“In the day you will make your plant to grow, And in the morning you will make your seed to flourish.” Isaiah 17:11
Recently I have been through somewhat of a spiritual “Wilderness Experience” which, though uncomfortable, I praise God for, as I know that he calls his people to the wilderness to protect or connect with them, (ie: Elijah by the brook Cherith, The nation of Israel after their captivity in Egypt, John the baptist, Jesus himself, the Woman of Revelation 12 and many other Biblical examples) amidst this, as I was finding it difficult to focus on my Bible I was encouraged by my Mum to get outside and look at God’s general revelation (Nature) I was amazed and encouraged by what I found.
I wandered out into the yard, and decided to inspect a tree… I know it sounds less than exciting, but stick with me here, I prayed and decided to look for christian principles in this corner of creation.
The tree I began to inspect is commonly known as a Brazilian Cherry Tree which is currently blossoming happily;
As I looked closer I noticed the blossoms were all at different stages of life, some were just starting out as buds;
These are vitally important to the tree as a whole, without new growth, the tree would not survive, and I thought about the church, without new believers the church cannot survive either, we need growth for many reasons, but, praise God, life does not stop there, we blossom as we become mature workers in the Lords vinyard.
I could not help but think of the fullest of blossoms being like unto the luminaries or our church today, the David Asscherick’s and Doug Bachelors, the un-sung Missionaries in the field, the theologians who guard our teachings, the individuals who serve in the greatest capacity…
The other kind I noticed were the less than beautiful blossoms, those that had been a bud which had bloomed to their fullest then came to the end of their race…
This was a timely contemplation as there is a lovely lady we are visiting who is in the autumn years of her life, her health not allowing her to serve her maker as she would love to, but she is certainly no less important than the buds, or those in full bloom, she is still a beautiful part of the family of God, her current state simply speaks of spiritual wars which have raged and temptations which have been resisted, a race which has been well run.
All these stages of growth, and every one in between are perfect, weather bud or bloom they are perfect for their stage of growth, as Jesus said “first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head” it is a process, one which cannot be hurried by anything but staying connected to the life-giver. (John 15:5 says “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”) we should not feel jealous of those seemingly more venerable, nor should we feel pride in that we are greater than others who have not yet bloomed for we all have our own heaven directed growth-plan.
After considering this I decided to take a step back, and look at the external influences…
There were bees doing their work of cross pollination throughout the tree and in the mental allegory I was constructing, I thought of them as the angels which minister to the believers, sharing from one to the other doing the will of the one who sends them.
Finally I noted the a barely perceivable Spiderweb, though it did not belong in the tree, it was there set up to trap and harm wheras the tree itself is to grow and nourish with good fruit…
In Matthew 13:27 and 28, when the Master was asked who sowed the tares in the field he answered ‘An enemy has done this.’ God is not somehow culpable for the presence of sin and destruction, any more than this tree is responsible for the spider which has taken up residence. It is helpful to remember that though that spider may live for a season, the tree will surely outlive it and in an uninhibited way, produce good fruit, this fact, the spider, (no matter how clever) can never stop.
Thanks for this bro, since yesterday I was talking to God asked him to help me find peace in my walk of life this has brought peace to me and I also Thank God, as he knows what is best and when the best time is to put these things in front of us
Yes my Son. All of God’s Creation, screams His existance !
We are truely blessed to witness the unfolding of His great plan for us.
The seeds of His grace , that we sew in others, will result in the expedience of His return, when we can “rest” from the wrestle of life. (eg: web of deceit)
He will never leave us… nor forsake us. Hebrews 13 v 5 and…..
Galatians 5 v 1. Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage !
Keep following Jesus… He is a “Trail Blazer !”
Loving you…….
Mum
It is truly amazing how we can draw so many lessons from nature!
Thanks for sharing!
I don’t know if I have shared this quote with you from Steps to Christ, but just in case I haven’t I’ll share it with you now.
“God is love” is written upon every opening bud, upon every spire of springing grass. The lovely birds making the air vocal with their happy songs, the delicately tinted flowers in their perfection perfuming the air, the lofty trees of the forest with their rich foliage of living green — all testify to the tender, fatherly care of our God and to His desire to make His children happy. {SC 10.1}
May God Bless you as you continue to follow His leading!
From Your sister in Christ,
Sarah.
Thanks for sharing Luke, you follow in your Saviour’s footsteps to be sharing object lessons from creation.
I love that STC quote Sarah, here’s another from Educationp 100-
“The heart not yet hardened by contact with evil is quick to recognize the Presence that pervades all created things. The ear as yet undulled by the world’s clamour is attentive to the voice that speaks through nature’s utterances. And for those of older years, needing continualy its silent reminders of the spiritual and eternal, nature’s teaching will be no less a source of pleasure and instruction”
Sometimes the fruit we bear isn’t as sweet and tasty as God’s ideal- but we stay connected to the vine, let nothing come between us and our Sonshine and trust that in due time we will produce fruit that tastes less like Brazillian Cherries and more like Mangoes!
Nice shots Lukey
Love Nay
Thank you Nay 🙂
You make a good point… as far as spiritual fruit is concerned, i would certainly prefer to be a mango than a brazilian cherry! 😉
Glad you found/like my decidedly random, somewhat intermittent yet always eclectic collection of articles, posts and thoughts.
Luv and blessings to you and the fam.
Hey Nay,
Thanks for the Quote! I like it!
I also like your Comparison at the end. Bearing good fruit, being more like Mangoes and less like Brazillian Cherries.
Glad you chose Mangoes! They would have to be one of the nicest fruits around! 🙂
God Bless!
Have a great week!
Love Sarah