“What shall we say the kingdom of
God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the
smallest seed you plant in the ground.
Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants,
with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.” (Matthew 13:31-32)
Greetings garden friends. On
Saturday, March 7th, we invite the community to “Wake-up” the Garden of
Concord for its 7th season of plantings of God’s many
blessings! We look forward to welcoming
back our gardeners and hopefully meeting many new members! We will have door prizes, fresh hot pizza
from our brick oven, yummy snacks, kid’s crafts and activities, garden tours, and
opportunities to work in the garden. The
fun starts at 10am and continues till 1pm. More details on our flier posted under "Pages" to the right of this page!
It has been a blessing to be the coordinator for our garden over the
past 6 years. As we are many parts of
the body in Christ, our garden ministry would not be possible without the grace
and leading by God along with the many prayers, support, and gifts shared by our garden members, church family, and community. The
Garden of Concord has provided for many a glimpse of “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like…?” It has been a
place of hope, healing, and happiness as we work together in unity as a
community as stewards of God’s creation.
It is about witnessing and
working with multi-generations, races, and faiths while offering and
experiencing Christ’s love in abundance. It is about “Seeing God in the Garden” as we
enjoyed our study led by the amazing “A-Team”, Andrew and Almuth this past
month!
The following passage is from a lovely book shared by one of our garden
angels that describes (better than I can!) why and “What we love about
Gardening”:
“Before God created man…before He created animals,
fish, or the stars in the heavens…
God created
vegetation. God not only provided
seed-bearing plants for our sustenance;
He gave us beauty to
enjoy in the flowers and the varieties of flora found throughout the
world. Why do we enjoy gardens of all types? Imagine God’s delight as He spoke the
words and new growth
sprang from the earth. That delight is
mirrored in our faces as
we marvel at what
we’ve nurtured, whether an herb in our kitchen window or a large plot
of vegetables we
plan to sell (share or donate!). Each
experience is like sharing something
with God. Gardening gives us the chance to see the
miracle of life spring forth from a
seed or
cutting. Watching a plant grow and
produce is a vision of God’s care for us as
His children. Gardening is a way to provide for our family
and friends, just as God
provides for
us. Every time we share fresh produce or
a plant we’ve raised, we are
extending God’s love
to those around us. I can’t imagine a
better way to share Christ
than to give to
others from the fruit of our hands.”
(Inspiring Thoughts for Gardeners, 2010 Barbour
Publishing, Inc.).
Amen!
Thyme to garden! It WILL be
good!
-Donna Poe
Garden Coordinator
