Winter in Minnesota can be a lonely season.  It’s cold and that means a lot of time indoors and not a lot of interaction with neighbors.  This year we were hit with this virus just as winter started to melt away. And then it snowed on Easter and for two days after! Winter feels endless. 

But this morning I felt a sense of everything changing.  I can feel spring coming. There may be a layer of snow on the ground, but the sun is shining and the forecast is promising. 

It’s amazing how spring can turn everything around.  Spring is filled with hope. It’s impossible to look at the grass that is peeking out from under the snow and not envision sunny, warm days and weekends boating on the lakes that will soon be ours.  It’s a preview of what’s to come and it’s an exciting time.  

We all have dark and lonely seasons-we all go through winter.  A time when we feel like we are isolated and the sun will never come out again.  But no matter what, God brings us spring. He shows us a glimmer of hope that summer will come and life will be filled with sunny, carefree days.  

Romans 12:12 says, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”  So much patience is required during this crazy time in life. I am reminded day after day that true patience comes from my reliance on God, so I continue to pray and place my hope in God as I wait for a warmer season.

In the meantime, I am dreaming of planting flowers and vegetables in our yard and garden. 

We came up with some prayer activities for you to do with your kids while you are planting your gardens this year. Let us know what you try out!

Garden Praises

Talk to your kids about the different items you are planting in your garden this year. Ask them questions about the different plants:

• What do they smell like?

• What do they taste like? (if edible!)

• Describe the different colors.

When you have finished examining the plants, say a simple prayer together like:

“God you make the best creations! Thank you for making plants that are so beautiful, and delicious, and smell good. We love how creative you are. Thank you for making the world a beautiful place. Amen.”

Garden Devotions

Read Matthew 6:28-34 with your kids while you are planting or while you are near your flowers. If they can only handle a wiggly half-listening reading, that is okay! You read the Bible with your kids--awesome! You can trust that seeds were planted in their little hearts (see what I did there?).  If they have the attention span, go ahead and ask them a few questions:

• How does God take care of the plants and flowers?

• How did God make these flowers in our yard beautiful?

• What does God promise us?

• What can we do when we start to worry?

Here is a simple prayer that you can follow up with:

“Jesus, thank you for providing for us. Help us to remember to put our trust in you when we feel worried, nervous, or afraid and when we start every day. We love you. Amen.”

Planting Prayers

Pick a person, thing, or concern to pray about for each plant that you put in your garden this year. Pray for that request as you plant your flowers and every time you water them. Have each person in your family pick one plant so they can easily remember what they are praying for.

Bonus! If you are planting from seeds, this is a great object lesson to teach your kids about God’s timing. We plant a seed and say a prayer, but we don’t get to pick when or how God answers our prayers. He is working on our prayers, even if we can't see it, just like the plant is germinating and growing roots in the soil before we can see it bloom.