When I was a child, one of my favorite radio programs was called “The Answer Lies in the Soil.” It was run by the Natural Resources Board of Rhodesia, teaching farmers how to get the most out of their land. My grandfather, an agricultural extension officer, and my father, who worked for the Agricultural Research Council and Land Bank, were both deeply connected to this calling of nurturing the earth. For me, those broadcasts planted seeds that would grow into a lifelong awareness that our very lives depend on the soil beneath our feet. That we are merely stewards of the earth we are given.

We often forget how much our daily bread depends on cycles of nature and the quiet miracle of fertile soil. In our modern world of supermarkets and speed, we lose sight of the patient rhythms of nature that sustain us.

The Art of Vinemaking

Recently, I read The Art of Vinemaking by Bette Dickinson. It resonated deeply, not only because I once lived near the Cape vineyards, but because of how she connected the art of tending vines to the words of Jesus: “I am the true vine, and you are the branches” (John 15:5). Dickinson emphasizes something that surprised me: it was not the fruit, but the soil that was crucial to making good wine. She reminds us that good fruit comes only when the soil has been nourished, protected, and tended. Her words took me straight back to that old radio program, and to the truth that the answer really does lie in the soil.

Traditionally, farmers knew the importance of rest for the land. They allowed fields to lie fallow for a season, planted cover crops to restore nutrients, and rotated crops to avoid depleting the earth. Today, with artificial fertilizers and mechanical farming, we often bypass those ancient rhythms. Productivity rises for a while, but the soil itself becomes tired, depleted, and lifeless. What it needs most is what we also need: rest, renewal, and nourishment from natural sources.

Time to Replenish the Soil

And isn’t that the story of our souls as well? In our pursuit of constant productivity, we too can become exhausted. We chase outcomes, deadlines, and growth at any cost, forgetting that we are not machines: we are branches connected to the Vine. Just as soil cannot produce endlessly without time to replenish, neither can we flourish without seasons of rest, Sabbath, and abiding in Christ.

Perhaps this is a good moment to ask ourselves: What soil am I cultivating around me? Do I make space for silence, reflection, and prayer? Do I allow relationships, creativity, and faith to take root and grow? Or have I poured on artificial quick fixes, producing for a time but leaving my inner soil depleted?

God is our Vinedresser

The truth is, God is the Vinedresser. He knows what season we are in, whether it is planting, pruning, producing, or resting. Our task is not to keep pushing for fruit, but to remain in Him: “Abide in me, and I in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine” (John 15:4).

The answer really does lie in the soil. If we tend to the ground of our lives, taking time to rest, be nourished, and abide in Christ, fruit will come in its season. Not rushed, not forced, but as a natural overflow of God’s care and our rootedness in Him.

So let us pause. Let us watch the seasons. Let us trust the Vinedresser. For in both the land and in life, the secret of flourishing is found not in endless striving, but in cultivating good soil.

🌱 Devotional Thought
The secret to fruitfulness is not striving, but abiding. Just as soil needs rest and renewal, so do our souls. Let us entrust ourselves to the hands of the Vinedresser, abiding in the True Vine, and trust that in due season, the fruit will come (Galatians 6:9; John 15:5).

I had often wondered what the word ‘abide’ had meant when Jesus said we were to ‘abide in Him’ as He was the vine, we were the branches.  My vine just grew and did what vines do: bear fruit. It was I, the ‘vinedresser’ who had to do the training, pruning, and harvesting to the vine. This is a liberating thought, that we just need to be still and keep connected to our Creator. He is the one who brings the flow of sap and nourishment the vine needs each year to bear fruit. Even more so, there will be different seasons, seasons when we just rest, and seasons when we grow and bear fruit. It is God who sends the rain and the sea breezes to water the vines. In so many ways, we depend on His grace for our environment to flourish. This made me think of the verse from Micah,

“He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up the sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. Everyone will sit under their own vine and fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the Lord Almighty has spoken.”(4:3,4 ).

Our world is in chaos around us, filling us with dread at what the future holds. We are waiting for the word of the Almighty to speak peace to the nations. Whatever the outcome of our world leader's decisions, we remain dependent on God to speak His peace, so we will be able to sit under our vines in peace.

If you would like to explore more about environmental rejuvenation, spiritual harmony, and sustainable living in our journey towards a brighter, greener future. Please subscribe to my monthly newsletter as I will feature the poem in it. Additionally, I can offer you a coloring poster to help you identify your needs, boundaries, weeds, and future seeds. This is a meditative exercise, giving you time to slow down and think about these things. Get this here.