Gardens birth beauty and radiate with life. They bring rest. Refreshment. And refocus. A place of solitude. A place to think. A place to steal away for perspective.

Gardens are also places where brokenness lives. Seeds fall. Bury. Break. And are then birthed into new life. Pruning takes place in the garden. Weeds are pulled. Dead limbs trimmed away. And soil is tilled and softened.

In life we find ourselves in one of two gardens. A garden of pressing, crushing, pruning, or brokenness. Or a garden blooming with new life, vibrant color, and resurrection.

Jesus visited both of these gardens. One of betrayal and pain. One of victory and conquering death. This week as we celebrate Easter may we take a minute to revisit and ponder on all that the Garden of Gethsemane and the garden tomb reveal to us today. May our heart be illuminated with new light into these two gardens and the transforming power available to you and me in whatever garden you find yourself in today: A garden full of despair, sorrow, and pain or the garden of life, power, and victory.