Jesus begins this teaching with a clear statement: Suffering is not God’s punishment, nor is success a sign of special blessing. Life is littered with unexpected pain, but those things do not reveal the nature of God.*
But Jesus’ parable of the barren fig tree leaves me wondering. Not so much about the protective gardener who begs the owner for just one more year to see if he can coax fruit from the barren tree, but about the tree itself. Why isn’t it bearing fruit? Are there no bees? Too little water? Spent soil? Excess heat? Is it too old or gnarled?
As a sometime gardener myself, the tree speaks to me of my spiritual life, rooted and grounded in the natural rhythms of life and death. Perhaps I have taken its seasonal productivity for granted. Have I let my health or close relationships fall into a routine? Become complacent about spiritual matters? Let my attention spread and grow shallow? When I ask those questions, answers arise. If God is the gardener and I am living in a one-year grace period, what needs to change?
A close friend has been living with stage IV cancer for several years and I see her drawing closer to sun and water, prayer and close friends for sustenance. She is thoughtful and kind to service providers. She chooses colorful T-shirts with a positive message – for herself and others. She names truth where others waffle. Her energy is focused on what she can do, and not what she can’t do. With special attention to this grace period, she is bearing new fruit.
