Planning for Growth

With the New Year under way, and as the days are now getting longer, it is time to plan for growth in the garden.
The weather was lovely yesterday, so some jobs in the garden were done. Dead oak leaves needed to be cleared, so that our fruit bushes and other beds are free to develop and grow. The plants need feeding and training, pruning and protecting, so that we get a good results later in the year. Do nothing now, and we will be disappointed later.
Jesus often used parables and illustrations from agriculture and horticulture. He might well have agreed with Alan Titchmarsh, who has said that gardening is more important than politics!
'“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.' (John 15.1-2)
From these familiar verses, we see that the Lord's intention is to look for growth in his people.
I am deeply reassured, at the start of an uncertain year, to know that Jesus teaches us that God Almighty, his Father, is the gardener. Nothing that happens to us, individually or corporately, is outside His loving care and will.
But Jesus also teaches us that He alone is the source of our life and growth, so we need to keep close to Him. 'You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.' (John 15.3-4)
As we go into this New Year, may I encourage us all to pray that we cooperate with the Lord in bringing about the growth in us and through us which is His best will for us all.
Best wishes,
Richard