[Excuse me while I wipe the garden dirt off my hands. There, that's better.] It's growing season! I love this time of year when you can finally see the results of all that hard work you did during the spring. Although it's not quite harvest time yet, there is the promise of harvest coming as the plants get bigger and start to flower. One of my plants, though, a spinach plant, is not doing too well. I bought this little kit at a dollar store. The package said you could "grow your own salad right in your window." I tried it, but the tray was too shallow, and all the plants died. This spinach survived,but not very well. Look at it, the poor thing!
On the other hand, look at this plant! I planted this spinach in my garden, where the roots have grown big enough to support the plant. It looks good enough to eat...and we will!
Sometimes we hesitate to put down our own roots. Maybe part of the time we wish we were somewhere else, we are afraid of getting hurt, afraid of getting too busy, or afraid of being taken advantage of. These are genuine fears. However, if our fears are keeping us from growing, then we are like the pathetic spinach.
Love the people God has placed in your life. Help someone who will not be able to help you in return. Invite another mother over to your house. Stay after church a bit longer and fellowship with other Christians. Do something unexpected for a lady in your neighborhood. Take your children to visit someone at a retirement center. Be generous with your time, not to the point of making your family suffer, but enough to encourage someone else. The more you focus on helping others, the deeper your own roots will grow in the place God has planted you.
Another way to put down roots is by accepting help. This is a hard thing for me, but sometimes other people can be a real blessing. We lose out if we refuse. One of the things that helped me to learn this was when I had a miscarriage a few years ago. Something about the universality of pain and the mutual understanding of mothers everywhere who have lost a child this way really brings people closer. Again, when I had some problems during my pregancy with Jonathan, I was forced to "need help." I was able to strengthen the ties with my sisters in Christ who were so willing to help me.
So as you live where God has planted you, don't be afraid to put down your roots. You will be a stronger, happier person!
Hannah Mix
P.S. Here are some things heard at our house today:
"No, we don't tap the baby's head with our cups!"
"No, we don't poke the baby's head with our chins!"
"NO! WE NEVER, NEVER, NEVER SIT ON THE BABY!"
Poor little Jonathan! He's sleeping now. He had a rough morning with his two-year-old sister that just wanted to play...
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