Do you have a "green thumb" and find yourself as the family caretaker of plants in your house?
I've been tending the same shamrock on our dinner table that was on my husband's childhood dinner table. The trick is finding its favorite light source and watering it routinely.
Over the years as I've inadvertently pulled out small root balls while pulling off dried stems, I've harvested little baby shamrocks that I've repotted for my sons.
One day I'll pass their shamrocks onto them, so their families will enjoy this plant legacy as much as we have.
Plants add a homey touch to our spaces and a reminder of passing seasons, don't they?
Although my renegade Christmas cactus NEVER blooms during the holiday season, it lavished some pretty blossoms at the end of January just when I needed a bit of cheer.
As I water the household plants each week, I notice how each of them grows at their own pace and produces their own unique blooms and greenery.
I cannot make any of them grow faster or greener. I can only provide them with a sunny space, water, and the gentle addition of potting soil when the top layer is looking tired. I do have to show consistency in watering and have patience when they're going through a dormant period, trusting that they will re-energize when it's their time and marveling in the way God uniquely designed each of their growth patterns.
As part of this month's focus on Growing in God, we have this Potted Plants template featured in the Monthly Bible Quilt Journal.
I started my page by coloring in some of the elements and thinking about the areas of my faith that I need to consistently tend. I added these to the broad leaves of the large plant, then sought out scriptures to reinforce these in my daily routines.
Much of my spiritual growth is dependent on showing up consistently to read the Bible, pursuing God in a steadfast way and humbling petitioning Him through prayer with my faults and vulnerabilities exposed.
Often through this process, I'm nudged by the Holy Spirit to put some of these insights into action.
"Be a doer of the Word and not a hearer only." James 1:22
This verse is a great reminder that we have to nurture our faith actively and consistently...and patiently await how God wants us to uniquely blossom in his timing.
We chatted about Growing in God in our Zoom chat this week:
Thoughts to ponder:
Who has nurtured you? Who has God put in your path for your to nurture?