Sun 9:30a Class; 10:30a Worship; 11:35a Communion
Bible Bites
The Garden of Your Soul
“All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father (Jacob) said to them when he blessed them. He blessed them, every one with the blessing appropriate to him.” (Gen 49:28)
When Jacob blessed his twelve sons, he did so with divine authority behind those blessings. It is interesting to read through the list of blessings given by Jacob to his sons in Genesis 49.
Though, I confess, I don’t understand the significance of all the things he said, it is clear that some of those sons received blessings that look an awful lot like curses. Dan is described as a “horned snake in the path”, Levi and Simeon are told God would “scatter them in Israel” because of their cruelty, and Reuben is guaranteed he will never have any “preeminence” because of choices he had made with a woman named Bilhah in Genesis 35.
On the other hand, Naphtali is told he will give “beautiful words”, and that sounds nice. So does Asher’s blessing of being one who would have rich food and “yield royal dainties”. I’d happily take those blessings.
But God gave each boy a blessing appropriate to him. A blessing to their legacy that matched the people they were. Their future, and the future of each of the tribes that would come from them, matched the lives they led.
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. (Galatians 6:7)
Remember the parable of the sower? People are the dirt in that story. Dirt is a blank canvas. It leaves room for you to plant any number of things. I’ve seen patches of dirt full of weeds right next to a plot full of watermelons. Nobody really cares about dirt all by itself, but we care an awful lot about what we can get out of the soil. You are dirt, and that means you are full of potential. You can plant good things in the garden of your life. Plant God’s Word, water it with time around the right kind of people, and fertilize with faithful works, and you will find some pretty wonderful things growing in the garden of your life. The types of things that would give you a blessing appropriate to the legacy of someone who followed Christ.
However, if you don’t do that, you still will grow things. Weeds don’t need to be planted; they just blow in all on their own. Neglect and poor management have led to a lot of Christians turning into pew-sitters who wonder what happened after all the years. “Where did all these weeds come from,” they ask? Turns out, they just showed up when we weren’t doing anything. You can’t have a beautiful garden without purposeful planting and regular tending.
It all goes back to what God told Adam and Eve – tend the garden and keep it. Only this garden is more important than Eden! Tend and keep the garden of your soul.
