“The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail” (Isaiah 58:11).
Despite my physical limitations I enjoy gardening. Most of it is container gardening and I can only work at it for short amounts of time, but enjoying God’s handiwork in plants and flowers is very satisfying to me.
The above verse is a wonderful word picture for life. Countless times when I wake up in the morning, I feel sun-scorched and dry rather than well-watered and fresh to meet a new day. Whether it is due to another night of limited sleep or just weariness from daily pain, many of us know the feeling of waking up more tired than when we went to bed the night before.
What a different picture a garden represents – alive, green, vibrant, easily swaying with the breezes, and fragrant. God’s Word says we will be like that. Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17 both state that those who trust in the Lord will be like a tree planted by a stream, whose leaves will not wither even when the heat comes. At times I ask, “Lord, how can that be possible?”
God is our bountiful reservoir of life-giving water. His Holy Spirit channels that water into us, renewing and rejuvenating us as it flows. According to God’s Word, He gives all of us this water, no matter how weak, insignificant, or useless we feel on a given day. Somehow today He can refresh us so that we can refresh others - through prayer, physical, or verbal encounters - making our lives gardens of praise for His glory.
Prayer: Father, when I am dry, water the garden plot of my life with Your Holy Spirit. May I feel your presence flowing through me, allowing me to be the fragrance of Christ to others. Amen.
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