The Pumpkin Patch Parable (Parable Series)

Liz Curtis Higgsxa0is an award-winning speaker as well as the author of twenty-eight books, including Bad Girls of the Bible and Thorn in My Heart .xa0 Her Parable Series for children has been awarded the ECPA Gold Medallion for Excellence. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. The Pumpkin Patch Parable By Liz Curtis Higgs Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2010 Liz Curtis HiggsAll right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4003-1643-4 Chapter One See that big red barn? And those rolling green fields? That's where the farmer lives, w-a-a-a-y out in the country. It's so far out the streets don't even have stop signs. The farmer grew many different things in his fields. He grew tall green corn and big red tomatoes ... long yellow squash and little green peas. People eat that stuff for dinner. The BEST vegetables the farmer grows are PUMPKINS! They start out as flat, oval seeds, almost as big as raisins. One hot June day soon after school was out, the farmer planted his pumpkin seeds, just like he did every summer. The seeds disappeared into the ground in neat rows and grew there in the dark, all through the Fourth of July. Early one morning, a tiny green shoot quietly poked its way out of the soil. Soon, a long, green vine stretched across the ground. From that vine, little buds sprouted into wide green leaves. The leaves spread out flat to catch the August sun. Someday, those little green buds would turn into big orange pumpkins! But not yet. The patient farmer waited. And waited. The pumpkins began to grow. How different they looked! Some were tall and lean. Some were short and round. Some had lumps and bumps. ALL of them were pumpkins! October came at last. Every night grew dark earlier than the night before, and the farmer knew it was harvesttime. His workers brought in the ripe pumpkins. Which one would the farmer choose? The farmer picked up one large pumpkin, taking great care. Pumpkins are tough on the outside but break into smithereens if dropped. He washed off all the dirt, holding on tight. Next came the messy part. The pumpkin was filled with seeds and slimy pulp. The farmer had a special plan for his chosen pumpkin, so the seeds and slime would have to go. (Continues...) Excerpted from The Pumpkin Patch Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs Copyright © 2010 by Liz Curtis Higgs. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.