"Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness."
Today I played hooky from work so that I could be in my flower beds prepping them for another season of beauty. Last year the drought in the area took its toll on them and by the end of the growing season they looked like they had come through a drought. Have any of you ever felt like you've come through a drought spiritually? Your very soul feels parched and void of the holy living waters that dwell deep within your soul. It's a difficult time isn't it, to feel parched and thirsty for the holy spirit to rain down on you? You look in your spiritual mirrors and long to see the beautiful rose of sharon standing before you, but instead you see something that looks more like a thistle or a weed ready to be plucked out of the garden and discarded.
The good news is there is spring rain. We've all been complaining about the over abundance of rain that we've been receiving here at home but honestly without the rain we would not have the gorgeous green grass on our lawns with the dead spots caused by the drought from last year revitalized. Almost all those spots have somehow been restored. That's how it is with our spiritual dryness too. We take our little faith seed that we know is within us and we begin to fertilize it with goodness by reading the word and gaining the knowledge we need to grow, to learn self-control, perseverance and godliness...holiness.
In everything there are seasons of life. The plants and trees in our gardens, yards and parks that surround us experience a dormant time, a dying/pruning season and what we enjoy the most...the new life that burst forth. I don't know about you, but my favorite time of year is watching the buds form on the trees, seeing the flowers begin to bloom, watching the little bees go from flower to flower spreading the pollen helping life to continue. It's a beautiful thing to see nature at work, to know that we have a creator who orchestrated the whole thing. It's an even greater thing to see growth in one another, to watch a brother or a sister come through their drought and to begin to bloom again. Or maybe it's us, maybe we were the ones that God quieted for a moment, for a season to bring us to full bloom again in our spirit.
I can't say that I enjoy the pruning or the weeding in my gardens nor can I say that I enjoy the pruning or the weeding in the gardens of my soul but it is necessary. This weekend was a weekend of great growth for me personally. I was able to take that small seed of faith along with a lot of watering cans called prayer warriors to grow this past Sunday. I was able to see small buds appear on a branch of my tree that has long been dormant. I think I'll continue to water it and see what God wants to do from there.
What season are you in today? Are you growing in the fruit of the spirit or are you in a drought that is in desperate need of some healing rains? Call on your watering cans, they are waiting to pray with you...to be the stakes in life to support you until you are strong enough to stand mightily on your own basking in the sOnshine.
Blessings,
Heather
