by David Scott Robertson
Well, it happened again.
Here I am minding my own business,
Performing a routine, mundane, even boring task (watering the flowers),
And WHAM!
The Holy Spirit begins to teach me about life.
He uses a garden hose to illustrate a powerful truth!
First the natural, then the spiritual.
Let me quickly set the scene for you,
Then I'll connect the dots on the nugget of truth I gleaned from watering the flowers.
It's been hot and dry around here lately.
All the outdoor green things are thirsty.
So early this morning I dragged out the garden hose
And began to water the flowers, shrubs, bushes, and tomato plants in our yard.
Funny thing, though.
As I pulled the garden hose across the lawn,
The water stopped flowing. Why?
"Kinks" in the hose.
This is when the hose gets twisted and knotted up and the water can't flow out.
Over and over and over again as I was dragging the hose and watering
I got kinks in the hose and the water stopped coming out the spigot.
I had to stop watering and go straighten out every kink before the water flow was restored.
Suddenly, and I feel this was the Holy Spirit using a teachable moment in my life,
These thoughts began to bubble up in my mind and settle in my heart:
We human beings are very similar to flowers in a garden.
We are organisms that require water from an outside source to survive.
If we don't get it, it's just a matter of time…
Father God, raised us up from seeds and transplanted us to a garden.
His desire is that none of His precious creations should perish.
To ensure their survival, God sent His Son, Jesus, to tend the garden.
The Holy Spirit is that life-giving, life-sustaining water that flows through the hose.
Through the light of the Son,
The water of the Holy Spirit,
Planted in a stable soil from which to absorb nutrients (God's Word)
We not only survive, but flourish, in a beautiful and unique ecosystem
Which God has carefully and purposefully planted us in,
With the intention of
Bearing fruit to feed others,
Produce seed to reproduce after our own kind,
And to add value and beauty to the garden for all to see and enjoy.
Without the Son, we would die.
Without the water of the Spirit, we would die.
Without the soil to feed on we would die.
Everything the water touches is green and full of life.
Everything that the water doesn't touch is brown, brittle, and dry - in a process of dying.
Enter the problem.
Sin.
Sin puts kinks in the hose
That stops the flow of God's living water.
Unless the kinks are removed,
The water is permanently cut off
And the plants eventually die.
My confession of sin allows Jesus to "undo" the kinks in the hose.
It restores the flow of water
And thus makes restoring my soul possible.
It was interesting to note
That as I watered one plant,
The plant next to it usually got soaked as well.
I suppose the parables and parallels, meanings and metaphors
Could continue on and on
Describing in fantastic detail
Just how a garden and a human soul are a lot alike.
One thing's for sure though…
If the kinks in the hose are not taken care of,
It ruins the entire project.
"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 NIV).
DSR
7/7/02