I don't know if I've mentioned it on here before, but I'm really into gardening. Now that I think about it I think that I have shared that before. It started with a rose bush for my wife's birthday, which led to a book being purchased. Then it turned into a second rose bush, two different raspberry bushes, and two blueberry buses, leading to a second book being purchased. And the second book is what really did it.
The book is Vegetable, Fruit & Herb Gardening, from Better Homes & Gardens. As I've flipped through the pages of edible plants I've learned just how much it is possible to grow in your backyard. With that I've started to dream and plan.
I've got an idea for a twenty-five tree orchard (15 apple trees, 10 golden delicious [the best all-around apple] and 5 Granny Smith, 2 pear trees, 4 cherry trees, 2 sweet, 2 sour, and 4 peach trees) which will be surrounded by a two rail split rail fence. to the south of that will be grape vines, (Concord, Niagara, and a red one I can't remember the name of) and south of those will be the berries, Latham Red raspberries, Fall Gold raspberries, Blue crop blueberries, and if I'm in a warm enough area blackberries. I'll throw some strawberries in there somewhere, just not sure where yet.
To the west of all of the fruit I'm hoping to get a couple bee hives, for pollination and honey. And to the east is where the vegetables will be. I have an idea for three sections; right now I'm thinking 30'x30', to rotate pumpkins, sweet corn, and watermelon in. Then a larger section, not sure on the size yet, for things like green beans, tomatoes, peanuts, peppers, carrots, potatoes, etc. If I'm really blessed, I'd like a small greenhouse to grow dwarf citrus trees and herbs in year round.
That's my gardening hope someday. But for now, I'm simply tending to the plants I've bought or started. I have one Granny Smith apple tree I started from a seed, and I planted some cherry pits, but what's growing doesn't look like a cherry tree. I mentioned the roses and the berry bushes, but one thing I haven't talked about is the watermelon patch I started in May, the reason I started the post.
I don't know how many seeds I planted, but I have five healthy watermelon vines. I have four melons that are nearly ripe, at least four that are starting to grow, and I've lost four to various things. Not bad for the first time I've ever grown watermelon in my life. The trick now is knowing when to pick them. I've read the watermelon page of my book over and over, and according to it they aren't quite ripe yet. I'm getting anxious. Every morning I examine them, some you can easily see have grown, others it isn't as obvious with. Every day I check to see if they are ripe, but none are ready to be picked yet.
It's important that they are perfectly ripe because my book has told me that watermelon will not continue to ripen once they are cut from the vine. This morning as I was checking the signs to see if they were ready it hit me. When a Christian is removed from the vine we no longer grow, or even ripen.
Jesus said in John 15.5, "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing."
The purpose of Christianity is for us to become like Christ. We are to grow and be molded into Christlikeness. We are to ripen as fruit that God can harvest. But if we aren't connected to the vine there is no life being given to us. If we aren't connected to the vine there are no nutrients being fed to us. If we aren't connected to the vine, growth cannot take place.
Maybe you've grown in Christ, maybe you have some head, and even some heart, knowledge of Him, but that doesn't mean it's time to be removed from the vine, there is still ripening that has to take place. If fruit is picked too early then it's lacking flavor. It won't fully satisfy because it isn't fully developed. No matter long we've walked with Christ, we must never remove ourselves from the vine. When it comes to Christlikeness we are never done growing, we are never done ripening, until we die.
It's at that point that God comes and harvests us. He picks the fruit and brings it into His storehouse. But only when it is fully ripe, only when it is done growing. God is the one who must remove us from the vine, because only God knows when we are ready to be harvested.
As long as you have breath, stay connected to the vine of Jesus, because apart from Him we can do nothing. We are to become like Christ, but if we aren't connected to Him, that cannot happen. Stay connected to the vine. Grow and ripen.
To God alone be the Glory!
Peace be with you
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