Do you feel like your life is going nowhere? Are you stuck? Like, there are no physical signs of anything you have believed for? You just want to give up and give in??!! PLEASE DON’T!! If you are planted in Christ, then your roots are growing..I PROMISE!!
You may have heard the story of the Chinese Bamboo tree, which usually goes around in an email. Some say it’s a myth..whatever..it’s a beautiful story. Most of the stories have the below as the central theme:
- You take a little seed, plant it, water it, and fertilise it for a whole year, and nothing happens
- The second year, you water it and fertilise it, and nothing happens
- The third year, you water it and fertilise it, and nothing happens. How discouraging this becomes!
- The fourth year, you water it and fertilise it, and nothing happens. This is very frustrating.
- The fifth year, you continue to water and fertilise the seed, and then…take note. Sometime during the fifth year, the Chinese bamboo tree sprouts and grows NINETY FEET IN SIX WEEKS
Something I read in a book today jolted this to mind. I remember reading it for the first time and knowing without a doubt that this was the story of my walk with Christ! I just knew it, I think I shared it with the boys at the time. I boldly prophesied it over my life. I was absolutely certain that like the Chinese bamboo tree, one day in God’s perfect timing my life was going to bust wide open. All that I had believed and trusted God for was going to burst forth amazingly! And so I waited……
There are many times in life when we feel like we have planted a seed for one of our heart’s desires, a ministry, and a relationship, a career, finances, healing…and year after year after year passes and ZILCH! NADA! CAPOUT! NOTHING! Perhaps you see a small, tiny bud, but it’s so minuscule that you are not encouraged.
Been there! But God reminded me of this story today to encourage myself and to encourage you, too! Now my Abba knows that I am “a little” pigheaded and pedantic and I want confirmations, proof, title deeds, etc.. (sometimes) ..so He sent it.
A few weeks ago, the ‘new’ Dawn broke off two branches from my aunt’s plant. Now, I confess I am a former murderer of cacti, but something about having your new home inspires you to plant 🙂 But I digress. I planted the pieces in potted mix and waited. Soon, the bottom leaves began to turn brown and dry up. I was disappointed. When my auntie enquired about the plant, I told her they didn’t take, and I think they were dying. But I didn’t give up, I kept watering them every day, kept looking for new shoots. I thought I saw a few tiny ones, but I couldn’t be certain.
So…I decided, let me just give them one final act of love and replant them with more soil. Here comes the point of this story….When I pulled up the plants that I thought were dying, this is what I saw:
THAT’S RIGHT!! Way below the surface, where I couldn’t see, both the broken stalks had grown a ton of roots!! It had taken and it was flourishing, but I had no idea! A tear came to my eye, as God confirmed to me..YOU SEE! Just like I spoke to you a while ago..The years are never in vain; it doesn’t matter if you or others can see the visible signs of my goodness in your lives or not. I HAVE BEEN AT WORK! You have been growing roots, spiritual roots, tons of them, and now you shall burst forth like the Chinese Bamboo tree.
You see, like my plants, we need a root system to provide nutrients and stabilise us. We need to be planted with Christ securely before our blessings burst forth! God has to be sure we can handle all that will come with the things we have asked for, and where He is taking us. So during what seems like a long and arduous process sometimes, He moulds us, shapes us, nourishes us, albeit beneath the natural eye’s radar, so that once sufficient roots are in place in our spirits and souls, then LOOK OUT WORLD HERE WE COME…STABLE, MAJESTIC AND INCORRUPTIBLE!
So if you have given your life to Christ…then you are planted in Him, you have received His righteousness, and He promises you will flourish:
“The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.” Psalm 92:13
So:
If things seem stuck..Don’t give up, your roots are growing!
If circumstances are brown..Don’t give up, your roots are growing!
If your heart’s desires seem DEAD!..DON’T GIVE UP YOUR ROOTS ARE GROWING!!!!!
Firmly planted, Coach D
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