On my way home yesterday from church I dropped by the shops to pick up ingredients needed for dinner. After making purchases I briskly walked by the flower shop on the corner where the florists were already at work. A phrase written in chalk on a sandwich board caught my eye which read, "Bloom where you are planted." This was wise advice from an unexpected source. The LORD used this phrase to encourage me to keep serving and living for God right where I am.
Countless people endure each day with dissatisfaction and even bitterness because of disillusionment. The seasons of waiting can drag on. Unfulfilled longings and desires of their hearts hold them back from complete surrender and joy in Jesus today. For some it is the longing to be married, to be recognised or respected by family, to have children, or to be a pastor or missionary. In my Christian walk there have been times I felt it hard to commit fully to the present because of a potential future I imagined loomed somewhere in the distance. It was when I decided to "bloom where I was planted" - to use a God-given gift and to remain at my church without seeking my ideal situation - when God caused me to be more fruitful for His glory.
We often think a change of scenery would do us good and infuse within us satisfaction we currently find unobtainable. If things were different, we also would be different for the better. I have found when we discover we are completely satisfied in Christ because He is meeting our needs and will continue to do so, that is when we really bloom. Transplanting flowers does not promote blooms because the plant needs to be re-established. Over the years I have had many roses, and it is time, pruning, feeding, and the control of disease and pests which stimulates the best blooms. You don't need a new role in ministry, job, suburb, country, or relationship to bloom, but trust God He knows what He is doing and is in control today. Our blooms are according to His design and timing.
I believe God plants people, and I encourage you to bloom where you are planted. Paul learned in whatever state he was to be content, and we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. It is only after a flower blooms that the reproductive parts of the flower are exposed and the sweet fragrance is enjoyed by others. Blooming is the precursor to pollenisation, propagation, and fruit which sustains body and soul. You can bloom right where you are because in Christ we have the best Husbandman. He provides all we need to grow and develop into the fruitful and fulfilled people He has designed us to be - wherever He plants us.
Countless people endure each day with dissatisfaction and even bitterness because of disillusionment. The seasons of waiting can drag on. Unfulfilled longings and desires of their hearts hold them back from complete surrender and joy in Jesus today. For some it is the longing to be married, to be recognised or respected by family, to have children, or to be a pastor or missionary. In my Christian walk there have been times I felt it hard to commit fully to the present because of a potential future I imagined loomed somewhere in the distance. It was when I decided to "bloom where I was planted" - to use a God-given gift and to remain at my church without seeking my ideal situation - when God caused me to be more fruitful for His glory.
We often think a change of scenery would do us good and infuse within us satisfaction we currently find unobtainable. If things were different, we also would be different for the better. I have found when we discover we are completely satisfied in Christ because He is meeting our needs and will continue to do so, that is when we really bloom. Transplanting flowers does not promote blooms because the plant needs to be re-established. Over the years I have had many roses, and it is time, pruning, feeding, and the control of disease and pests which stimulates the best blooms. You don't need a new role in ministry, job, suburb, country, or relationship to bloom, but trust God He knows what He is doing and is in control today. Our blooms are according to His design and timing.
I believe God plants people, and I encourage you to bloom where you are planted. Paul learned in whatever state he was to be content, and we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. It is only after a flower blooms that the reproductive parts of the flower are exposed and the sweet fragrance is enjoyed by others. Blooming is the precursor to pollenisation, propagation, and fruit which sustains body and soul. You can bloom right where you are because in Christ we have the best Husbandman. He provides all we need to grow and develop into the fruitful and fulfilled people He has designed us to be - wherever He plants us.
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