The Winter of My Discontent

My garden is proof that a hard winter is not all it seems to be; without pushing or prodding, or digging or fertilizing, things that should have died and left no remembrance, are inexplicably alive and flourishing. Our lives are like that when placed in God’s hands. If you have been reading my blog for any time, you will understand why I draw an analogy between my life and the season of winter. Like plants, our emotional and spiritual roots can get snowed over. We can become brittle, dry, and seemingly dead and lifeless. Some people may think me foolish when I admit that this year I did not cover any plants at any time during one of the hardest winters to hit the U.S., especially Texas. Yet, God brought back the blooms anyway.

See, I understand very well the temptation to hide under the covers, to shield myself from the elements of betrayal, loss, and grief. But the crazy thing is that by facing this harsh winter in my soul without  protective ‘covers’, I gained resiliency; my roots went down deep. I learned to love others, to move outside by thoroughly black and white; compliant and non-compliant ideology, to embrace people where they lived without judgement- outside of my way of obeying and living for God. In essence, I gained a strength I would have never known if I had done what seemed logical and made utter logical sense. Yet, remaining exposed and vulnerable to pain actually increased my inner strength.  I learned how to forgive and accept myself with the same mercy I offered others.  Old jealousies and insecurities gave way to maturer and healthier thinking and behavior.  The compassion and mercy fruit I have always had were freer to manifest without fear of being taken advantage of by someone who really needed the fruit. There is an old song that says the harder the winds blow, the deeper my faith grows Lord in you.  Stay with me for I want to share some crucial truths from my garden.

Pull off the dead

When faced with sin or dead works that lack  spiritual fruit or the power of God’s initiative, that’s time to dead-head. Pull off the rotten moldy mildewed growth, and start a fresh with a heart swept clean of sin through confession (to a trusted friend - James 5:16) and repentance (to God- Psalm 32 and 56). There is no point in putting good seed in an old mulch bed full of ants and white-rot. Be sure, however, what you are weeding are things and not people.

No roots and it still survived! Yahoo!

Incredibly, I had two antique roses that survived this winter- one without roots. It is a testament to relationships, timing, and purposes that God holds securely in His hands because there is no one else who can keep rootless things and people alive. When we do nothing, God still keeps His promises.

That Impossible Hose!!!

I have several kinks in my hose; that’s annoying, especially because I purchased one of those expensive kink-free ones. The power and supply of the Holy Spirit are available, but often we have a kink in our  spiritual hose as well. We can't seem to get the power from the Source to our lives without interruption.  Sometimes, it gets caught on everything.  The sin nature is like that. It tempts, binds, entangles, strangles, and tries to keep us from God’s best.  Keep an eye out for those booby-traps: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

Surprise! Surprise!

The fig tree will blossom. This tree was run over by a tractor, but it has come back. Wow! The desert will become a watered garden and all flesh shall see it together (Jeremiah 31:12).  The righteous will declare the marvelous works of God.  Even in the middle of  a painful interlude like a bleak winter, God has promised to breathe afresh on us and awaken new life. According Habakkuk 3:17,

For the fig tree shall not flourish,

And there shall be no fruit on the vines;

The fruit of the olive shall fail,

And the fields shall supply no food:

The flocks shall be cut off from the fold,

And no herds shall be found in the stalls:

Yet in Jehovah will I exult;

I will joy in the God of my salvation

May you flourish wherever God has you planted,
M.J.

P.S. Forget the fig leaves, too!