God loves gardens, Jesus loves roasted Fish!

Many years ago, while working as a staff member and departmental head in a faith-based organisation, we regularly held weekly planning meetings to strategies for outreach and soul-winning drives. I recall that whenever we discussed potential locations to find unbelievers, a certain garden—ironically named Eden—always came up. Many of us held the notion at the time that only sinners and those who did not know God spent time in gardens.

However, with time and divine enlightenment, my perspective changed. I discovered a certain exclusive garden in a part of the city where I currently reside, and my experiences there have reshaped my understanding. First, I realised that not everyone in a garden lacks God in their hearts. Second, I found that a peaceful and exclusive garden can be a perfect place for recreation, solitude, and receiving fresh, ground-breaking, and destiny-shaping ideas. Third, I came to understand why God loves gardens and why Jesus enjoyed roasted fish.

As a creative person, spending time in a tranquil, nature-filled garden while indulging in well-prepared roasted fish is one of my ways of unlocking inspiration. It fuels my creativity, just as playing lawn tennis, composing, or listening to uplifting music does.

If you still hold the narrow and baseless belief that those who relax in gardens, enjoy life, or partake in good things are either sinners or idle individuals, I urge you to liberate yourself from such thinking.

Great things are often birthed in natural, serene environments. I have received inspiration to write simply by spending a few hours alone in a garden—of course, while eating roasted fish!

When I explored the scriptures, I noticed that the two greatest events in human history—the creation of man and the finished work of Christ (His death, burial, and resurrection)—both took place in gardens: Eden and Gethsemane. Moreover, the Almighty God Himself visited Adam every evening in the garden. What an extraordinary setting for divine fellowship!

This message is particularly for those ‘overly religious’ African churchgoers who remain too rigid to embrace and enjoy the natural beauty that God has freely given us.

Do not be so heaven-focused that you merely exist on this earth without enjoying the abundant blessings God has provided.

Plan vacations, explore nature, and embrace the tranquillity of islands, gardens, and other scenic locations.

God loves gardens, Jesus loves roasted fish… and so do I.

Do you feel me?

Sharoneez Emephia