Seed-Ready

Ahhhh, it's ready.
My flowerbed is ready for seeds!!!

Yesterday I worked hard, digging up the top layer of ground in order to get rid of the grass and to make a place for the frame. I used a soil tiller thingy to break up the ground a bit, and then I added a couple bags of garden soil.
And now, now my flowerbed is ready for seeds.
The very seeds which inspired me to go through all the work of preparing a flowerbed.
(I received some flower seeds from my dear friends in Precepts, which I intended to put in flower pots on the deck. But then I discovered that the flowers would grow to 2-3 feet, and I decided that was too much for a flower pot. And what else is there to do but make a flowerbed???)
The thing is - like most projects taken on around the house and in the yard - preparing that flowerbed was a lot harder than I imagined it would be.
And I have the beginnings of callouses on my hands to prove it!
The other thing is - I have a feeling the effort (The callouses, the sweat, the aching back, the sore muscles, the bug bites, all of it.) is going to be completely worth it. Because I am going to plant seeds for three kinds of beautiful flowers (with lots of pink and purple!) and later this summer when I look out in my back yard I am going to be overcome by their beauty. And while I am enjoying their beauty, I am quite certain I will not be regretting the work I put into getting ready to plant them.
Rather, I think I'll be very glad I did it.

What makes all the work on my flowerbed even sweeter to me is they way God has been speaking to my heart through it. Kinda like He was speaking to me Sunday.
I am well aware of the fact that God puts in a lot of work in His efforts to make me more like Jesus. And although I want to be a willing participant in the process I know I provide no shortage of things for Him to do, discipline He needs to dole out to me, and convictions He has to press upon me.
If it were possible for God to run out of patience, I'm sure I could take Him there. I'm sure He could get tired of digging me out of pits, and rooting sins out of my heart. It wouldn't surprise me if God wanted to stop repeating Himself every time I forget what He's been trying to teach me, or how He's been working to transform me.
But as I breathed deeply, rested my tired body, and rubbed my aching back - while anticipating the beauty of the flowers which are going to blossom as a result of my efforts - I got a sense of the joyful anticipation God must experience when He considers His children becoming like His Son.
And my heart filled with thanksgiving.
Ahhhh, Lord. Thank You for considering me worth it. Thank You for all the effort You exert in order to make me more like Jesus. Thank You for tilling the soil in my heart, for weeding out the sin, for feeding me with Your Word, for patiently tending to my growth. Please help me, Father, to walk in harmony with Your will for me. Help me to be seed-ready.