Considering Your Garden’s Purpose (Pt 2)

It’s not like you can just look in a book or make a phone call to find out your purpose in life. It is something you must discover. Some people spend a lifetime searching for purpose or significance. The wisest man who has ever lived spent most of his life searching for meaning. Ecclesiastes tells us that Solomon sought meaning in wisdom (chapter 1), pleasures, folly and toil (chapter 2), advancement (chapter 4), and riches (chapter 5). Solomon’s search for purpose in these earthly things ended with the assertion that “Everything is meaningless!” (Eccl. 12:8) His final conclusion was that we should “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” (Eccl. 12:13) Our purpose can be found as we follow God. Do you sense meaninglessness in any areas of your life? Ask God for wisdom and direction as you find your purpose in Him.

Digging deeper: Read Ecclesiastes and consider whether you are looking for meaning in places that lead to meaninglessness.

Considering Your Garden’s Purpose (Pt 1)

For your garden to be all it’s intended to be, you need to know what your purpose is. Some gardens produce fruits or vegetables; some are for producing cut flowers. Others may be for adding color to your yard; still others cater to bird and butterflies. Haven’t we all asked at one time or another “What’s my purpose in life?” or “Why am I here?” Key to finding out God’s desired purpose for you is to be in tune with Him. How to do that will be the topic of many future posts. But, once you begin to be in tune with the Gardener, you can hear His direction for you. “This is what the Lord says – your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.’” Isaiah 48:17.

Digging Deeper: Meditate on Isaiah 48:17, Isaiah 58:11, and Psalm 32:8.

The Ways of the Gardener

There is a difference between knowing Who the Gardener is and letting Him tend to your garden. God may want to do in your life something you think is very radical or crazy or wrong. “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8). God’s ways are just (Deuteronomy 32:4) and holy (Psalm 77:13) and righteous (Psalm 145:17); His ways are loving and faithful for those who follow Him (Psalm 25:10). His works are perfect (Deuteronomy 32:4). God is good and upright (Psalm 25:8), gracious and compassionate (Psalm 145:8), faithful to all His promises (Psalm 145:13). If you let God tend to your garden (that is do what He desires in your life) He may prune some trees or transplant some things or pull some very deep-seated weeds. Will it be painful at times? Yes! But, as Mr. Beaver says in The Chronicles of Narnia, “ ‘Course he isn’t safe. But, he’s good.”[1] God is good and if you allow Him full access to all that you are and all that you do, the results will be glorious. Are you willing to let Him do what He knows is best for your garden?

Digging Deeper: Meditate on Isaiah 55:6-11.

[1] C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1950), 80.

Knowing the Gardener

Think of your life as a garden. You have a variety of plants, a certain soil type and sources of water and nutrients. For your garden to be all it’s intended to be, it’s important for you to acknowledge who the real gardener is. Did you decide what type of soil you have (personal characteristics and personality), what plants or flowers grow in your garden (skills, talents, and interests), or what your harvest is used for (experiences)?

Do you believe there is some sort of “prime mover” as Aristotle and Aquinas have argued[1] or an intelligent design behind the universe? Do you believe there is a God? If you believe there is a God, the next question is, “Am I God?” If there is a God and you are not He, do you believe that God is involved in your daily life?

God created you and knows you (Psalm 139). He desires for you to prosper as you trust in Him (Proverbs 28:25b). Will you let God be your Gardener? Will you let Him design, plant, prune, and weed as He so desires? The first step is acknowledging His sovereignty and His love for you.

Digging deeper: If you’d like to dig deeper, read Isaiah 40 and Psalm 145:17-21 and meditate on all they have to say about God.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmological_argument