Tuesday the 19th

2 Peter 3: ¹⁸But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

 

I was thinking this morning about bonsai trees. No, I do not know why either, but I was thinking about how much time and effort is taken in cutting the right branch, tying off the right cut. A snip here, and a twist there, a few years down the road and you have a full grown tree……that fits in a flower pot. If you look at one close up, it is an amazing thing to see, there it is, a fully developed, thriving, blooming tree that never grew to it’s full extent. Then I realized why I was thinking about the trees……you see, all too often we are bonsai trees, and the world is our shears, and twine. We do not think about it really, a little snip of a small branch here, and there goes a little bit of our self-worth, a little bit of binding there, and it cuts off some of our faith, or maybe some of our compassion. We really do not notice, we still feel like we are growing, we still have our branches, our trunk is developing, but when we look in the mirror, when we reflect on our lives….it is then that we see that while we are alive, we really are not growing to our full potential. Our lives are not becoming as large as they should be because we are trying to grow in the wrong things, we are trying to become the best bonsai tree we can be, but we are intended to grow like a redwood. We have to look at where the Lord is pointing us if we are to grow into the plans that God has in store for us. We experience that true growth when we grow in our knowledge of our Savior, Christ. When we make Him our focus, then the shears have nothing to cut. When we put the Lord first in our day, all things that will spring forth will only serve to fortify us, and give our roots the food they need to sink deep into the ground. When we follow Christ we see that our branches become strong, and thick so we can go out and support those around us. When we accept the grace, and the love that is so freely given, then our leaves grow so that we can provide that same love and protection from the harsh world to those in our lives. We are growing, all of us experience growth. We have to make sure that the world does not keep us contained to a flower pot. We are intended for more. The plans that God has for you, require you to break out of that pot, and sink your roots deep into His word. From there, the knowledge you gain, the grace you receive, will give you the base, and the life that you need to grow up among the clouds. You are destined for great things, break free of the pot, shake off the bindings of the world. The Lord will heal any harm done, He will repair you, sustain you, and give you the strength to grow…….We all will grow, to what heights you grow……..well it will depend on where your roots are planted.

 

 

God Bless,

Brian Thetford

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www.thenewcovenantchurch.com

 

www.theworkweekwithchrist.blogspot.com