Old is a controversial concept. You may be depositing social security checks or contemplating a second career. You could be a parent, grandparent, or a middlescent saving for retirement. No matter what age you are now, you may be wondering, will God’s promises still apply when I grow old? Will I have enough? Will I still be useful? What does God promise when you grow old?
Finding Hope When Good Intentions Go Bad
Good Intentions This year would be different. After all, gardens take work–and energy. I planned to minimize and maintain, nothing excessive this year. No need to buy new flowers. That’s why I planted perennials. It all started with five bags of mulch–one bag per rose. That should make a soft cushy bed for my new rose garden and an easy way to discourage weeds. Veggies from previous years, too deprived of necessary sun, lost their place to this heartier variety of Knock-Out® rose.
God Restores What We Abandon
Drooping. Lifeless. Abandoned. Destined for the trash. Appropriate word choices for the plant sitting on the bargain rack of our local home improvement garden section. But you wouldn’t describe these flowering petunias with those same words, would you? Yet that pathetic description fit this hanging plant perfectly when I bought it a couple of weeks ago. Could it bloom again? Would it form soft, lilac petals again on its tired, worn stems?
Finding God in the Garden
Finding God in the Garden is easy. When springtime rolls around, it’s hard for me not to write about my favorite season. Visions of pink and blue hydrangeas, white gardenias, yellow daylilies, coral heuchera, and purple petunias dance in my head. Every year I save up for colorful replacements or new varieties. There are some things about this time of year, however, that can destroy its beauty–if I let it.
Five Doors You Need to Open in Life
When our recent home remodeling eliminated the door in this photo, I grabbed it for re-purposing, thinking it would make wonderful yard art for my backyard. But that door soon took on a deeper meaning. There are doors we enter and doors we exit. We’ll find open doors and closed doors. But which doors should we open that will contribute most to our success as Christians?