The Little Garden

“Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.” Ps 37:3

"If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities.- Luke 16:10

One day a child comes to her father and asks him for a garden. The child proceeds to tell the father how her dream has always been to have a big, beautiful garden; full of fruits, vegetables, and every kind of beautiful flower imaginable.

The father agrees to give the child a garden. To her surprise he hands her a small, single flower. She look at it, trying not to look disappointed, and says,  “ummm, this is not a garden.” With a smile his face, the father tells the child “first you need to learn to take care of this flower. Show me you can care for one. A garden is a big responsibility; learn to care for one flower then I can give you more.”

 So the child takes the single flower outside, plants it and begins the process of nurturing, and caring for the flower. The child always tried to make sure the flower had the right amount of water and sunlight to grow and flourish. Over time the flower begins to bloom, and bloom beautifully.  The father has been watching the whole time as his child takes care of the single flower he had given her. He has watched how faithfully she has nurtured and cared for that simple flower he had given her. Although it didn’t seem like much to her…he knew what it was cultivating in her.

One day the father surprised his little girl with ANOTHER flower! The father encouraged, and praises his lovely daughter for how well she had been taking care of the one flower, and how he trusted that he could now entrust her with another to care for as well. Diligently and faithfully, the child begins to take care of the two flowers she has been given. Over time, as her father sees her continued faithfulness he gives her more and more flowers to take care of. Some require a little more work than others, but believes she can handle it…He never takes his eyes off her for a second. He watches her with a smile on his face as she faithfully and diligently worked hard at what was been put in front of her.

Then one day, on a beautiful spring afternoon, the father takes his little girl to the window and tells her to look outside.  As she walks over to the window, still rubbing her eyes from coming out a deep sleep, her breathe is taken away by the sight before her…IT’S MY GARDEN! DADDY YOU GOT ME A GARDEN!!!”

 With a smile on his face he said...yes, I did give you the garden you asked for, but you did the work on cultivating the land. You were faithful with what I gave you. Each flower I gave you, you planted and took care of, you made sure it was nurtured so that it could grow into what you see now. A garden is a big responsibility…and you have shown that you can handle such a responsibility…over time. Everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

A legitimate hearts desire necessitates a wait. A true desire of your heart is a sustained longing unaffected by mood or behavior. If you have a true desire you have waited for it. Waiting is necessary for it qualify as a true desire, because it has to be something that has been tested over time. Problem is, our culture is training us in impatience, and we get so fixated on what we want we don't want to do what it takes to get it...WAIT! The things of God that are of great esteem, importance and value take time. A hearts desire was meant to be cultivated!! We were meant to get excited by the time we get the desire of our hearts. Because it has taken TIME! - Beth Moore