Water of Life

I love summer time and gardening. Everything about gardening makes me think of God. The flowers and vegetables are gifts God gave to feed us and surround us with his beautiful creations. Punning and transplanting are other things I’ve been doing a lot of this summer. I had some invasive perennials that I decided to dig up and replace with some colorful plants that will bloom all summer. I moved a few plants around because they weren’t thriving where they were planted. We had a few hot days and the garden looked parched and wilted so I gave it a good watering. Within a few hours the garden was transformed and radiant. It seems like everything we do in the garden has biblical connections.

Isn’t God the ultimate gardener? The world began in the Garden of Eden where everything Adam and Eve needed was present.

Genesis 1:29 (NIV)

29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.

God prunes us when we are out of control or too tangled up in worldly things that are not bearing fruit for the kingdom and plan God has for each of us.

The Vine and the Branches (John 15:1-4 NIV)

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

At the Resurrection, Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene as a gardner.
John 20:15 (NIV)

15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Our gardens need water to grow. We need the water of life that only God can give us. In the Bible water represents the Word of God, baptism, salvation, and eternal life.

Revelation 21:6-7

6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. 7 Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

Not to forget the infamous women at the well.
John 4:10-16 (NIV)

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

We give our gardens water to grow. Only God can give us the water of eternal life.

my backyard garden