Holes...

Have you ever noticed how many holes can appear in your yard? We have several. I have one out towards the very back of the yard near the fence where Shane and I planted a plum seed last summer just to see if it would grow. The hole isn't there anymore but I can still see by looking at the soil where we dug.

.

Up towards the side of the house where we park the cars is a hole that the dog dug. Actually, we had to get rid of that dog because he was going to dig our house directly down into the core of the earth. He was one major digging machine.

.

Over on the left side of the house there are some holes where Shane and Gabe have been doing yard work trying to clear out some brush that was on the fence line and they have been pulling up trees by the roots and naturally we are left with holes.

.

I walk through my yard and with every hole I can tell a story. Several of the holes we have filled in numerous times with soil but when it rains sometimes the soil washes away and we are left with, well, a hole. If you walked through my yard you may simply walk right over the hole that is directly in the middle of my back yard and never even notice it. But I know it's there. I can walk straight to it.

.

You know we go through our lives with holes in our yard. Many of us have holes that were dug as children and we have tried to refill those holes throughout our lives with bad realtionships and in the end the soil washes away and there is still nothing but a hole. Several of us have holes because of a lost loved one. Time has worn on and others have forgotten but each and every day we know right where the hole is and can retell the story without having to stop and think for a second. A few of us have holes in our lives that we have dug ourselves and after realizing that we shouldn't have dug the hole we tried to take the soil and pack it back in there but no matter how hard we try the hole remains. All of us have holes that were planted with alot of thought and care. They were filled with a wonderful seed that grew over time and has sprouted something wonderful in our lives. Maybe it was our husbands or maybe our children or maybe a lasting friendship but you know that your life just wouldn't be as wonderful as it is if you didn't have that hole.

.

Psalm 16:11 says "You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence..." Holes in our lives are going to be dug. They may be dug by us or they may be dug by someone or something else. The key to living with these holes is making sure they are filled in by God. God knows which holes need to be planted with a seed, cared for and cherished so that they are fruitful. He knows which holes need to be simply refilled with soil and the soil he will use to refill them is so much better than the rocky ole dirt we have. God fills in our holes with joy, love, peace, comfort, forgiveness, mercy and grace. What do you fill your holes with?