I love my flower garden. If we had the space I think I would love a vegetable garden too, but we opted for a backyard pool instead. Yet I still love to read about growing a garden. In fact, this is one of the reasons our blog has a vineyard theme–is it any wonder? 🙂
Jesus often used nature to emphasize deep truths of God. Consider the Parable of the Sower. It is one where Christ took the time to explain its full meaning to His disciples because they didn’t get it on first hearing it. How often we don’t get it either! What a blessing to have Christ explain to us this parable and its many applications so we can benefit from the truth it exemplifies.
I recently came across a very interesting gardening technique. It’s called Companion Gardening. The idea is to plant together plants that get along. Seriously? I had no idea there was such a method, but it intrigued me. I read the entire article and several more it linked to on the sidebar.
The premise is to plant together plants which help and nourish each other. As you may have guessed there are plants to avoid grouping together because of their competing nature. The most popular grouping was said to have begun by the Iroquois Indians and is called The Three Sisters–corn, pole beans and pumpkins or squash.
Photo Credit: The Plant Freak
In this method the corn is planted first allowing it to grow so when the beans are planted they will have the support they need. After the beans have grown a bit the pumpkin is planted. It’s roots help hold the garden soil and nutrients together as well as the clinging nature of it’s vine offers support to the corn. Amazing!
On the flip side, there are plants that don’t grow well together. They not only don’t support each other, but they work against each other:
Incompatible Plants (Combatants)
- While white garlic and onions repel a plethora of pests and make excellent neighbors for most garden plants, the growth of beans and peas is stunted in their presence.
- Potatoes and beans grow poorly in the company of sunflowers, and although cabbage and cauliflower are closely related, they don’t like each other at all.
This brings us to a question for us to consider and apply to our marriage–are we companions or foes to our spouse?
The truth is when we said, I Do, God determined we would be life-long companions. This means we do everything we can to support them, hold them, help them bear fruit for God’s kingdom as well as their careers, and live alongside them giving and receiving unselfishly and without grumbling.
So how does your marriage garden grow? Are you a companion or a foe? How would Christ apply this parable to your marriage?
The Romantic Vineyard 
You know one thing that is so wonderful, Debi? When we start off with our spouse, the one whom God has selected for us, we may not be “companions” in the garden, but part of the reason that He chose the spouse that He did, for us, is that God wants us to grow in grace and often uses our spouse in the sanctification process! I know I’m very blessed to have started with a man who’s pretty much corn to my beans (lol) … but there have been plenty of ways I’ve learned to help and nourish him even more (and likewise, he for me). He stands tall and is supportive–I bloom and vine and grow all over BUT he has had to learn when to shade me and when that puts me in the dark…and I’ve had to learn when to curl around him and when that chokes him.
LikeLike
Excellent thoughts, Cindy. The sanctification is the most important part of marriage. God fits us with the spouse who will most help us become more like Him. Thanks for adding your thoughts on this. Very helpful!
LikeLike
My father is a farmer, he has to do crop rotation to keep the nutrients in the soil balanced. One year he’ll plant corn and the next soybeans.
LikeLike
I would love to hear more. We have much to learn from the farmers among us. I believe they understand deeper truths of God because they work so close to creation. What a blessing.
LikeLike
He is very religious, but I pray for his salvation. Maybe God will choose to show Himself to him through creation?
LikeLike
Yes, let’s pray God will do that for him.
LikeLike
Sometimes I am a companion and sometimes I am a foe. I don’t think we can ever perfectly be a companion because of our sin nature. As I grow more in Christ and understand Biblical love more and more, the more I can truly nourish/uplift my husband and we can mutually support each other’s needs. I love the garden metaphor. It’s a great reminder. I especially needed to hear this tonight!
LikeLike
You’re so right–we will never completely be the companion our spouse needs. Only Christ can be their perfect companion.
LikeLike