Which plant are you? A look at Christian living

A look at Christian living

Each spring I plant a beautiful flower garden on my deck…full of potted plants filling every corner, every empty space. I carefully select each flower, each plant. I make sure the colors match and contrast just right. Select tall plants, ground plants, and the ones in between. I mix topsoil and carefully plant each one in the perfect space. Flowering shrubs surround the deck adding to it's beauty. My deck turns into my oasis. The colors, the sweet scents…it's perfect.

I water them. I care for them. I give them everything they need. Until I forget. Until I go away and no one is left to care for them. Until I try and overcompensate for forgetting to water them and end up over watering them. Those plants are completely dependent on me.

The problem is they are planted in pots. Some shallow, some deep...but all in pots. Their roots never grow deep into the ground. Never give them an anchor. Never allow them to reach out and seek what they need. As long as it rains regularly (thus leaving me out of the equation), they grow beautifully but when the rain doesn't come, they begin to shrivel up. When there is a drought they can't reach the water deep down in the ground. They die.

But the flowering shrubs and larger plants I have surrounding my deck…their roots can grow deep. They stretch out in every direction searching for the one thing they need most…living water. They're not confined to pots, reliant on someone to care for them. But rather they are able to search out water and thrive.

My garden sometimes reminds me of people and Christian living. Some people are planted in beautiful pots and sit on this world. They proudly show off their colors and beauty. They have want to be seen, want to be told how beautiful they are. But rely on others to care for them. To love them. To give them attention. To sprinkle them with a little bit of water, just enough for the day. Maybe they attend church services a few times here and there; but never dig deeper, they are just happy to get a sprinkle of water, of Jesus, every now and then. They look good. They seem happy. But when trouble hits and its gets hot, that sprinkle of water isn't enough. They need more but have no way, no understanding of how to get more. Their beauty fades and dries up (Matthew 13:6, Matthew 13:21).

"But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since didn't have deep roots, they died." Matthew 13:6

But the plants surrounding the deck? Those are the people who are deeply rooted. They may have started in pots but outgrew them. Their roots dig deep into the earth anchoring them in the storms, preventing them from being dug up, and able to seek out water daily. Those…those are the people who are firmly rooted in God. They don't rely on this world to nourish them. They don't depend on people to fill their needs. Their roots have found the living water and that is all they need. In the storms, they are anchored in faith. In droughts, they have their faith in living water. They survive because of their desire to seek God (Jeremiah 17:8)

"They are like trees planted along the riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried about the long months of drought" Jeremiah 17:8

If you want to be truly fulfilled in this world, you need to grow in Jesus. You need to step down off of the deck where people can see you and admire your beauty, and plant yourself in the ground. In the soil. In the soil where everything came from. In the very dirt and dust that God created us (Genesis 2:7). Be in the Word daily. Yearn to know Him more, love Him more. Yes, it may be dusty sometimes, you may get dirty. Dogs may pee on you (it happens!). But when the seasons of life change, you will survive. You will thrive! And as you grow closer to God, others will notice. You will bear fruit (berries in the analogy) and feed others. Birds will carry and scatter the seeds of your fruit which will grow into the soil and become beautiful shrubs on their own.

"Still others seeds fell on fertile soil and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted" Matthew 13:8

So, which are you? Planted in a pot with shallow roots depending on this world to care for you?

Or are you planted in the ground with roots that grow deep seeking the living water that is plentiful when you dig deep enough? If you are a pretty flower in a pot, are you ready to be transplanted and have a new life? A renewed life? If the answer is yes, let me know. I want to pray for you.