Any relationship is like a garden. In growing a garden you have to start from ground zero. Basics... Dirt, seed, water. Just like God started in the beginning... We all begin what we have with each other with the basics. Friendship, honesty, trust, devotion, love.
In order for us to build and maintain healthy relationships we must work at them, just as we work at our gardens when we plant them. It takes spending time with your hands in the dirt. We must weed out some stuff, add some stuff in and plant seeds that we want to gain fruit from & nurture them into the actual fruit that is our ultimate goal. Every good garden has to be tended. It is a daily process. You must keep an eye on the progress of the growth of the seeds you choose to plant. You must make sure that you plant the right seeds for the season. (If your spouse is hurt, don't plant seeds that will die during that time. That is a time that you should spend maybe adjusting the environment to help them grow and make sure the soil you want to plant in is rich and has all that is needs to help the seeds grow to maturity.) You have to take the time to ensure that the weather is good (enough sun light, enough rain, enough breeze to ensure that the bad stuff blows away.) You have to protect your plants, make sure that the foundation is strong enough and if it is not, then learn to prop each other up so you can continue to grow together.
OUR GARDEN
WORK SHEET
Any relationship is like a garden. In growing a garden you have to start from ground zero. Basics... Dirt, seed, water. Just like God started in the beginning... We all begin what we have with each other with the basics. Friendship,
honesty, trust, devotion, love. Let’s take a look at our own personal relationships and marriages…
Genesis 2:23: "And Adam said, this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." Being fellow heirs, both husband and wife have the same shining goal in life (Heaven). Everything they say and do should be directed toward reaching this worthy goal. Life may be like a roller coaster with its joys and sorrows, but there is still hope, strength, and peace when both husband and wife know where they are going. Nothing can keep them from reaching their mutual goal except their own unwise choice to be unfaithful and disobedient. This common goal adds a dimension to the marriage that enriches it, enables it and expands it. There must be a more intimate connection between a husband and his wife than exists between parents and children. When this is not true, and for one reason or another, the husband does not leave father and mother, and cleave unto his wife, there is always friction and problems because God's will is not being obeyed and His word is not being honored. Husbands, when you leave father and mother and cleave unto your wife, you do not abandon your parents or any of the rest of your family. Certainly not! You are simply putting your wife first, above all other human beings, because this is what God tells you to do. forsaking all others...
1. What are your personal foundations as an individual? (qualities about yourself?)
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
2. What are the personal foundations you have with your Friend or Spouse?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
In order for us to build and maintain healthy relationships we must work daily to maintain them, just as we work at our gardens when we plant them. It takes spending time with your hands in the dirt.
1. We must weed out some stuff. What are some things that you think need to be taken out of your foundation as a person to make you a strong asset in your friendship or marriage?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
2. What are some things you feel may need to be removed from the foundation of your friendship or marriage to make it stronger?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
3. We must add some things in. what do you think you need to add into your personal foundation as an individual to make you a stronger asset in your friendship or marriage?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
4. We must plant seeds that we want to gain fruit from. What fruit do you want to see grow in your friendship or marriage?1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
5. We must nurture the seeds we plant into the actual fruit that we wish to grow. What steps are you willing to take to nurture the seeds you and your friend or spouse plant in your friendship or marriage?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
6. Every good garden has to be tended. It is a daily process. What steps are you willing to take to assist your friendship or marriage in growing into what God intended it to be?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
7. You have to protect your plants/fruit, make sure that the foundation is strong enough and if it is not, then learn to prop each other up so you can continue to grow together. What are you willing to do to protect your fruit & prop each other up?
1.____________________________
2.____________________________
3.____________________________
4.____________________________
5.____________________________
Blessings from the desk of:
~*Sister Soldier*~
2014
OUR
GARDEN...
"Foundational seeds to help your relationships grow and bring forth good fruit... any relationship...
Child/parent
husband/wife
friends
brother/sister
co workers
srangers on the street...
to help build what you want to see grow in those relationships and in yourself to help you be open for God to use you in these people's lives..."