This is the first year I’ve ever planted a vegetable garden. It’s been a season of high excitement watching tomatoes, cucumbers, beets, onions, bush beans, snap peas, herbs, watermelons, blueberries, and squash grow. It has taken everything a while. Let’s be honest. I was ready for tomatoes the day after I planted the four-inch-tall plants.
Now the swirling vines are four feet tall. Heavy with tomatoes, they topple over their cages. The snap peas haven’t made it into the kitchen. I just pop them straight into my mouth after picking. The cucumbers hide under the broad leaves, so I can’t find them. This morning, I found seven in our little game of veggie hide-and-seek. The sunlight and water from the dripline have done their magic. I can’t wait to see what I will find tomorrow.
When my life is hidden from Jesus, I don’t often see the growth. On my own, it can take years, even decades, to start bearing the kind of fruit that He wants to see in me. Kindness? Gentleness? Self-control? These can be slow-yielding crops. Jesus is my sunlight and water. He nourishes me and helps me grow. Apart from Him, I can do nothing. But Jesus promises if I remain in Him, His life will flow through mine, yielding more growth than I could ever dream of harvesting on my own.
—Susanna Foth Aughtmon
