What a difference a day makes.
Last week I posted on Monday with a promise that I would start posting more regularly and share pictures of my straw bale gardening experiment. That very evening my mother fell down some cement stairs onto a cement floor, and my world changed dramatically. Besides cuts, bumps, and bruises, she suffered a really bad fracture to the upper left arm. We feel lucky that God chose to spare her life.
My week consisted of one night sitting up with my mom in the hospital and daily trips to help out, get her home, get her to a new doctor (There is a long story of neglect with her first doctor… better left untold.) and getting her and my dad situated at home where my dad can take care of her when I am not there.
My dad is very discouraged because his garden was doing so well, and now he will not be able to care for it like he had been doing. He is afraid to leave my mom for any length of time.
None of us can see what might happen any minute of any given day. That is when we must choose to have faith in God and move forward with a positive attitude. A day can make a big difference for good or bad. Last week as I drove back and forth under severe sleep deprivation, God gave me the strength and kept me awake. I came home one day with some of my best plants shriveled from lack of water, but had time to quickly water them before I went back the next morning.
Now God is sending rain, so I don’t have to water.
I also set out some rose bushes that had arrived in the mail during the week. At one point I thought I couldn’t get it all done but found time to plant and mulch them Saturday morning, before I had a big day filled with company I had invited to celebrate my husband’s birthday.
I refuse to give up.
I will work in the garden as time and strength comes. I will take care of my mom and dad, and fit it into an already, overloaded schedule. I will spend time with my immediate family and play with my grandson. I will prepare and teach Sunday School lessons to children (even when I have to get up at 4:15 on Sunday morning to study, then only one shows up… we actually had a sweet time…one-on-one), I will shop for and serve snacks for Sunday Service when it is my time (this Sunday was it), I will take care of our animals, I will keep my house clean, and the laundry caught up, and I will do it with the strength that God gives when I ask. I have total faith in God’s promise not to leave or forsake me (Hebrews 13:5), and that whatever I ask He will provide if I stay strong in my Bible and in being obedient to God’s wishes (John 15:7).
Even when I can’t see around the next corner and maybe I am one minute away from a major disaster, I rest in God, that He will take care of me through it all, and I will continue to have hope in a life that is filled with fun, energy, and promises of good days to come.
Now…
Here are the pictures of my straw bale gardening that I promised last week.
Straw bale with lettuce, basil and tomatoes.
I actually got the tomatoes staked this weekend, and a lot more weeding done, so there will be more pictures later. Below are the rest of my pictures of the straw bales with various plants.
Straw bales with squash.
So whatever you are having to handle today, ask God for strength to get you through it all. He created us, He loves us, He knows us, and He wants to help us through whatever we are facing each day. He will walk each minute and mile with us, and He will help us grow in faith that He will always be there for us… if we choose to let Him.
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