First, here is a link to her blog, on which she wrote about seeds and hope. Enjoy!
http://thearranger.com/arranging-seeds-and-hope/
1. Icebreaker
– Do you have a favorite hobby that you really enjoy, that feeds your soul?
For me it is
gardening…Gardening is hope – I love to see a seed come to life or a plant
growing. I love to get excited and
expect the fruit of that seed…Broccoli is growing right now and I can taste it on
a plate with butter even though it will be several months…
I completed Master
gardener training in 2006 – seed lectures -Seed Catalog…show examples –
comes at the end of December/early January – seemed silly to me at first. Why now in the middle of Winter would I order
seeds for the spring? HOPE..Is it ok to
hope in the middle of Winter? We have
all experienced through loss what a “Winter” feels like…hopeless, lonely, long,
hard.
Hope is a
seed of sorts but I will explain that in a bit…
2. What
do you think of when I say the word hope?
Definition of hope is: The expectation of future good. Bible says in Proverbs 13:12 “ Hope deferred
makes the heart sick, but when desire comes, it is a tree of life” (gardening reference!) I grew up hearing the phrase “Don’t get your
hopes up.” This was said by those who
loved me and didn’t want me to get hurt but it affected me…I decided it was better to play it
safe…but this is really contrary to the Christian Walk…Jesus is all about HOPE and
expectation.
3. My story
brief….9 years infertility – our son Noah was born - 2 more years infertility – miscarriage(s) – 4
years infertility after that… Infertility is not just one loss, although I had
that kind too (miscarriage), but it is loss after loss every month…..So hard to continue to hope
for good things/ gifts from God. I
wanted another baby, end of story. But
through it all I saw God birth other things in my life through my small amount of hope (the size of a seed)…ministry, hospitality, gardening, writing. Have you seen God birth other things
through your life during your Winter of loss?
4. To hope is to take a risk. When we allow ourselves to hope, we risk many things: Getting hurt, looking silly, failing, not being successful…….What makes you
afraid to hope again? The Bible
tells us how many times we should forgive (70x7) but what about How many times
we should hope - even after loss?
I
Corinthians 13 is the love chapter, but there are always three characteristics woven
together – Faith, Hope, and Love….we know that the greatest is said to be
love.
I Corinthians 13:7
says “Love always protects, always
trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. “
5. Romans 4: 16-22 (18) New Testament
reference to Abraham saying “Who contrary to hope, in hope believed so that he
became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “so shall your descendants be…as numerous as the stars.”
We are the “seed of Abraham” that is referred to.
HOPE is the
open door which God’s miracles can walk through, but we need to keep the door
open by continuing to hope the best we can…through the strength that God can
give us….reading His word, getting together for support with others who have
walked the same journey, plugging into a church body.
Psalm
39:7 “ And now Lord
what do I wait for? My hope is in you…”
6. Dried
flower example….looks hopeless, no life, finished producing….Seeds are shaped
like little arrows and are actually new plants when put in the ground with
love, sunshine, water, soil. Even when
things don’t look promising, when they look hopeless- small seeds of hope can be inside of our
hearts too, planted and ready to grow into something beautiful if we will always
HOPE!
