In The Garden...The Flower Walk

Our family has a tradition we call the Flower Walk.  It's an early morning stroll around the garden looking at all that's changed since the previous day.  There's nothing like the quiet stillness, broken only by the singing of the birds.  The dew is heavy and the air is cool.

Our Flower Walk is usually done alone, but I do the Flower Walk with Momma or Daddy whenever I'm back home.  We carry a cup of hot drink and amble around the yard and talk about what we see.  We don't whisper, but there is a hush to our words; we speak with a quietness to match the morning air.  We usually settle on the porch and talk about life as we've talked about the garden.  We talk about the things past and dreams for things yet to come.  There is an intimacy in the time we spend together.  There's the lingering of many past walks; the hope of future walks.

Gardening, for me, is not about the work or even the flowers that come and go with the seasons.  It's about the entire experience from start to finish.  It's recognizing God's handiwork and presence in the world around me.  In my garden.  In my life.

So before we move forward in the work of gardening the heart, I want to take a look at the purpose of the process.  Intimacy!  To know the Master Gardener; the Creator of gardens.  To come to a place where I recognize His handiwork because I know Him.  To enjoy His company and revel in His insight but also in His creativity and humor, His loves and His delights.  Knowing anyone can only come through time spent with them.  Time is precious.  It's our most valuable commodity and no one gets more or less of it.  That means wherever we spend time is a place of value in our lives.  With whomever we spend our time is a person of value.  Or maybe it's for a person we value that we spend our time doing something.

Last week we talked about the Word of God being a tool, but I would like to say I believe it is so much more.  I call it a picture of the LORD.  Read it!  It tells you all about Him.  Yes, there are many characters in His story, but look closely and you'll find a picture of who He is.  Just look at verse one; In the beginning God.  What does that tell you about Him?  And that's after only four words!!!

Take it further and look at the story of creation.  Before He put man in the garden, He made sure everything man needed was already there.  He created (Day One - Day six).  Wait! On day 7 we learn something else about God.  He rested.  No, He wasn't tired, He was purposely taking time to rest.  He was showing His people how to live a well-rounded life of relationship that included both work and rest.  He even walked with them in the cool of the day!  And this is just in the first three chapters!  Go ahead!  Start reading.  Look for the LORD in what you read and see if you don't see a picture of Him emerge.

Okay, don't get hung up on reading the Bible through in a certain number of days, how much time you spend in the Word, or how someone else does their daily walks with the LORD.  This is about relationship!  You're getting to know your Creator.  Just read some of the Word every day.  Even if it's just one verse.  That's time with God; time spent hearing Him tell you what's on His heart. Talk to Him about what you read (called prayer).  Ask Him questions about it.  Ask Him to help you understand what doesn't make sense or confuses you or doesn't seem to apply.  Don't give up!

I don't want to chase a rabbit here, but I do want to add a note.  We're created in God's image.  No, we don't look like Him, we're made like Him.  He is God the Father (mind), God the Son (body), and God the Holy Spirit (spirit).  Three parts that make up the whole.  We too are three parts that make up the whole.  I'm telling you this so you will understand something really important.  The Holy Spirit is the Helper, Counselor, and Teacher.  He is right there and will help you, counsel you, and teach your spirit as you spend time learning who God is through Bible reading and prayer.

Okay, I've really dug deep this week, but I hope you've been inspired to enjoy a daily Flower Walk with the One who created the garden of your heart.  He loves you more than you can ever imagine. Enjoy yourself and your time together.  Enjoy learning more of Him and sharing more of yourself with Him.  Learn to be transparent with Him and to learn from Him who you are in Him.

“Come with me by yourselves to a place where we can be alone, and you can get some rest.” 

Mark 6:31b (CJB)

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

    Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

Psalm 34:8 (NLT)

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Galatians 5:25

My mother's favorite hymn is In The Garden by Jim Reeves and it seems appropriate to share this morning:

In The Garden Hymn

I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.

Refrain

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.

Refrain

I’d stay in the garden with Him
Though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.

Refrain

https://www.songandpraise.org/in-the-garden-favorite-hymn.htm