Do you have a garden? Do you spend hours, digging into the rich soil, planting, weeding, watering? You care for your garden, and in return you reap a harvest of wonderful fruits and vegetables. And if you know how to can, that food sustains you, through the cold winter months. I had a garden a few years ago and I enjoyed the fresh cantaloupes, green beans, tomatoes, and cucumbers.

I was reminded this week, that gardening is like relationships. We are all in different phases of growth in our lives; some of us newly planted, while others may have grown into a strong plant, with roots that go down deep into the soil. Some of us may be fragile, while others are stronger. Some of that is design by our creator, and some of that is the environment that we were planted in. I tend to have a different outlook on things, because of my different life experiences. I tend to be pretty hyper, impatient, and sometimes I am ashamed to say, judgmental. I have always known the type of life I would choose to live and what I would and would not tolerate. I have not wavered in my course. Anytime in my life that I am pushed to my limit, I will come out swinging! Once, when I was about 14 years old, the man who was married to my mom at that time, told me, “Call me Dad, or call me Nothing.” I replied, “Ok Nothing!”  Now, let me be clear—this is not to say that I haven’t had my own personal struggles. When I hit 45, I was consumed with an overwhelming anxiety and depression. I would think about how I could end my life, visualizing it…planning…I figured that I was a screw-up, so what was the point? Thankfully, I had some dear friends who I know prayed me through this period of grief and with the Lord’s help, I came out the other side. But what if your nature is different than mine? What if you crumble when the fears of this broken world we live in, overtakes your heart? Paul tells us in Romans 15, “Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, ‘How can I help?’” (MSG)

It’s just like a garden. Gardens take a lot of work, and so do relationships. We all need watering and tender care so that we will grow and produce an abundant harvest. I would challenge you today to think of someone who may not be like yourself. Someone who may be struggling and just needs a friend. How can you be a friend to them today? A number of years ago, my husband was in a terrible accident. He was in the hospital for 19 days and spent the next 7 months at home, 5 of those months in a wheelchair. It was very difficult. During those summer months, we had several friends who would come over weekly to mow our yard. On one particular day, a friend was mowing our yard while another was in the kitchen, fixing our sink. My husband, laid in bed upset, because he felt worthless. He was gently reminded that they were there to help him and some day it would be his turn to help another. Isn’t that so true? In my times of great despair, when I didn’t think I was good enough to even keep on living, someone was praying for me. Now, that I have moved past that valley in my life, God has reminded me to pick up the mantel for another and be an encourager, a prayer warrior, a friend, to someone else who has a need.

Gardening can get you dirty, make you sweat, but oh the riches of a bountiful harvest! When you feast on the fresh produce that God has provided. Imagine how grand your life can be when you harvest a bounty of friends!

Romans 15:5, “May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we’ll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!” (MSG)