“Think about things of heaven, not the things of earth.” Colossians 3:2

In Danger of Being Confined

Wanting to be an involved “MiMi” I purchased some plants from our grandsons’ school fund raiser. Unfortunately, I didn’t think about how they would get to me since I live four hours away.  Needless to say, my daughter had to babysit my flower collection for almost a month before I could pick them up and bring them home.

This morning I set out to get the poor things into my flower bed. It turned out to be more of a challenge than I’d bargained for.  Because they’d stayed so long in their tiny pots, each plant’s leaves had started to become wilted and yellow from the lack of nutrition and all of them had become so root bound that it was difficult to pull them free without breaking their life-giving, delicate stems.

While digging in the dirt it occurred to me that we can be an awfully lot like my waylaid plants. Finding ourselves in less than ideal conditions and so wrapped up in our troubles, we can be in danger of becoming confined if we stay too long in an unhealthy place, too. 

In recent months, someone who’s hurt me in the past did something that left me in a place of pain once again. The more I focused on the situation, the tighter my chest became and the smaller my confidence felt. Hemmed in by my emotions, questions, and disbelief, I was tangled up in the consequences and the wound was all I could see. Been there?

“And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.
Colossians 2:6-7 (NLT)

Today, I finally tore those confining containers from the plants and at long last freed their roots to be placed in the ground where they will now receive what they need to grow. Placing my pain into the Gardner’s hands had the same result for me. I began to understand that though at first I didn’t see it, He could take what was meant to restrict and instead, release me. God used the circumstances to carefully place me where I would thrive in His care. Throughout our lives, we will all face harsh conditions that threaten to break us; but when we are rooted in Christ who gives us life, we receive all we need to not just grow, but to flourish until He finally brings us home where we belong.

“For they are transplanted to the LORD’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green.”
Psalm 92:14 (NLT)

P.S. Here’s hoping my little plants flourish too!