 |
Parenting Q
& A by Mary Allen A Potpourri of Essays about the Family, the Home, and Parenting |
“Therefore
if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed
away; behold, all things are become new.” 2
Corinthians 5:17 |
Home Archive Search |
Q: Do you have any fun, fall projects we could do as a family—maybe something with a moral lesson involved? Thanks! A: I sure do! Get thyself a pumpkin and keep reading! Nothing says
fall like the sprawl of pumpkin vines with their large yellow blossoms
taking
over my nice-sized garden. To think that so much ground could be
covered so
quickly simply by planting a packet of seeds! Their vines trail up and
over our
garden fence to the hillside and beyond. Even more
amazing, is that each pumpkin, when cut open, yields over a hundred
seeds! I
love the lessons that can be learned from pumpkins. So here comes the
fun
project that you can do with your family. Gather the
family round and give your pumpkin a nice wash in the sink, rinsing off
any
garden soil that may dirty up this adventure. Cut your pumpkin in half,
straight
down through the stem. Scoop out the seeds, being sure to point out to
your
children how cool it is that this pumpkin that came from one seed
yields more
than 100 seeds itself! At this point, you can clean the seeds off for roasting.
Now, this
isn’t complicated, so stay with me! Put your clean pumpkin halves
cut-side down
into a baking dish with a little bit of water in the bottom. Cover with
foil,
and bake at 350F for 45-90 minutes till the pumpkin flesh is soft when
pricked
with a fork. This flesh can then be separated from the “skin” and
pureed in a
blender to applesauce consistency. Now you are ready to make a home-made
pumpkin pie, or pumpkin
bread, or whatever your family so desires! (Check out the
links for great
recipes, and better step-by-step instructions on the
pumpkin-pie-from-scratch
process!) As these
things are baking, during clean-up, walk back through the project with
your
children making parallels to Christianity where possible. For instance,
just as
the pumpkin was cleansed before having “major surgery”, so we as
unbelievers
are cleansed of sin by God after believing that He died for our sins on
the
cross. The “major surgery” of the pumpkin, can be likened to the ways
God grows
us as new Christians, convicting us of certain sins and cutting them
out of our
lives, making us more like Jesus, which reflects all the glory back to
God. Or
in the case of pumpkins, scooping out the pulp and seeds, so that the
new
creations we’re baking will be more beautiful and palatable—reflecting
well on
our skills in the kitchen. Last but not
least, those 100+ seeds that came from a single seed, can be a
beautiful way to
encourage your children to share Jesus and the gospel of salvation with
others.
All it takes is one willing soul, planting seeds for God to grow into a
bountiful harvest. And pumpkin
seeds are hardy. We used a pumpkin for target practice once, and after
it was
blown to smithereens, we forgot about it. The following summer, from
this
“destroyed” pumpkin, we had two volunteer pumpkins pop up to surprise
us! Never
underestimate those seeds you and your family scatter for Christ! No
one is too
impossible for Him to save. Blessings, Mary Rejoicing
in hope... Romans
12:12
About the Author: Mary Allen is a stay-at-home, homeschooling, country-loving mom. She makes her home in the mid-west amidst Border Collies, horses, cows, a horde of chickens, her beloved husband of 16 years and their three girls. She writes articles for several online publications, including her own website, Home-Steeped Hope.
Updated
March 27, 2014 |
