Planted in His Garden

Psalm 1

For all of us, this moment is the eternal now, whether we end up in heaven or hell. Yet for those of us arriving at home (heaven or hell), this eternal ‘now’ will take on a whole new meaning. In our current state of time locked existence, ours is to embrace our own law or the law of the Lord, not so much as a thou shalt not, but rather as a thou shall, with the thou shall being (for those of us heading toward heaven), delighting in the Lord. My personal perspective has changed greatly in the past two years. As I find myself delighting more and more in the Lord, my thoughts have moved more to marvel and wonder with the heart of His laws seen as His nature and my desire.

How often we ‘get it reversed’, focusing on what not to do, seeking prosperity and the right to it, when actually He wants us to focus on Him. We also have no right to anything, being at the mercy of God himself, The ‘prosperity’ He desires for us is eternity with Him, bringing along as many as He calls with us. The key to life and living are found in being planted by streams of living water. The consistent feeding and presence of this water allows the tree to drink when needed, deliver the minerals and material for life, and the bearing of fruit in its season.

There is nothing I enjoy more than ripe, dripping fruit from my trees and plants. Nothing of the fruit I purchase in the stores compares, and yet, most of my year is spent in wait. I see the buds turn into flowers, die and the emergent orbs slowly, ever so slowly inflate. Each day as I look, they are hidden in the foliage of the tree, masked in the same coloration and would be overlooked if not sought. Yet as I rustle through the branches anticipation grows in my heart but months of waiting remain. Without continual care, feeding and watering, the fruit and the tree will wither. These months of preparation are essential and key to the quality of the fruit, vital to its flavor and richness. There must be plenty of healthy leaves to provide the sugars and balanced juice for flavor, and life for the soon to be laden branches. Each day I wait, each day I stand in anticipation unable to provide the work, but able to provide the human care to cultivate what God will provide in its season.

Our trees seek not prosperity, but rest in the care and provision of the Creator who set this all in motion. I have chosen to look for life, look for fruit and cultivate, as much as I can, to encourage the abundance. It is not what I don’t do that brings this abundance, but rather what I do. I observe, tend, care, and wait for that which will bring the fruit, and yes, I spend most of my time waiting. But the fruit in its season is incomperable and nutritious.