My inlaws have been providing us with fresh vegetables from their garden. We've had green beans, squash, and potatoes so far. I think tomotoes, my favorite, are coming next. They are both very good gardeners, something I appreciate very much though I do almost no gardening myself.
Most people believe that the results from gardening are in direct proportion to the skills and efforts of the gardener. Most people believe that the key ingredient to a garden yielding large volumes of tasty vegetables is a good gardener. This belief extends into all aspects of life, such as the level of success in a career, the yield of our financial investments, how our children turn out, etc. Most of us, including me to a great extent, believe that all outcome is the result of the hard work done by us. We believe that the level of our skill and the amount of our effort are the key ingredients to the quality of the results.
I don't want to be disparging to gardeners, but you couldn't even grow a single tomato plant if it were left entirely up to you.
Gardening is hard work. I understand that the ground has to be prepared, the seeds planted at a proper time at a proper depth, the ground watered the proper amount, the proper amount of light provided, and the weeds, insects and birds must be fought off constantly. Sure, as a gardener you have to do your part, but who is doing the heavy lifting? Who designed that seed? Who created the genetic code to turn that seed into a tomato plant? Who designed the system of roots, stems, leaves and flowers that are all just a support system for the tomato? And who caused that seed to transform into a much higher complex lifeform, rather than just rot in the ground?
We work, God makes it fruitful. Even the best gardener is only doing a small share of the work, God does all the heavy lifting and it is His work that overwhelmingly influences the outcome. Don't believe me? Cain was a farmer by trade, but when God quit doing His part, Cain could not grow anything. See Genesis 4:12.
This should take some pressure off of us performance-oriented people. I just need to do my part, I don't have to do it all, and I have only a small impact on the outcome.
