Not long ago I received a nice letter from a reader who thanked me for a recent column, but wondered if I could be more specific.  He said that what I wrote was true and correct. But he needed some real solutions – as in “How To's” – to correct a difficulty.  I appreciated his letter, and it caused me to dig around for some bottom-line helps.

I found a few that I think are well worth sharing. Their wisdom far exceeds mine. So –if you, like me, and this good man who emailed me, are attempting to be more successful as a human being, and a child of God, I hope these “To-Do's” will be of help to you!

I include these because they seem pertinent for each one of us, as we strive to get rid of obstacles, find good solutions, and feel better about ourselves as Father's children:

This is an often-used idea. We know it's true. We simply don't always want to turn the other cheek, get rid of the vice that we enjoy, or whatever.  Among the simplest and most beautiful counsel comes from Psalms 51:10,

“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit
Within me.  Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not
Thy holy spirit from me.  Restore unto me the joy of thy
Salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.”

The following poem written by the great poet Edgar A. Guest, teaches us a lesson about the seeds within us.

The Package of Seeds 

I paid a dime for a package of seeds
And the clerk tossed them out with a flip.
“we've got ‘em assorted for every man's needs,”
He said with a smile on his lip,
“Pansies and poppies and asters and peas!
Ten cents a package! And pick as you please.”

Now seeds are just dimes to the man in the store,
And the dimes are the things that he needs;
And I've been to buy them in seasons before,
But have thought of them merely as seeds;
But it flashed through my mind as I took them this time,
“You have purchased a miracle here for a dime!”

“You've a dime's worth of power no man can create,
You've a dime's worth of life in your hand!
You've a dime's worth of mystery, destiny, fate,
Which the wisest cannot understand.
In this bright little package, now isn't it odd?
You've a dime's worth of something known only to God.”

In feeling my way through Mr. Guest's words, I sense the glory of the seeds within us based upon the fact that we are, in fact, as packages that come from God. Only He knows our great potential.  He is patient and merciful with us as we figure out to tend ourselves in His soil. 

Were we not in fertile soil, we wouldn't even care to do better and be better.  So as we figure out how to overcome the obstacles that we ourselves may create, He surely celebrates our desire to grow. When we figure out a solution to a ‘better' us, He surely appreciates our efforts.  His love helps us through our growing seasons.  It is all part of the solution to our problems!