Insignificant, but valuable

Flowers are insignificant in comparison to many other things, but I value them.

As we were preparing to leave our home in the suburbs, I cut a small piece of the rose bush in the front yard.

It had been a blessing to me from the first day we arrived.

Both summers we lived there it was gorgeous.

I had enjoyed caring for it and wanted to take a piece with me.

The cutting grew well, and I was excited to see it put on leaves.

When the weather warmed up, it put on a bloom!

I’ve never seen this happen before, although I’ve grown several cuttings in the past.

I’m so thankful for this tiny blessing.

As I was thanking the Lord for His answer to my heart’s desire about the rose, I was reminded it’s not the first time He’s done this.

Right before we moved to the suburbs, I was wanting to take a tiny seedling I’d found from our tree in the front yard.

It had beautiful yellow flowers every spring and I loved it.

My daughter was trying to dig out the seedling and accidentally cut the tap root.

I thought for sure it wouldn’t come back to life, but she potted it and we moved it to our new home.

That winter I looked at it often, but didn’t hold much expectation that I would see it come back from dormancy.

To my surprise it did and out grew the pot.

The following fall I repotted it and by the time we moved here, it had out grown it’s pot again, so Handsome planted it.

This spring was the first time it has ever bloomed!

Both these plants are cherished, because they speak of God’s grace.

If He blesses me in these small things I can certainly trust Him with big things.

Even if something were to happen to both the rose and the tree which would kill them, I still have the memory of the little things God has done.

Personally, I find such encouragement in little insignificant things which point to things of value.

God is good.

Psalm 143:10 KJV — Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.

God is faithful.

1 Corinthians 1:9 KJV — God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

God is great and His works are awesome.

Psalm 86:10 KJV — For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.

Nothing is insignificant if God is working through it.

Dear Lord Jesus,

Thank You for Your love and compassion. Thank You for the flowers, the trees, and so many beautiful things all around us, all pointing to Yourself, the Creator of all. Lord Jesus, I thank You for giving me daily reminders of Your goodness, Your grace, and Your truth. Lord, please continue to guide and direct me, that my life may bring glory to Your name. Please help me to serve You with joy, wisdom, and discernment, not walking in my own ways or my own ideas, but truly guided by Your Holy Spirit and Your Word. Lord, thank You for another day. Lord, I want to honor You with my actions, my words, and my life, please help me to do so this day. I love You, Jesus. Amen.

Rooting out

This beauty wouldn’t be able to survive if it wasn’t cared for.

It needs the proper amount of sun, water, and soil.

If I had planted it too deep it would die.

If it was planted too shallow it would die.

Nor would it thrive if we had left the weeds in the same plot of ground.

Of course, we didn’t.

We carefully turned over the soil to expose the roots of the unwanted plants and removed them before planting the rose.

Lately, I’ve been removing a lot of weed roots from under the apple trees.

It’s crazy how these weeds are deceptive.

When I dig down the root is three or four times the leaf size.

What looks like something I could easily pull out with my fingers ends up being a job for the shovel.

The Lord has been using this gardening lesson in my own life.

He reminds me that the cares of this world have long roots and take hold very quickly.

It can seem like such a small harmless plant, not really causing any problems, but the truth is unseen.

What I allow to grow in my life and in my heart will put down roots.

Digging them back out can be a much more difficult chore.

Some plants only need a tiny section of root to begin growing again.

The same goes for sin.

If I choose to pass over something the Lord wants to deal with, I may very well be allowing a noxious “weed” to choke out the beloved “rose”.

And just like the seeds of some weeds explode into clean fresh ground, so can the sins in my own heart spread to my children or my friends.

Praise God, there is so much more to the garden of my heart than just trying to keep it weed free.

Jesus helps me.

Often times, it is His Word which shines the light upon the weed in my heart.

But He doesn’t stop there.

He carefully laid down how to deal with sin.

He also, plants beautiful seeds in my gardened heart.

His Word brings forth buds of praise, peace, hope, and many more.

An entire kaleidoscope of beauty planted by my loving Lord Jesus.

And just like my rose bush, He knows exactly how deep to plant.

His Word waters it daily.

And of course,

He is the Son.

Dear Lord Jesus,

Thank You for Your work in my heart. Please continue to help me recognize those things which are weed seeds and to remove anything which would come between us. Lord Jesus, thank You for planting so many beautiful things in Your Word. Please continue to grow my heart closer to You, that it might bring joy. Just as a beautiful garden speaks of the ability and care of the gardener, Lord, please let my life bring glory and honor to Your name.

The rest of the story

Do you remember this beautiful picture and verse I shared recently?

It turns out that the rose in the vase has a story behind it.

The rose bush which these beauties came from is a cherished plant.

The family who own it adopted a little girl many years ago.

They love her just for who she is.

And who she is, is incredible.

Although she has learning disabilities, she is a sweet gentle spirit.

She loves her family and she loves Jesus.

Her generosity is a mile wide.

You might wonder how she shows her generous spirit.

When she was 6 years old, her mother gave her the rose bush.

It was her job to care for it, water it, and basically be responsible for it.

She’s cared for this rose for 33 years.

It has bloomed and thrived.

This is where the generous heart is shown.

After all the love and care she has given the rose, she doesn’t keep it to herself.

She often and joyously cuts blooms and gives them away.

Not only are these beautiful flowers, but they give off a heavenly scent.

The flowers in the vase were one of the many offerings of love the girl grown into a lady, has given.

She hasn’t allowed the things others would call “difficulties” to cripple her spirit or dampen her joy.

Instead, she freely gives of what she has.

What a blessing!

May we take her example and find opportunities to give from what we have for the love of others and the joy of the Lord.