How Does Your Garden Grow?

 

Gospel reading from Saturday, September 18,2021, Luke 8:4-15: 

When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after another
journeying to Jesus, he spoke in a parable. 
“A sower went out to sow his seed.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and was trampled,
and the birds of the sky ate it up.
Some seed fell on rocky ground, and when it grew,
it withered for lack of moisture.
Some seed fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew with it and choked it.
And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew,
it produced fruit a hundredfold.”
After saying this, he called out,
“Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”

Then his disciples asked him
what the meaning of this parable might be.
He answered,
“Knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God
has been granted to you;
but to the rest, they are made known through parables
so that they may look but not see, and hear but not understand.

“This is the meaning of the parable. 
The seed is the word of God.
Those on the path are the ones who have heard,
but the Devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts
that they may not believe and be saved.
Those on rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear,
receive the word with joy, but they have no root;
they believe only for a time and fall away in time of temptation.
As for the seed that fell among thorns,
they are the ones who have heard, but as they go along,
they are choked by the anxieties and riches and pleasures of life, 
and they fail to produce mature fruit.
But as for the seed that fell on rich soil,
they are the ones who, when they have heard the word,
embrace it with a generous and good heart,
and bear fruit through perseverance.”

Just as a seed needs light, water, and rich soil to grow so too does faith need to be nurtured and tended to every day. Search your soul truthfully and fully. Are you growing daily in faith? Are you sharing it? Do you live it?  How is the seed that God has planted in you growing?

Peace,

Mare

The Disadvantages of Being An Optimist and Other Musings About Geraniums....

Oh yes, there are disadvantages to being an optimist. Of course they aren't disadvantages to the one filled with hope, but to those that surround them. LOL

This thought occurred to me this morning while my eyes slightly opened and I rolled over, and looked out my window, to see gray skies instead of a sun on the horizon. My eyes saw the blah looking day but my brain thought, oh good, God is watering my gardens today.

It is all about perspective. I have a car sitting in our driveway that has been there for quite a few months now. Every couple of weeks someone will knock on the door and ask if it is for sale and I will say no and turn them away. I am sure that my neighbors look at it and think, "when is she going to get rid of that thing?" I look at it and think, "one of these days I am going to fix that and drive it again." Of course, with every day that passes that possibility gets dimmer and dimmer but do you think that stops me from thinking of the possibilities? Of course it doesn't. To me, that car is a symbol of hope and my eternal optimism. (It isn't an old broken down wreck btw, it is an older Acura that needs a few things.) So next time you see an unused car sitting in a driveway remember that it may not be a sad sack living there. It could very well be the sign of an optimist.

Early last Winter I went to put my garbage out and saw a geranium in my neighbor's garbage. They are a few doors down from me. There was still some life left in it so I bought it inside, pruned it, watered it, and gave it some Miracle Gro. Well, just look at this beauty now. With a little luck, perseverance and a lot of care this will probably be 3 plants after it is pruned and repotted over this Winter.

I happened to mention it to my next door neighbor when we were both out in our respective backyards one day this past Summer. She was amazed at how beautiful the plant had become. I must say I was a bit shocked when a few weeks ago the neighbor, who I swiped the plant from, said, "oh Marianne! I have something for you." He bought out a half dead geranium and said, "see what you can do with this." I said to him, "aha, so you heard about the one I took from your garbage last year?" Sheepishly he answered, "yeaaaaah." Of course, this glass-is-half-full kind of gal saw the potential in this geranium, as well, and I gladly accepted it. Again, I pruned it, watered it, fed it and I put it in my container garden and guess what? You got it; it is in full bloom and has had one new flower after another for two of the three weeks that I've had it. Oh! and the dead part of the plant? That has grown back nicely and has teeny tiny white flowers on it as well. As they say, "one person's trash, is another person's treasure."

Who is at the disadvantage in all of this, you ask? It is poor Tom. He is the one that is at a disadvantage in this entire scenario. When things get rough I'm the one that says, "The Lord will provide." He just gives me the look. Tom isn't a hope and miracle kind of guy. He is a show me the proof kind of guy. He does have a bit of the optimist in him. I guess some of it has rubbed off from living with me all of these years but most of the time he lives up to his name of doubting Thomas. God must have been snickering when he decided to put us two together as a family. It certainly hasn't been dull around here. I do have to say that Tom does have the patience of a saint. It isn't always easy to live with an optimist. With that being said, I would much rather live my life with hope and optimism and a healthy trust in the Lord that all will be accomplished and done well. It is much better than living without hope.

Peace,

Mare

P.S. I was telling Tom about this post last night and he looked at me like I had three heads. He said, and I quote, "you are not an optimist." LOL I can't win.

The Valley

I wrote this Villanelle after meeting a woman at church last Sunday. She was my inspiration although I have been where she is at as has most people I know. I think this format (Villanelle) is my favorite as it makes me stretch a bit with tempo and the thought process.

I am drowning in this vale of tears
my heart I fear shall not renew
I need you now; I need you here

Hoping my pain will disappear
out of the depths I cry to you
I am drowning in this vale of tears

Losing her is what I fear
though my faith is tried and true
I need you now; I need you here

The situation has become severe
Will tranquility ensue?
I am drowning in this vale of tears

Dear Lord, my prayer is most sincere
I pray to thee that I make it through
I am drowning in this vale of tears
I need you now; I need you here


an original work of poetry by Marianne E. Hare 3/1/10