Gardening in God's Kingdom

This is the time of year that gardeners get antsy. The seed catelogs show enough produce to make your mouth water; the big berries, tomatoes, ears of corn. At the same time our stock of canned and saved goods is running low. I just used the last jar of tomatoes. The potatoes that are left are small, and some are starting to sprout, as if they know planting time is approaching.
Our best gardening year was the only year we gardened with my father-in-law. We had cabbage and beans and cucumbers, peppers, pumpkins, tomatoes, eggplants and herbs. Our cherry tomato plants were huge bushes that produced hundreds of bite size tomatoes. My husband and I couldn't believe how much the garden produced with seemingly so little effort.
My father-in-law died before we could plant our next garden. After he was gone we realized how much work he put into our garden. We prepared the soil, we planted the seeds and plants, we watered sometimes, but he weeded and watered inbetween our visits.
Our work in God's kingdom is that way. We may plant a seed, or we may water it, or we may pull a weed or two, but God is the one doing most of the work. Behind the scenes he's preparing hearts, preparing messages for those hearts, working in those hearts. And He's the harvester, determining when each plant is ready and has produced to it's full capacity.
As for us, we keep tending the garden. Once we're home, we'll share in the harvest.