Hi, this is pastoral number 11 on Friday the 29th of May and I'm not on the Castle
East Plainade and I'm not on my little green chair in the church. I'm actually in the back
garden of the Mance and took you into this beautiful part of the world. I guess if you're
privileged enough to have a garden at this time of lockdown then probably all through
Edinburgh the gardens have never looked quite so good and quite so well tended and there's
a great verse I just want to share thinking about just for a little bit from Isaiah 61
verse 11 which is for as the soil makes this makes the sprout come up and a garden causes
seeds to grow so the sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all
the nations. Now in my tatties here in the back now the tatties are a fine example I tilled the
ground cut it ready I got the seeds and I planted them and I covered them and I watered them and
I had nothing to do with their growth whatsoever that happened it just happened and there's
nothing I can do to make it go I can't look for goodness sake come on grow quicker or I want
you to give me at least 55 potatoes when you're ready it just doesn't work like that and I simply
have to sit back and rest and wait for the potatoes to grow and that's really what God's
speaking about in Isaiah chapter 61 he's reminding us if we look last Sunday at Paul planted and
Apollos watered but it's God who gives the increase and we're reminded of that and there's nothing
really that we can do and I just want to encourage you again about that to keep praying to the Lord
of the harvest and keep sowing the seeds in the hearts of different people and water that seed
by the way you love and care for them and look after them and show them the love of Jesus and I
don't think that's just about evangelism I think that's in our own lives as well I think sometimes
we feel a bit like we seed potatoes before they come out on top of the ground in the dark
nothing seems to be happening it's cold and we don't feel God's presence we don't feel
very much alive like anything's happening but we're encouraged to weigh on him and to
look forward to feeling the warmth of Sunday again with him so I think there's always lots we can learn
from nature from gardens and they're a beautiful reminder to us of what he wants us to do and he
wants us as believers to bear his fruit and you know what that fruit is the love the joy the peace
the patience the kindness the goodness the gentleness and the self-control and he wants us to have all
these that fruit in our lives and we look forward to bearing more and more fruit and living in a
place eternally a beautiful garden and with all these things will be just par for the course on
every day so continue to pray continue to look for the harvest and I look forward to seeing you on Sunday
thanks