Looking for the Garden
Looking for the Garden
I love how the Bible is essentially bookended by gardens. It starts in Eden, where we walked with God in the cool of the day, and then we spent the rest of history trying to get back there.
Throughout the Old Testament, God dropped these little "winks" that He was bringing the garden back to us. If you look at the blueprints for the Tabernacle, it’s covered in garden imagery—lampstands like almond trees and walls carved with flowers. Even the massive 4-inch thick veil keeping us from His presence was embroidered with Cherubim, just like the ones guarding the entrance to Eden.
But our human tendency is to look for the "Garden"—the peace, the provision, the blessings—instead of the Gardener. In the midst of hurt, war, pain, suffering, we love to sing, "When we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be," and yeah, I’m looking forward to that too! But we actually have an abundant, fruit-filled life available to us right now.
We see this so clearly with Mary Magdalene at the tomb. She’s standing there crying, looking at a man she assumes is just the gardener. She was looking for a body, a solution to her grief, or maybe just some "stuff" from the garden.
“Thinking he was the gardener, she said, 'Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.' Jesus said to her, 'Mary.'" (John 20:14-16)
Everything shifted the second He said her name. There was instant recognition. The veil in the temple had already been torn, but in that moment, another veil was gone.
It’s a beautiful reminder that returning to "the Garden" isn't about a change in our scenery or finally getting the life we want. Whether we are in our home country or serving across the globe, the core of our mission isn't just to find a better "land," but to help others hear the voice of the One who knows them by name.
We have so much freedom in Christ to enjoy His creation, but let’s not get so caught up in the "benefits" that we forget the voice of the One who planted it all. Stop looking for the garden today and listen for the Gardener.
-Your MissioCare Collective Team