The God of the Garden
Gardening is near and dear to the heart of God. I believe this is beyond dispute given the fact that the first thing God did after creating the universe was plant a garden in the east, in Eden. (Gen. 2:8) Then consider that the first task God assigned to mankind, the jewel of his creation, was care of his garden. (Gen 2:15)
The first two gardeners worked together in the garden of God, planting, watering, pruning, designing, collaborating and last but not least, enjoying. How delightful it must have been to see the garden flourish as the result of their efforts and God’s blessing.
That was my feeling toward the end of the EBC Family Work Day last Saturday. It was simply a delightful event. Nearly 60 people came to help. Many hands make light work indeed! The team was a beautiful cross section of our church family, including folks from all four of our worship services (including Spanish!) and all across the age spectrum. The youngest was three and the oldest was in his nineties!
Yes, the job is much harder because of the fall. The plants we tend often struggle, and the weeds and thistles thrive with no care at all. (Gen 3:18) On top of that our bodies ache, our hearts wander and we sometimes create as many problems as we solve. But seeing this diverse group of God’s people coming together as family to work in his garden was truly a picture of the redemption God is working in his garden through Christ.
Pastor Toby
P.S. For your Andrew Peterson fans, The God of the Garden is the title of an excellent new book he recently released. I highly commend it.
Categories: Evergreen Connection