A Garden Hose as a Metaphor for the Productive Christian Life: Fixing Damaged Hoses

The hoses in our garden do not stay in pristine condition. They can’t if they are going to fulfill their purposes. Some are accidentally sliced by the lawn mower.  Others develop leaks around the fixtures. Some sort of issue is inevitable. That doesn’t mean that they are no longer useful. We fix them and put them back into service. 

Both of those dynamics occur in the lives of those who seek to fulfill the purposes God created them for.

We will get banged up one way or another. Everyone of us will be impaired by fatigue, disbelief, or fear at some point(s) in our lives. Look at Elijah, Thomas, and Peter; they were true servants, but they each had their moments of weakness. See 1 Kings 19, John 20:24-29, and John 13:38, 18:17, 25-27.   Some of us will be bruised by run ins with non-believers; Paul and Silas’ experience, described in John 16:33, is an example of that.  Jesus bluntly acknowledged this when he told us in John 16:33 that “in the world you will have hardship.” 

But God will fix and continue to use us if we will accept His loving repairs. God got Elijah, Thomas, Peter, Paul, and Silas through their difficulties and continued to use them. We cannot forget the second part of Jesus’ statement in John 16:33: “be courageous: I have conquered the world.”

So how does God repair us? Prayer seems to be key. He helped Elijah, Thomas, and Peter out of their desolations by drawing them into conversation with Him. 1 Kings 19:9-10, 13; John 20:27, John 21:15-19. Paul and Silas were delivered after they were “praying and singing God’s praises.” Acts 16:25. The Psalms record multiple instances of devout servants crying out to God in their distress. See e.g. Psalm 3:4, 18:6,118:5, and 120:1. James 5:13 put it well: “[a]ny one of you who is in trouble should pray.”