Gardening details, John 15:1

CHRISTIAN LIVING TODAY

Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.”

I love tracing the storyline from Genesis to Revelation, seeing the major narrative about God all along the way. So often, teaching begins in one place and gains even more meaning and purpose later.

Today, I began with a verse in Deuteronomy 11:12: “…a land the Lord your God looks after. He is constantly attentive to it from the beginning to the end of the year.” Like a gardener—and later, Jesus speaks of the gardener again in John 15:1.

We often think of a gardener as someone who does all the manual labor involved with tending plants. But I’ve learned that, in Scripture, gardener means “He is constantly attentive to…” God continually, in an ongoing fashion, cares for His garden. And since “garden” is used as a metaphor for all those born again, He continually cares for us. The definition includes God as our keeper but also as a warden—one who watches over the garden during its productive season.

Wow—now that’s a lot to think about.

Every season of life is productive. From infancy, we grow and thrive. We continue to learn and develop. Young adults must make many life decisions, and life is challenging. But as I look at life, I find every season and age has its challenges— and its fruitful opportunities.

As our keeper, God gives us interests to pursue. He prompts thoughts to investigate. God is not a puppet master but speaks to us through the Holy Spirit. He guides us. He keeps us.

For example, have you ever experienced a time when you knew you avoided tragedy or an accident? That’s safety and provision from the Master Watchman.

I hope you’ll reflect on ways the Watchman has intervened in your life— perhaps even record those memories. By doing so, you’ll begin identifying your personal history with the Gardener and Watchman.

How is your garden this spring? What have you planted? Are the blooms bursting forth in colorful display?

Someone else planned and planted my garden, and now I am the keeper. Things are just different. So, the Gardener is teaching me to love what is—to enjoy the new beauty and the joy of learning. Until next week, Anita Onarecker, an Elgin resident, author of “ Divine Appointment: Our Journey to the Bridge” and minister to women and adults, earned a Master of Christian Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2007.