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Are You Blooming? Update
I blogged last July after purchasing a colorful new deck flag that said Bloom Where Your Are Planted. This year as I was looking at that flag for a second spring season, I was also reading 1 Corinthians with my D-Group and discovered something I’ve missed in the past. Three times Paul says basically the same thing: Whatever circumstances God has called you into, stay in it! Check out 1 Corinthians 7:17, 20 and 24. This made me ponder the message of my flag. The current life circumstances are by design and I must stay in them, at least for now! I am currently reading a book by Lisa…
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Waiting with Patience?
I’m not necessarily a patient person. I applaud those who are. Tending to work fast on most anything, I am a “get’er done” kind of gal. Waiting in line, waiting on answers, and well…just waiting in general, is REALLY hard! This year the Lord directed me to memorize Romans 8. My verses for this week are 24-25. The context is how we were saved through our hope in Christ and now we eagerly wait for our full redemption when Jesus returns and makes all things new. Read back a few verses in your Bible, or better yet, the entire chapter to get a better look at the context. My post…
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Are You Blooming?
I wrote on a similar topic a while back, Grow Through What You Go Through, but the day I took this photo, I was sitting outside on the deck having time in the Word and kept looking at this new flag on our deck. I loved the vivid colors, but more than that I want to do what this says. All that God was saying to me lately came together in this thought, bloom where you are planted. There are some things I am not really happy about right now, but can’t do anything about. So, this thought is especially poignant. In John 15, Jesus teaches His followers how essential…
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Unseen Progress
Remember when you were a kid and you planted a seed in a pot and watched it eventually pop through the soil? It seemed like a long time before seeing any progress, but what you didn’t see was happening below the surface of the dirt. If you watered well and provided a sunny spot to grow, you probably got to see it produce whatever fruit it was…a plant or a flower. It took time, and it took the right environment. The Bible talks quite a lot about seeds and growing plants as related to spiritual growth. The parable of the sower and the seed in Matthew 13, for instance. Luke…
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4 Pandemic Lessons
I recently spoke virtually to women’s leaders in Baptist Convention of New York sharing some of the things I have learned during the pandemic. I limited it to only 4 of those many lessons and wanted to share them with you today in this post. Since December, I’ve been reminded of a post by Noe Garcia on Jeremiah 29:11. He shared how that verse is a follow up to the message that Israel would be in captivity a long time, and while there, the Lord told them through the prophet Jeremiah to settle in, marry and have children, grow crops and be fruitful. I actually wrote on this in January…
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Daily Nurture
I love this time of year and being able to have color on my deck! I spend a LOT of time out here and though I’m not a great gardener, I love flowers. During this season, I must water these daily, even twice a day on a couple if it’s really hot and dry. If not…they look like this! You can see what happens if I neglect to nurture these beautiful flowers daily. It also remind me of what happens in my spiritual life if I neglect to nurture it continually. In John 15 we see the image of being attached to the vine and being severed from the vine.…
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Pruning for Greater Harvest
When we lived in Tyler, Texas, my parents moved close by and had a home on 10 acres. This land included a peach orchard of about 60 trees. My dad was so excited…then we had peaches! But he saw that many of the limbs were so heavy with peaches, they broke. He learned that you must prune the trees back so they can produce healthier and a more abundant amount of peaches. I have had several Knockout roses in my yard, and for years, I’d enjoy some blooms but I never cut them back. I’d see my neighbors huge bushes full of blooms. Finally I decided to pinch off dead…
