Mr. Green Jeans

The title of this post is a little confusing because the topic of this entry is not the character on the children's TV show Captain Kangaroo. The subject is about me being a gardener now. Maybe I should have given this a title like, "Mr. Green Thumb" but green jeans is more accurate. I tend to get dirty in the garden.

When Amy and I moved here to Shop Springs we were excited that there was a garden plot, a big garden plot. When we moved in last Fall, Cordell (one of the church members) asked if I would like for him to turn the garden under for the winter and how much should he work up. I said about half because I knew that if I planted the entire garden it would break me down.

Well, he worked up half last fall then came back early this Spring and worked up the entire plot so I felt obligated to sow the entire garden.

When we started talking about the garden, Amy was very excited, "We can plant that garden and eat our own vegetables!" To which I was responding in my mind, "Do you not realize how much work that is!"

So, I went and bought about $30 worth of seed: corn, brussel sprouts, honey dew melon, water melon, cantelope, okra, turnip greens, and 108 tomato plants. I also bought some hoes, garden hose, and sprinkler head. This gardening is costing me something I was thinking.

When people asked what I had planted I would tell them, and through their responses I have learned about gardening. "What, you only planted one row of corn! You're supposed to plant at least two rows so they will germinate. What, you planted turnip greens! You're not supposed to plant those until Fall. HOW MANY TOMATO PLANTS DID YOU PLANT? Why 108?"

My wife educated me even more (after the tomato plants were in for several weeks), "Do you realize that we could have 200-300 tomatos a day!"

My point is this... don't be afraid to try something new because you will learn in the process.

I have never planted a garden in my life, and I will have to ask someone else when it's time to harvest some of the stuff I planted.

In life there are so many things God wants to do through us, miraculous things if we would simply be willing to follow Him and try new things that we are not comfortable doing. He will teach us in the process.

The miraculous things can take many forms. Sometimes they are outward for others to see and sometimes they may be inside us where others can only see the results on the outside.

At the pastor's conference last week Amy and I saw a movie preview for Fireproof, a new movie made by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, GA. Who would have ever thought that a church could do something like produce, fund and cast a major motion picture? But they did through God's enabling, something most people would say couldn't be done.

When I felt God calling me to ministry, the farther I went down the path of following His will the stronger I would hear the message, "You can't do this. You're not smart enough, organized enough, or confident enough!" I went for a long time allowing some of those messages to intimidate me and even distract me. Paul said that God didn't put him into ministry because he was special. That's the whole point. God wants to do special stuff in ordinary people like you and me.

What part of your life is missing the hand of God? Maybe your whole life is missing the touch of God. If we are willing to be yielded to Him, He promises to take care of our every need.

Maybe you need to plant your own garden. You just might learn something new.