Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. Colossians 1:20 (emphasis mine)
ORIGINALLY POSTED June 19, 2012
On one of the last days of school, my youngest daughter, Sophie, bounded through the front door, clear solo cup in hand. It was full of soil with a sunflower seedling poking through the surface. She exclaimed, “Mom! Look what I grew at school!”
This little sprout had already endured a bus ride with a bunch of rowdy children and the walk from the bus stop to our house, so I decided to give it all the TLC I could to help it to grow.
I immediately placed it in my kitchen window sill and that’s where it’s been until today. It’s grown over a foot now and it’s roots look like a road map in the soil. To be honest, it’s maximized it’s living space and now needs a bigger home.
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PINIMAGEWhenever I’m standing at the sink, I study it’s leaves, water it and assess it’s health. It has been clear for some time that it needs to be re-potted.
My husband, Mark, loves to garden and I’ve learned a lot by watching him. There’s so much more to producing beautiful flowers and plants than just planting them and walking away. He prunes the bushes. He waters them. He keeps a watchful eye on them so that no pests attack them. (Great word picture, isn’t it?!?)
We sat talking one morning about the sunflower on the sill.
I said to him,
“Hun, have you noticed Sophie’s sunflower in the sill, how it’s grown?”
“Yeah, it looks like it has outgrown it’s space.”
“I know, I can’t imagine it could get any bigger in that little cup.”
“Well, it can’t. In fact, it will begin to die if we don’t give it a larger place to grow.”
I sat thinking. Now isn’t that something?…not only would remaining where it was inhibit further growth…it would actually cause the plant to begin to die. I’ve seen the same pattern in my Christian life.
God plants me in new soil. After a time of adjustment, I begin to take root and grow. Sometimes the conditions God has chosen for me, aren’t my favorite but with daily care from the Gardner…I thrive. In fact, in most cases, I get quite used to my new environment. I begin to settle in.
Eventually, God sees that I’ve maximized my space and my growth and decides it’s time to be replanted. God knows that staying where I am will inhibit my growth and lead to complacency. It will keep me from the dreams He has for me.
You know what’s crazy?…Sunflowers can grow to be 15 feet tall! But not in a solo cup. Not in my window sill. Wouldn’t be possible.
Here’s the truth…God wants us to grow to our fullest potential! And, it may require being re-potted.
If I’m not growing…I’m dying.
Are you experiencing a solo cup existence? I’ve gotta tell you there’s more…much, much more!
Perhaps God (the Great Gardner) desires to replant you. He sees your full potential and knows you cannot reach it where you are. He desires to see you thriving in big open spaces with Him. Will you let Him have His way? Maybe today, like me, you can learn from the sunflower on the sill.
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