Bible Reading: 2 Peter 1:1-19
It's easy to tell when a person spends a lot of time working in his garden. It is neat. There are no weeds. Everything looks beautiful. It's flowers or fruits and vegetables are abundant. The well-tended garden is productive. You can tell the gardener enjoys caring for that kind of garden.
It's also easy to tell when a person neglects his garden. The neglected garden if full of weeds. The plants are choked and withered looking from lack of water and attacked by insects. Flowers, fruit, and vegetables don't grow well in the neglected garden. It's easy to see that the gardener doesn't really care about that garden.
Our spiritual lives will be like one of these gardens.
If our spiritual life is like the well-tended garden, it is because we tend to the things in our lives such as daily Bible reading and prayer, Bible memorization, and church attendance. We work to develop the qualities found in verses 5-7 of today's Bible reading in our lives. These verses say, "...add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love." When we do these things, our spiritual lives will flourish and grow. We will become closer to God. We will grow deeper in our faith. We will produce fruit and draw other people to Jesus Christ.
If our spiritual lives are like the neglected garden, it is because we are careless about spiritual things. We neglect daily Bible reading and prayer. We refuse to memorize scripture. We don't go to church regularly. When we neglect these things, our spiritual life withers. It becomes choked and lifeless. We drift away from God. Our faith weakens. We become unproductive and unable to draw people into relationships with Jesus Christ.
Which kind of garden does your spiritual life resemble?
"Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 1:10 & 11
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to tend to the spiritual things in my life ever day so my life will be like a beautiful, well-tended garden in Your sight. In Jesus' name. Amen."