When the last stimulus check arrived in our bank account Ben and I were tempted to spend it on something we would both love–an adjustable bed. We had been taking my parents shopping for theirs and we both fell in love with a split king that was incredibly soft. For about 2 or 3 days we almost gave in to that luxury. My mom and dad are buying one for medical purposes because my dad needs to sleep elevated due to his inability to wear his CPAP any longer. Being elevated meets a medical need.
Now don’t get me wrong–there would be nothing wrong with us purchasing that bed.
We may one day do just that. I mean it was extremely plush and I had visions of drifting off to sleep in the soft, cushy goodness.
Then the words priorities, projects, and productivity entered into our conversations.
Ben and I had already had many conversations about things we needed to purchase and projects we needed to accomplish to make our lives better and healthier.
What could be more important than a luxurious adjustable bed?
A raised bed garden of course.
I don’t know about you, but we did not like the feeling of not having the healthy food we might need to eat available at the grocery store after the pandemic. We also realized we might not be able to supply all of our needs, but we loved the idea of having more organic, non-processed veggies right outside of our back door.
Over the last few weeks, we have been working together to accomplish this task. And by that–I mean my husband has been doing most of the hard, physical labor and I have assisted him as best as I could or made sure he had plenty of water and brought him supplies. Together we sealed the raised beds with linseed oil, we bought the plants, and planted all of the little beauties in the soil, and now we are in the process of building a fence to keep the deer and other critters out of the raised beds.
Even before we harvested the first fruits, some fresh basil leaves last night, we have had some healthy benefits. Ben has dropped 11 pounds and I dropped 2. Whoop–whoop!
The best part of the project, however, is that we are both involved in it together. I love working with my husband–even when our ideas clash and we have to resolve the differences. I’d rather be with him than any other person on this earth and I treasure the moments we have together. I especially like it when we are like-minded and working side by side. Those are especially sweet times.
Working together with your partner helps you grow closer together because you are constantly having to compromise, and listen to the other person. Both of these skills are great relationship-building activities. The best thing about our relationship is that we have learned to respect the other person’s strengths and weaknesses. There are areas where Ben far surpasses my knowledge and skills and there are areas where mine surpasses his. When we are both stumped, we research, or call others who have those skills and figure out a solution.
Ben and I are looking forward to preparing and eating our yummy veggies. We are praying that our garden is bountiful and produces enough to share.
This gardening has been a lot of work. But hard work pays off!
This made me think of the verses found in Colossians 3:23-24 which say, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.“
No matter what kind of work we are doing we need to remember that we are working for our Lord and not men. Keeping our focus on God helps us to keep our attitude grounded in Him which ultimately leads to unity.
A God-centered focus, a good attitude, plus unity all equal productivity.
This equation applies to many of life’s problems.
So tell me–How have you been productive lately?
If you haven’t made plans to accomplish some of those “to do” lists. Make time–It will be worth it!
I promise!
