Day 1 | The Master Gardener

Command:

Bear fruit that lasts. John 15:16 (NIV)

Read:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Galatians 5:22-23a (NLT)

Reflect:

A good friend of mine is an avid gardener. Over the years, she has lovingly and patiently tended to her garden, creating a virtual paradise filled with fruit-bearing trees, tasty vegetables, blooming bouquets of flowers, and heat-tolerant exotic plants. I love visiting her home to enjoy the fruits of her labor. 

Her garden didn’t just appear. It takes a lot of patience and planning, and much anticipation that her effort will pay off in a bountiful display of goodness and beauty. Through trial and error, she spent years learning about which plants grow best in different types of soil, how much light, fertilizer, and water her plants need, and how to revive a dying plant. I am quite honestly jealous of both her ability to make plants thrive in any environment and her generous supply of patience and love. She is a gift to her neighborhood and her friends whom she blesses with fresh harvests season to season from her garden.

My friend reminds me of God’s patience and desire for his children to grow and bear good fruit - fruit that can be a blessing to others. I have heard it said that the best gift you can give to your loved ones is the fruit of your own spiritual transformation - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Much like the plants and trees in my friend’s garden, we, on our own, are incapable of bearing fruit without the work of our Master Gardener. God lovingly tends to us, watering us with his word, fertilizing us through challenging seasons, and pruning us to bear much fruit. Would you allow him to do his work?

React:

What kind of fruit would you like to see grow in yourself in this season? In what ways can you cooperate with the Master Gardener so that you can bear fruit?

Pray:

God, thank you for patience with me. There’s a lot of pruning to be done, but I am confident that you are cultivating me in ways that will let me bear fruit that blesses others.