Yesterday as I stood watering my garden under the stand of old fir trees in the backyard I spotted a baby hummingbird flitting toward me. She was sooo tiny; perhaps two inches long. She ventured closer and closer to me, finally hovering under the spray of water from my hose. It was enchanting. When she tired of hovering in the air, she lit onto a nearby branch and began washing herself as I carefully positioned the spray so as not to blast her tiny frame off of the branch. For about five minutes she enjoyed the cool mist of my hose. Then as magically as she arrived, she was off.
This is why I garden. It's not just about lawns and flowers as much as I love them. It's about creating a place for hummingbirds and squirrels, ladybugs and crows, and yes, even noisy bluejays have their place in my backyard. But really, it's not my yard at all. It belongs to God, and He allows me to keep it for Him. So I do my best to make sure it's a nice place for his creatures. I've learned not to sacrifice the good for the perfect. Perfection requires carpet-like lawns and roses without aphids. Perfection banishes weeds and slugs and bugs of all kind. But good-well good allows a bit of imperfection; for the sake of the critters who call my backyard their home.
Last week I spent some time praying about God's will for my life. Asking Him to help me live out His plan in me; rather than pursuing my own ideas. And as I made plans to spend time in the garden, the thought came to me that God has a plan for my garden too. Just as He did for Adam's garden. So I prayed for direction in how to take care of the garden. I think that baby hummingbird's visit was my answer.
***
2 comments:
I've never seen a Baby hummingbird! That's pretty cool.
Summer has flown by, and I'm afraid that I've grumbled about trying to keep up with the gardens and yards more than I've enjoyed them. Your blog entry reminds me that perfection is not my goal. Thank you!
Post a Comment