’t you just pull it out and plant something else”. He looked at me with a smile that I will never forget. He said, “I know it looks dead, but inside I know it is alive and someday it will again flower, someday it will again bring forth fruit”. He trims, weeds, cultivates and waters every plant in every row. He planted each and every one. He knows what to expect from each one. Someday He will harvest what He has planted. Until then, He walks between the rows. tsf |
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| I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit.
John 15:1-2 |
| A GREAT GARDEN!
Plant three rows of peas: Peace of mind , Peace of heart , Peace of soul Plant four rows of squash: Squash gossip , Squash indifference Squash grumbling , Squash selfishness Plant four rows of lettuce: Lettuce be faithful , Lettuce be kind Lettuce be obedient , Lettuce really love one another Water freely with patience and Cultivate with love. There is abundence in your garden.... Because you reap what you sow. To conclude our garden, We must have thyme: Thyme for God Thyme for study Thyme for prayer |
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| God's pruning action shows that God is actively working in our lives. We must take this truth and plant it deep in our hearts. We must refuse to think God has abandoned us. Pruning is part of His long term care for our lives. We might tend to get confused if we forget the Vinedresser is caring for us, but if we can in our hearts know it is all for our best, our trust and love for Him will grow through this process, and we will bear much more glorious fruit. |
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| God as a farmer: not an image we think of right away. We're used to God as a mighty ruler. God as a father. God as a judge. Those are images we've seen and heard a lot. But God as a gardener, investing love and labor in us, God placing us here in the garden, with everything we need in order to grow, sowing us into the earth, from which we spring into out season of life under the sun: to think of God as a farmer offers us an aspect of the divine character we usually miss. It gives us a glimpse of God as one who hopes for us. The God who hopes. The God who hopes for our good. The God who longs for everything to go well with us. A very different image from the one many people carry, that image of a God who rains down trouble on the bad and prosperity on the good from a distant heaven. This God of the garden is on our side, cheering us on, hoping that we will stretch and grow. God the gardener is invested in us. God the gardener. The farmer. The sower. Close to us, not far away, and full of hope for our good. When Jesus used this metaphor to help his hearers understand God's love. He spoke to people who knew all about planting things. It was the most natural metaphor in the world for an idea of God that was really quite new: in Jesus, God came close to us and shared our experience. Our experience. Our experience of pain, yes, and of death -- but most of all, our experience of hope. creature properly related to the Creator. 14. Worship is extravagant love and extreme obedience. |
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| Copyright © 2009 Country Home Designs |
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| He Walked Between the Rows |
| ORIGINAL POETRY |
| God is Our Gardener |
| Why Are We Pruned? |
| I Watched
Please Remember The Lighthouse She Falls There is My Father If Only I Had My Baby’s Eyes Two Men The Gap This Day He Walked Between the Rows Revolutionary Perspective Welcome Home You Are Faithful I Remember Walls Enter In The Little Lamb The Sail Where the Blood Fell The World at My Doorstep Another Day at the Office The Valley Another Second Chance I Want to Fly The poems on this website were written by my husband. I pray that the Lord will speak to you through them. **Feel free to share these poems with others. We only ask that you leave the TSF at the end of each and that you place a link to our website (http://www.geocities.com/shout_2_the_lord) with it. Thanks. |