Promise of Renewal!
Yesterday as I walked about my garden I saw much work to be done. The old scars of winter lay everywhere. In a word, it all looked ugly!
Today when I looked out I saw the result of a spring snow. All the scars were covered with a beautiful white blanket. It was pleasing to my eyes and for a moment I forgot about what was under that covering.
Then I realized that soon the warm days of spring will melt away the blanket and those ugly scars will still be there.
Sometimes life is like the spring snow. We receive scars from daily living, facing struggles but not always having success. As a result scars appear in our memory and it appears to be ugly. So there is an attempt to forget by covering the scars with something like spring snow. For the moment it appears beautiful. But soon that covering fades away like the spring snow revealing the ugly scars.
What can be more effective than just covering over and hiding for the moment the reality of the scars? In a short time the scars will be revealed. Removal must come first.
With my garden it takes the removal of the old, cleaning up, and then there is room for the renewal of spring growth.
From the scriptures God tells me that the old must be removed in order for the new to grow. Once the removal comes there is the time for new growth. As with my garden, the new growth brings with it the promise of a new harvest. Col 1:21-23 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel…(NIV)
Life is much like a garden. It takes continued care. With a life connected to God there is the promise of a harvest that is eternal. This gives me hope in this world of change. Rom 12:1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-- this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-- his good, pleasing and perfect will. (NIV)
Eph 4:14-16 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (NIV)
Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, theabidingword.com.