With the signs of spring emerging, many of us turn our thoughts to Earth’s seasonal regeneration with trees budding, early flowers appearing, pollinators buzzing, and all the signs of new life around us. For those who are gardeners, it is a time of spring chores: pruning, preparing beds, and planting seeds.

Gardening is not just a popular hobby but, in a way, our first profession. Adam and Eve tended the Garden. They were gardeners. It is no surprise, then, that Jesus — the New Adam — was found in the garden after the resurrection and mistaken by Mary Magdalene as the Gardener tending to the new creation (the new Eden). This is the hope of Easter: that through Jesus’ resurrection, God is actively restoring and renewing our world, making glimpses of the goodness of Jesus and this new Eden visible to us now.

CommonSpirit Health is also experiencing a new spring. As we grow as a unified ministry to support and serve our communities, Easter is the time to reflect on how effectively our ministry tends, cultivates and nurtures the flourishing of both our communities and our team members. We pay special attention to the sufferings of the most vulnerable of the people we encounter. Our mission at CommonSpirit calls us to nurture the communities we serve into thriving “gardens.”

Thankfully, this is not our work alone. Jesus calls us to tend the garden with him. This is why we rely on our faith in God’s presence and goodness, and on the guidance of the Spirit to be an integral part of our healing ministry.

Questions for Reflection:

• What aspect of gardens and springtime bring you hope?
• How does the image of Jesus as a gardener — in a new Eden — expand your understanding of the Easter story?

May you have a blessed Easter, knowing that the new creation is unfolding!

(Text courtesy of Tom Kopfensteiner, Chief Mission Officer, CommonSpirit Health.)