Much labor, but no fruit

I have spent so much time this summer taking care of my garden. From the day it was tilled until now I have spent seemingly endless hours out there. I carefully planned out strategically where to plant each vegetable row and I always scatter rows of flowers throughout the garden so it always looks beautiful! We carefully marked each row with a small white flag so that our new puppy would mistake the flags for the invisible fence and leave the garden alone. My plants were nicely established before she realized the garden was fair game!

As the weeks progressed and the plants started growing I was so excited about the coming harvest. I then began to realize that the deer tracks in my garden every morning and the missing sunflowers and beans were becoming a common pattern. Then my now 70 lb puppy discovered the joys of picking and eating vegetables! She eats cucumbers, beans, cabbages, broccoli and tomatoes. I went to pick tomatoes to make spaghetti sauce and realized I will never harvest any significant tomatoes this year. They are missing!!! The plants are beautiful, they are taller than me. Nice healthy foliage but all the ripe tomatoes are being consumed by my lovely dog. Many of the vegetables are being eaten by the deer that live in the woods behind our home. I’m pretty certain there is a conspiracy going on and the deer have made plans to rotate each night and take turns visiting my beautiful garden.

After I weeded this morning, I sat on the porch swing gazing at my garden and just filled with disappointment. The plants are lovely but there just isn’t much fruit. I began to think about the scriptures that talk about bearing fruit. It became so much clearer to me how much the Lord is desiring His children to bear fruit.

We can go to church every Sunday and be nourished and fed by the Word of God. We can go through all the motions of church attendance but show no signs of spiritual growth. How many times have we felt convicted by a good sermon, maybe even made comments to others about It, but failed to make any changes in our lives? Maybe we need to reach out and help someone who is struggling and yet we simply can’t find the time? Maybe we need to forgive someone but our pride won’t allow us to?

I thought about how much we want to take the easy way and not reach out to someone weaker. Maybe all they need to bear fruit is a little prayer and encouragement? Maybe they didn’t have someone who cared enough to show them the way?

My garden didn’t get the opportunity this year to bear fruit because of the relentless deer and my dog. We, however do not have an excuse! When we resolve to make a change that we believe the Lord is wanting us to make we need to press through all the discouragement un til we see the fruit that He is requiring come forth!