Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Ephesians 6:9

On Saturday, Amanda and I planted our garden; tomatoes, onions, zucchini, cucumbers, basil, cilantro, green beans, Jamaican calaloo, and very soon, peppers- green bell peppers, jalapeño, and banana peppers. I also planted a ring of marigolds and other bug-deterring flowers around the perimeter (Thanks Stefanie for giving us some surplus plants!).

Looks good, don’t you think?

No, actually it looks TERRIBLE.  All you can see are clods of unsightly dirt and a few slightly wilted plants; muddy paths and uneven soil.  I even had to use stakes to mark where thing were planted so I don’t forget and inadvertently disturb the seeds. Right now, it’s flat out ugly. There’s no fruit or growth. None. Zip, zilch, nada. Or so it appears.  But just below the surface of the dirt, amazing miracles are beginning to happening.  Water and soil are interacting with seed and warmth.  Roots are spreading, shoots are rising and plants are strengthening.  We just can’t see it yet.

Planting a garden is an act of faith… you don’t get immediate results, but mark it down, a harvest is coming.

Right now, our family is in the cultivation and preparation phase.  Our “garden” looks pretty bleak and barren, but faith tells us that things are happening beneath the surface that we are only dimly aware of.  God, our faithful gardener, is plowing, hoeing and raking our lives.  He is breaking up stubborn clay and removing rocks and debris that will inhibit growth.  Soon he will replant his garden according to his will. We long for abundant growth, gentle rains and productive harvests. But we must be patient. if we skip this first essential phase, a future harvest will be limited or impossible.  

If you are anything like me, you love the season of harvest, but hate the pain and effort it takes to get there.

The Bible has some pointed instruction for us:

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. … No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:7-11.

Each of us go through phases of uprooting, plowing, planting, growth and harvest.  Let’s not lose faith.  Days of harvest are yet ahead.