Growing Vines...and Teenagers

The Fall Season has arrived, but all I have seen falling here in SC is endless raindrops! Seriously, since Hurricane Hannah passed through a few weeks ago, we have not had a chance to dry out. And while I am thankful that we are not in a drought, I must also confess that I am pretty sick of the rain!

I love the sun and the outdoors...and when we built our house a few years back, we made sure we picked a house plan with the perfect veranda on the back, so that I could sit out and enjoy the lake and the animals all year round....it is my little paradise here on Earth! Each year we try to do or add something to the back yard. Last summer we added comfy outdoor furniture, so that we could all sit out there as a family. This year we enhanced the landscaping by adding an additional stone patio (thanks to my talented son in law, Rodney!!) and also added 1003 (yes, we counted them)...landscape stones that outline our flower beds. It was a family project and everyone helped...and it turned out really beautiful!

The largest flower bed we added runs the entire length of the backyard. We decided to plant 14 confederate jasmine plants (one on each section of fence)...we just love the fact that they are evergreen and keep that sweet smelling little blossom most of the year here due to our mild climate....and thought they would be so beautiful climbing in and out of the slats of the fence.

By this phase of "Project Backyard 2008", the kids were pretty much done :)....so, Mark and I took this endeavor on all by ourselves. We picked out the plants, dug the holes, added the fertilizer, planted each one...carefully...keeping their existing root system in tact....hooked up the sprinkler system to each plant....and finally, covered the bed with straw. We left the rest to the Lord, and stepped back and watched them grow and bloom all summer long!

The summer of 2008 seemed to fly by....it was a summer of challenges....it was a whirlwind of things to do, places to see (Alaska was INCREDIBLE)...and problems to solve.....but more than anything, I do believe it was a summer of growth...personal, emotional, and spiritual growth....for every member of our family.

This afternoon, after the rain FINALLY slacked off, Mark and I took our puppies out in the backyard...just to let them run and play....they have been cramped up in the house for what seems like days! While we were out there, Mark commented on the confederate jasmines that we planted on the fence. He said he had hoped they would have grown more, and covered more of the fence. We sat there and discussed the plants...discussing what we could have possibly done differently....but came to the conclusion that we did all we knew how to do, and would just have to be patient...hoping they would cover the fence in their own sweet time!

Mark headed back inside, and I walked back over to the flower bed....and I noticed something....there were numerous long vines of the confederate jasmines that were growing into the hedge on the other side of the fence. This sparked my curiosity...so, I started investigating.....I unraveled, pulled, dug and twisted the vines that had grown into the hedge...it took me a while but I eventually "untangled" numerous vines, from all 14 plants....some of the vines were close to twenty feet long!! I took the vines that I had untangled from the hedge, and gently wrapped and guided them in and out of the fence posts....they were so long that we now have confederate jasmine, uninterrupted....from one end of the fence to the other! I quickly, and proudly called Mark back into the yard to show him...."See, they were growing like mad, all along, we just could not see them because they got caught up the the massive hedge!!" We were so proud of our vines!

Mark went back inside, and I just stood there...looking at the newly rearranged vines...and it occurred to me, that growing these vines seemed an awful lot like parenting our teenagers!! Listen closely....Just like Mark and I planted those vines...we have worked hard from day one to parent together, did everything possible to plant our kids in God's word, we made sure that we fed and watered them, we did everything we knew to do...and they still did not grow in the exact direction we planned for them to grow!! As they were older teens, we often got frustrated, and yes, sometimes, a little scared....not knowing what exactly to do, but trusting GOD to do what only He could do! (Just to set the record straight...my kids are not bad kids...they are great kids...they are just normal kids!)

And there was a season (with both our kids) where we saw little, if any, spiritual growth. However....just because we did not see it....did not mean it was not there...it did not mean that God was not growing them.....their vines were just getting caught up the the "Massive Hedge" that we call the world!

And with God's help, this past summer especially, we have seen those long vines that were tangled up in the vastness of the world, become unraveled....and slowly, but surely, God is wrapping them and guiding them into the light....where they can be seen more clearly and grow more beautifully. We are so proud of our kids!

So how's it "growing" with you? I know I've got a few "wild growing vines" of my own that could probably benefit from some gentle redirecting....if not they could easily get out of control and take root onto a hedge where they have no business growing!!!

I think I will use God's Word as my fence post....His holy spirit to gently shape and entwine me.....and of course...we know Jesus is "The Light of the World".... and all healthy vines need sonlight :)

Happy Gardening, Y'all!