14th May 2024
Bloom where you are planted
Bloom where you are planted. What an interesting phrase. A flower does not have a lot of choice where it will grow. A seed may fall to the ground near the parent plant. Some seeds are carried aloft and are at the mercy of the wind; they may land in fertile soil, in the water, or on rocky soil. A bird may spread the seeds. I may plant it in a desired location. I have often wondered how some of the flowers in my garden were planted there, but most are welcome additions.
So, to bloom where you are planted reminds me of a flower that grew in a most unusual place. My husband had markers for the driveway that would glow in the dark. The markers were narrow but tall tubes that he filled with rocks. There in one tube, a flower lived under the harshest circumstances, but it did the best with what it had been given.
As I observe a dandelion, I see a plant loved by children. It has a delicate flower but is a very tenacious plant. You dig it up and if you do not get all of the roots, it soon comes back again. It is one of the first food sources for the bees, it nourishes them, and they in return give life to the planet as they pollinate the plants with their visitations; just as God’s set plan. Can you see in your mind God’s hand picking up the flower now in seed, and with his breath, he lofts the seed into the wind where they sail to where God plants them?
Where has God planted each one of us? We do not get to choose, but God has a set place for us and a plan in mind. Look at the story of Joseph; I am sure this was not his choice to be sold into slavery in Egypt or put into prison (Genesis 37-50). Joseph made the most of his situation; he bloomed where he was planted. When God plucked Saul (Paul) on the road to Damascus, he sent Paul to those he had persecuted. He sent Paul to the Gentiles, and finally into prison, where even there the Gospel of Christ was preached by him. It may not have been Paul’s plan in life, but he bloomed where God planted him. Many were fed and nourished by the sweet word of God as a result.
God has planted each one of us. We may not have to live in extremes such as Joseph, or Paul, but each one of us was placed here for a purpose. We are sent to grow, to feed others with the sweet nectar of God’s word, to speak of God’s mercy, grace, and love. Our lives tell a story, even if we do not use words. There are choices we can make of course. As in the parable of the Sower in Luke 8:1-15; receptivity to God’s word, God’s calling, is very important to how well we grow.
Prayer
Merciful God, you have given each one of us what we need to grow and to mature. As we live our lives, may we live them for you and for one another. Teach us all to bloom where we are planted. To represent you to your glory. We praise you God, in Jesus’s name, Amen.
Study by Anne Gillam
About the writer:
Anne Gillam is a retired Pastor in Grace Communion International, Klamath Falls, Oregon, USA.
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