Planted in Good Ground: The Power of a Nourished Environment

Nourished Environments and Spiritual Growth

Your environment matters to your growth. It is not just about showing up and being present. The real question is: Is the environment you are in conducive to producing fruit in your life?

Psalm 92:13 says, “Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.” This verse is often quoted to encourage church attendance, but it goes deeper than just being inside a building. It is not about where you sit physically. It is about where you are rooted spiritually. You can be surrounded by spiritual activity and still be in soil that is dry, shallow, malnourished, or depleted.

To flourish in the courts of God means being planted in a place where His presence dwells, where His truth is active, and where growth is possible. Nourished environments matter physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

And I didn’t just learn this in theory. I learned it through a tomato plant.

A Simple Gardening Story with a Deep Lesson

Earlier this year, I decided I wanted to grow a few vegetables. Nothing too serious, just something new to try. I started with tomatoes because I love tomatoes.

I picked up a baby plant, did some research, and read that tomatoes need to be fed every couple of weeks. I used potting soil, tilled it with regular ground soil, and planted my tomato plant. About two weeks later, I added some vegetable food to the soil to stay on the feeding schedule.

I had read the directions and followed the instructions for growing tomatoes, but after I fed the plant, it died.

Later on, while shopping for a replacement plant, I ran into this older gentleman at Home Depot. We started talking, and when he heard I was trying to grow tomatoes, his eyes lit up. He said, “Get the potting soil from the feed store that already has nutrients and food in it. Plant straight into that. That is your cheat code. Give the plant the best possible environment from the start.”

So I tried it.

This time, I used only the nutrient-rich potting soil, without adding any food. And just like that, the new plant started to grow.

Not All Water Is Created Equal

As the plant started growing, I learned another important lesson, this time about watering.

I noticed that when I watered it with tap water, too much of it would hurt the plant. The leaves would yellow or droop. But when it rained, even if it poured, the plant would thrive. It would literally grow faster overnight. I couldn’t understand how the rain could completely saturate the plant and yet cause it to spring up, but when I watered it, the leaves would still wither.

I felt like there had to be something in the rainwater that wasn’t present in other sources of water.

So I did a little research and found that there is actually a very important difference between rainwater and sources like tap water. It turns out rainwater naturally contains nitrogen, and not just any nitrogen, but the kind that plants can absorb immediately. Tap water does not offer that. Rainwater carries something living. Something that taps into the plant’s God-designed potential and causes growth and flourishing in a way that other sources simply cannot.

God-Given Growth Starts in the Right Environment

The lesson I took from my tomato plant experience is this:

You can do everything that seems right, but if the environment is wrong, if the soil is lacking or the water is off, you will either kill the plant or stunt its growth.

You cannot fake nourishment. Effort is not the same as growth. While growth ultimately depends on what only God can do, that does not dismiss the importance of being in the right soil, with the right nourishment, and under the right conditions.

If growth feels slow, check your soil. If your leaves are drooping, check your water source. If your spirit feels dry or stuck, check what you are planted in. Check your environment.

Final Reflection: Where Are You Planted?

Your environment is like a system. A system that either supports your growth, stunts it, or kills it altogether.

Being planted is not about proximity. It is about purpose. For growth to happen, the soil, the water, and the atmosphere must work together.

So if you are not growing, it might not be you. It might be where you are planted.