Gardening

Some of you may know that a few years ago, I began gardening. Over time, Jesus and I have spent countless hours together in the garden, and I’ve learned so much about co-laboring with Him in this space. The agricultural imagery in Scripture has come alive in new ways, and I can see endless parallels between life in the garden and our spiritual life. The blog slowed a bit this summer as my attention was divided during gardening season, so I thought I’d return to regular posts by sharing some lessons I learned this summer. After hours in the soil, under the sun and among the blooms, the garden has become a mirror for my heart revealing truths about faith, focus and fruitfulness.

1. The first lesson came from distractions. This year, the mosquitoes were relentless. Some days, it felt impossible to enjoy the garden or harvest without constant irritation. Distractions, like these tiny pests, have a way of stealing joy from what God has given us. Our thoughts, worries and anxieties can buzz around our minds, making it hard to notice beauty, to intentionally engage the world around us or to gather what is ready to be harvested. Yet Jesus reminds us in Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” When we fix our eyes on Him, the buzzing fades. We are not only able to appreciate the gifts He has placed in our lives but also to join Him in tending and cultivating in the garden of life He has entrusted to us.
   
   
2. The second lesson came from the sunflowers. I grow both heirloom and procut varieties. The heirloom sunflowers turn towards the sun with life that feels almost tangible. They shed pollen freely. They’re messy and imperfect yet alive in the work of growing and giving. The procut sunflowers by contrast are neat and tidy. They’re perfectly sized for bouquets. At first glance, they seem just as beautiful as the heirlooms, but their stillness reveals a quiet disconnect.
   
   It reminded me that we are called to keep our eyes on Jesus, even when it is messy, inconvenient or requires constant bending and turning. Authentic faith, like the heirloom sunflower, leans fully into the Light. It stretches. It sways. It blooms in ways that may feel untidy to the world. Yet it is alive, nourished and real. Psalm 34:5 reminds us, “Those who look to Him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.” True beauty is not in perfection but in seeking Him with all that we are even when it is messy and wonderfully imperfect.
   
   
3. The third lesson came from the pollinators. When I first began this garden, bees and butterflies were scarce. This year, they swirled and danced among the blooms carrying life from flower to flower spreading what had been sown and multiplying it in ways I could not have imagined. Watching them, I realized that growth rarely happens all at once. It begins quietly with patient tending, faithful care and repeated small acts before the harvest is ever visible.
   
   This reminded me of the way God works in our lives and in the lives of others. The seeds we plant in relationships, words of encouragement and acts of service may seem small or unnoticed for a long season. Yet over time, life gathers momentum. The work we have done faithfully begins to bear fruit, and others carry that fruit further than we could ever reach on our own. Galatians 6:9 reminds us, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Growth, fruitfulness and blessing often unfold quietly and slowly, but when we co-labor with Christ, we become part of a greater movement, a harvest that glorifies Him and spreads life far beyond what we can see.

As this season in the garden comes to a close, I am reminded that life, like gardening, requires patience, attention and an openness to growth. There will be distractions that steal our joy, moments that feel messy and imperfect and seasons when the harvest seems slow to appear. Yet when we keep our eyes on Jesus and lean into Him by faithfully co-laboring in the work He has given us, life blooms in ways we could never orchestrate on our own. The heirloom flowers, the pollinators, the sun and soil all whisper the same truth: growth is alive, sometimes messy and rooted in the One who gives life. In our gardens, in our work and in our life, we must MAKE ROOM to follow Him and participate in His life-giving work. Afterall, He is the treasure. He is the prize.

Reflection
Where might distractions like buzzing thoughts, worries or anxieties be keeping you from fully enjoying the gifts God has planted in your life?
Where do you need to co-labor with Him in tending what He has entrusted to you?
Where is He calling you to stretch, bend and reach like the heirloom sunflowers: messy, imperfect yet fully alive in the Light?
In your relationships, work, creativity or acts of love, what seeds might He be asking you to sow and nurture patiently, trusting that the harvest will come in His timing?