Back to the Garden: A 10-Day DevotionalSample

Invest In Garden Tools

Genesis 2:8-9a NLT reads:

“Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground – trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit.”

God was a gardener Himself. So, if I want some advice on what tools to use, I’m definitely going to Him!

The first of many tools we need is a watering can or a water hose. This is vital to keep our crops alive and fruit to continue to grow. Paul tells us in Ephesians, that we must be washed with God’s word. Our watering can or water hose is the word of God. As Paul explains in 2 Timothy, Scripture is useful to teach us what is true and helps us realize what is wrong. We must use this tool to know the standard and boundaries preset by God.

The word of God is a tool that saves us not only from the traps of the enemy but from ourselves. In Genesis, God set a boundary for Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 2:16-17 reads, “But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden – except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

God gave His word to Adam and Eve to guide them on how to live in the garden, not just temporarily, but for eternity. God's word has the same effect today, He tells us what to stay away from and what to do so that we can have eternal life.

A gardening tool that you also might be familiar with is shears. They are like scissors for gardening. There is a type of shear used in gardening called pruning shears. These shears are used to remove damaged, diseased, or dead stems from plants.

It’s so important to get rid of these parts because if we don’t, the plant will suffer in the long run. When parts of a crop are diseased it can spread to not only other parts of the same crop but to the crops around it. Damaged, diseased, and dead stems stunt the overall growth of the plant.

Just like crops need to be pruned, we must be pruned as well. We must allow God to prune the damaged areas of our lives so that we can grow at a constant rate. We don’t want to have a diseased part of our life infecting those we encounter or infecting our overall well-being.

If you want to plant things effectively and maintain your garden, you must have the proper gardening tools. When you have the right tools, you are better equipped to keep your garden in order.

Reflect

• How have you honestly been doing at regularly connecting with God by reading and being washed by His word?
• What are some areas of your life that you need God to prune?

I encourage you to commit today to begin spending time in God's Word and allowing Him to prune areas that are stunting your growth.