I admit I am not much of a gardener, especially with an 7′ X 4′ patio off a second-story apartment. But one thing I do know is when blooms die, you should pluck them off the plant in order to encourage new ones to grow. If you don’t, the plant becomes weaker and scraggly looking. The blooms fade and do not replenish. But, if you diligently pluck the spent blossoms, the plant thickens in foliage, grows fuller, and produces bright, colorful new blooms.
Is this not true with our lives? Life is about change, so why is it we want to cling to past things even after they have withered? “Ah, but it was so beautiful at the time. I can still see it in my mind.”
Is it that we don’t trust God to bloom new, lovely moments in our lives? Would we rather hang on to what is past and slowly wither, or be willing to be pruned so we can bloom again?
Don’t misunderstand. Some memories will permanently “bloom” in our hearts. But others can be our excuse for not moving forward and for clinging to what we once knew. These old withering flowers can keep us from embracing the changes in our lives which God can use to His glory if we’d only squeeze our eyes shut, take a deep breath and say, “Go ahead, Lord. Pluck away.”
Why settle for faded glories when new buds of brilliant growth can replace them? Tonight, I am going on my knees and asking God to pluck away the dead growth in my life. Then I will wait in anticipation for the new blossoming He will begin in me.
Will you?
Yes, Amen!
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What a beautiful illustration! And it sounds like we have about the same size “garden” here on the 8th floor of our high-rise in Japan.
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Yes! Yes! Yes!
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