My husband was injured and now he held down the couch.

My daughter was small, too small to walk; in fact, we carried her everywhere we desired that she go.

The year—1999, or maybe the spring of 2000.

The day had come for the swimming pool to move.  Yes, we once owned a round, above-ground swimming pool with a small deck, and now Zack and his family (who lived next door, just beyond the hay field) were the proud owners of our pool.  We only needed to dismantle the pool and transport all parts to the neighbor’s home.  Easy, and it was because Zack and his older brother Tim did most of the work.  Their dad struggled with blindness, so the boys took charge of the event, and soon the pool and small deck were gone from our backyard.
That’s when God taught me the skill of sowing and reaping.

The summer heat beat down upon our home daily.  School was out, so Sydney and I began our task of repairing the back yard (the spot now dead because of the pool that once sat there).

• Seed…..check
• Straw….check.
• Yard Rake…..check.
• Water Hose….check.
• Seed Sower….check.
• Fertilizer….check.
  

All the necessary items were present, purchased a few days before.  Darrell was propped up on the living room couch; the pickup truck was backed into the yard, so the supplies were easily accessible; and Sydney’s small body was positioned in her infant carrier as she napped on the truck’s seat near the open passenger door of the pickup.

So, I went to work.

The ground was SO DRY, SO TIGHT, SO HARD.

One would think that the ground where a pool filled with hundreds of gallons of water would be a softer piece of ground to work, but the exact opposite is true.  The gallons and gallons of water pushed against the ground, compacting the particles of dirt below, and creating a concrete-like barrier, one that separated me from the fertile ground which lay below the surface.

So, I raked.

And I raked some more.

For hours, I raked.

Even until Sydney’s next feeding time, I raked.

Finally, hours later, the raking was complete.  It’s so important that the ground be ready for the seed; otherwise, the seed will lay on top of the hard ground, and much good seed will be lost.  The ground was ready; Sydney was fed; and I was ready to sow the Kentucky Bluegrass that I had purchased at the local Southern States store just earlier that week.

With one last check on my sleeping baby girl, I moved to the back of the pickup truck and took out the grass seeder, a contraption that strapped around my neck and hung low upon my right hip (a loan from my in-laws and a new tool to me).  Never before in my thirty-three years had I sown grass; never before had I prepared the ground for sowing; and never before had I worked alone with my baby girl to complete a project like this…..the sowing of a new backyard of grass.

Much can be learned when we work alone.

Many thoughts can fill our mind as we go from task to task, relying upon what we can do, what has been shared with us, and what has been taught to us.

Thank you, dad, for teaching me how to sow a new backyard of grass.

Thank you dad for allowing me to complete this project upon my own…..just my baby girl and me.

Circle after circle….I walked….slowly cranking my seed sower in a forward motion, scattering grass seed across the fertile, tilled soil, ground prepared and ready to accept the new seed.

Next came a little fertilizer.  Not much, or the ground would burn.  So again, I walked with my bucket around and around, scattering by hand the ammonia-scented fertilizer.

Then I wiped my dusty hands on my t-shirt and checked on my baby girl.  Still sleeping.  Thank you, God.  Let me raise her to love the outdoors, to love the dirt, to love hard work, sunshine, and to love YOU, GOD.

I then climbed into the back of the pick-up truck and pulled the two bales of straw toward the tailgate.  Hopping down, I went to work, scattering the dusty straw, covering my precious grass seed and fertilizer with a fine layer of straw…..a perfect layer of protection until the grass could take root.

Then came the watering.

Then came the watering.

Then came the watering.

Then came the watering.

Then came the watering.

Then came the watering.

Then came……….well, you get the picture.  Day after day after day after day………I watered.

Faithfully, I watered, and I waited, and I watched.

After many days following this process, finally the grass sprigs poked up their tiny blades through the decomposing layer of straw.

Fast forward to 2015.  We no longer live in this house, but whenever I pass by, I look at our own house, the one on the highway, the one where Sydney was conceived, and the one where God taught me so much about sharing His saving grace with others.

There in the back yard, the grass still grows, and for those who do not know, the backyard looks as if the grass has always been…….but I know the truth.  I remember well the days of ground preparation, sowing, scattering, and watering.  I also well remember the waiting.

Another girl has now moved into our home, one who needs a home, a place to live during the remaining part of the school year.  We say, “Yes,” so Marieke moves into our home and into our hearts.

The Bible is applicable to our entire lives.

The Bible teaches us God’s Word.

The Bible instructs us in how we should go as we live our lives.

The Bible reminds us how we should go about sowing seed……God’s precious Holy Word……with those who are living, but not alive in Him.

“The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap”  (Galatians 6:6-7).

Prepare the Soil.   Rake up the dirt lovingly so that it’s ready to receive the seed.  Gather the precious seed and place it into our seeder.  Then walk and walk and walk, gently turning the seed sower as we walk.   Next comes the fertilizer, once the seed rests upon the ready ground.  Not too much, not too little, but just the right amount, so to now burn the prepared ground and the new seed resting upon the gently-turned ground.

Then comes the straw, the protection, the praying, the kneeling to seek God’s guidance.  Lead us God to gently scatter the beautiful barrier that will allow Your seed to take root.

Then the watering, and the watering, and the watering, and the watering…….every evening, so each sprinkle lands upon the prepared soil, rich with the beautiful seed and held firmly by God’s protective barrier.

The sun shines down, mixing with the seed, the soil, and the droplets of water.

Time passes.

Then the unexpected and exciting day arrives.  We see the tiny blades poking their head above the straw.  Growth.  Knowledge.  Faith has taken root.  Gently we walk across the new growth, never driving but gently stepping.  We are filled with glee; excitement stirs within our hearts as we realize that we have had a small part in the growth that has begun.

Many of us have been taught God’s Word since our birth.

Many of us already believe, already know God, and already profess to be His…..God’s.

We must “share all good things…” (Galatians 6:6).

Do not allow the deceiver to keep us from sharing God’s Word, His Truth, His Gospel Message.

We will reap that which we sow.

May we today, take serious our task of preparing the ground where God has allowed us to live.

May we today, take serious our task of sowing the seed God has graciously planted deep in our hearts.

May we today, take serious the protection, the growth, the spiritual maturity we have already experienced, and look to the future as God makes us complete.

May we today, take serious our task of sowing and reaping.

May we today, look in our minds toward the harvest.

May we today, look toward heaven and may we see the faces that surround us as we ask ourselves, “Do they yet know Jesus as their Savior?”

May we Sow; May we Plant; May we Water.

Thank you, God, for my girls and what they have taught me about loving YOU.