Spiritual Maintenance

“The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” Genesis 2:15 (NIV)

How do we imagine the Garden of Eden? I would imagine the most beautiful place on earth. A place of incredible beauty, the kind that makes you shed tears while admiring. If you read through beginning from chapter 2 of Genesis, up to verse 15, you’ll see that God Himself planted the garden. He formed a river through it and laid tress that is pleasing to the eyes in it. It is the one place I would like to see after I die.

The startling thing is, a man has to work it and take care of this garden. All this while I thought all that Adam did all day was trying out fruits and playing by the river. That’s what I would do. God did the preliminary work of laying out the landscape with the best materials, designed the river way, decorating it with beautiful trees and food all over. All that Adam had to do was to maintain it well.

It’s a great picture of our life before God too. God did everything beautiful in us already. He gave us His eternal life, shower us with love and blessings. We were made in His image. We are His most beautiful creation. But, we do need maintenance as well. It’s entirely up to us what kind of garden we want to be. If we want more flowers to add colors, sow flower seeds. If we want more fruits to eat, sow more fruit seeds. If there is an ugly tree that is starting to grow, we pull it out by the roots.

I want to know God better in my life, so I’m sowing seeds by spending more time reading His Word daily. I want to be blessed financially, so I’m sowing seeds by doing research on simple investments I can do. I find that a particular tree of materialism is starting to grow in me, so I pull out the roots by avoiding gadget magazines. Whatever you want or need, be it a balanced career, friends, life partner, child, skills, financial breakthrough or health, start planting a seed today. Whatever is troubling you now, there is a root to it. Remove it immediately before it grows bigger. I believe God will bless what we sow to be fruitful in us to bring Him the glory.

Happy gardening.