Well it is time to crack open the garden shed and to pull out the hand tools and rake over the flower bed. Work the dirt and cleanse it of obstacles. It is time to watch life happen.

Family Project: Create A Flower Bed

1). Purchase some flower seeds or veggie seeds.
2). Prepare the ground.
3). Give each child a section of their own.
4). Then follow the directions on the package.
5). Plant the seeds.
6). Tell each child that they must take care of
their own garden. Feed it, Weed it. Water it.
7). Sit back and watch life happen.
8). Do not allow anyone to take care of someone else's gardening area.
9). Learn a powerful lesson.

We are all in God's great garden. In a perfect world we would have everything we needed to address life and grow. After all we all belong to the Master Gardener.

In reality some of us are born into the hands of new gardeners, with no experience at all in how to work the dirt, plant the seed or make it grow. But with determination and the right resources the gardener turns into a naturalist. And you grow. Beginning a new garden of your own.

Sometimes the gardener is so busy being occupied with other things in life he might plant you. He might water you a little. But the hot sun comes out and as quickly as you began life, you shrivel and do not grow much. Then the gardener remembers you and waters you again. You get a brief lift and a feeling of freshness. Just to dry out again until he remembers you again.

Then there are those novice gardeners that dive in and work the soil. The are determined to make it work. They see the vision of great beauty. Each day they give the plant nourishment and water. They prune it and take away dead leaves and dried stems. They nurture it and talk to it. They make it feel so good it wants to reach up and touch the heavens. There is no limit to how beautiful and strong it can grow.

This project will first alert you to what type of gardener each child is. Leave them alone but encourage them to help their garden grow. After a few weeks you can step in and see what type of gardener each child began as. Then with loving attention and knowing the weak areas of each gardener (child) you can encourage them in the right direction so that the complete garden flourishes with beauty and color.

Just in watching a seed becomes a plant can open a lot of lessons to be taught. Like those plants each child may be of a different type or color. But they are all plants.

With just the right parenting or "gardener" shall we say, they too can flourish and grow strong and beautiful.

What type of gardener shall we be? Can we change our habits and become a master gardener? Of course. That's why we have a world of choice at our feet.

You provide the nourishment and love and let God provide the sunshine and flower bed. I dare you to do this project with your kids and come back and tell me what you both learned from just a little seed.