Around here, I’ve always heard the saying “only the strong survive.” We say it in reference to everything: Animals. Plants. People. In a hot, windy, and dry climate, it is especially true for flowers.
We are building this farm - from the ground up. There isn’t much of a wind break up yet, with none in some places. All that is there is wide open farm land. These plants are going to have to be tough, and we’ve known that since the beginning. Honestly though, we just figured that a greenhouse (or 2 or 3 or 4) was an absolute necessity to get anything the grow well enough that the flowers could be sold. God works in some crazy awesome ways. In the face of every obstacle, He provides (even if it’s not always the way we expect).
I witnessed this truth yet again while checking the crops this morning. To give you a bit of backstory, I started lots of plants from seed indoors in the early months of the year. The first mistake I made was not having strong enough lights. I fixed that issue, but still, these little plants didn’t look like they had much of a chance. They looked okay, and I was semi-confident in most of their abilities to maybe survive (as if simply surviving would be good enough) as soon as they went outdoors - for a hot minute. Then I began the hardening-off process and figured they were toast. I prepared them as much as possible and spent a Saturday planting them with no hopes of them still being alive in another week.
THEY ARE! Not only that, they are GROWING, THRIVING, and FLOURISHING.
Sure, they are still young. They have their scars where the wind has tethered their leaves and there is stray cotton stuck on some of their branches, but they are growing, thriving, and will be a couple feet tall in no-time!
So God, I pray that you give us the strength to flourish. In the drought, through the wind, and as we walk through the fire, give us the ability to grow so that the saying is no longer “only the strong survive,” but “only the strong flourish.” All through Your power and might.
Much love,
Skyler