Co-op Farming - the importance of community to a Christian lifestyle

Poor guy - he's really kinda irrelevant in the whole process

While reading this morning, I came across an interesting fact.  In farming, human work and care only has about 5% to do with the crop that actually comes up.  Which is interesting to me.  So many other factors have to be present, or the best care in the world can't achieve any kind of fruitful harvest.  There has to be so much potassium, so much nitrogen, and so many other things already existing in the soil - the farmer can't really put them there.   Then there's climate.  Only so much rain, only so much sun, only so many cold spells, only so much heat.  It's really kind of exhausting to think about all the work that goes in and how it only matters a small percentage.  This is why I'll never EVER be a farmer. 
The context of my reading had to do with the parable of the Sower, in Matthew 13:1-23.  You know the story - the one where Jesus is talking about the Word of God as a seed.  Anyway, at the end He tells about the seed that fell in good soil, and how it produces 30-100 times that of the other seeds.

I began to think about the soil in my own heart - wondering what condition it was in, what I could do to improve the conditions in my heart.  I began to think about what kind of fruit I was producing.  And I was comparing fruit not only of discipleship, but also fruit of the Spirit.  You know, from Galatians 5 (and that really fantastic Steve Green kid's song...) where it talks about "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self control"  (which I only ever remember because of that song...).  I began to wonder what other things contribute to the growth of fruit in my own life.  What are the climate and soil conditions that influence the size of my harvest?  What kind of fruit have I grown, and what can I do to grow the rest?

The main thing I can come up with is that it's this whole community farming idea.  To produce certain fruit, it will be better if you surround yourself with certain nutrients.

Warning: I'm gonna get real here.

I'm gonna go ahead and say that I've grown some love, some patience, kindness, and goodness already.  I have been told by others they're there.  I'm seeing some longsuffering starting to bud as well as some self-control.  Peace is struggling along.  But I'm really lacking joy in my life.  I am not a very joyful person right now.  Mom and I were discussing it last night.  So, obviously, it needs some help.

So I did a quick investigation about why joy isn't growing well.  Don't get me wrong - there's a little yellow leaf on the joy plant.  BUT it's yellow, it's droopy, and it's just not very healthy.

It might have something to do with the unemployment, the bills to pay, the car-less-ness and a bunch of other stuff that just doesn't seem to be going right.  But I'm a big proponent of the idea that a Christian's joy is not dependent on their circumstances.  A Christian's joy should come out of someplace different.

I want that joy, but I'm feeling so bogged down by my circumstances. I'm trying to look beyond the circumstances and upward to Christ and find my joy in Him, but it's hard on my own when everything is weighing my head down.  And I'm not surrounded by the most joyful people at home.  Cause we're all in the same situation.  We're all stuck.

Some nutrient just isn't to be found in my home soil.

Which means it needs to be brought in by somebody.

That's where this whole idea of co-op farming comes in.  If I'm in community that's paying attention to the way things are going on the farm, they're gonna see that the amount of joy in me is not producing fruit.  They should ask me questions to diagnose the problem: Are you in the Word? yes.  Are you in prayer? yes.  Are you LISTENING to God's voice? trying.  Are you in community? yes. 

A bunch of college kids in a co-op.  Look how joyful they are!

They should probably see what needs to be done.  I'm thinking joy is like mulch - you gotta spread it around a little - especially where people don't want it around and don't produce it on your own.  At first, the un-joy-full person is annoyed.  It stinks.  But then it works its way down into your heart and begins to help that flower bloom, just like the nutrients in the mulch.

But I don't have mulch.  Cue the Co-op idea.  Someone who has it should pile it on! And then, when my harvest comes in, and they need a little of what they helped me produce, I should share what I've gotten.  After all, I am only responsible for 5% of the harvest.  Everything else is God and others used by God to get the results He wants.