Room to Grow
Day 133 of Photo Inspirations — Room to Grow
Yesterday morning, my friends and I, on our morning walk, sprung into conversation about the landscaping around the various homes. One of the gals, who is an accompished gardener, noted that many of the trees and bushes were planted simply for the curb appeal to attract new home buyers, without thought about long term growth and maturity. She said, “They were planted too close to the house and too close together. They won’t flourish in such tight surroundings.”
That made me ask about the little 12″ Blue Spruce that a friend gave me when I moved into my new home. I planted it in a corner, quite close to my house. I really wasn’t considering “long term”. I honestly didn’t even consider that it may last longer than that season. But, here it is — two years later, and it has tripled in size. At that rate, no telling what its size will be in another two years. I need to find a new home for that spruce. I want it to thrive.
Those long term considerations made me think about the long term effects that our decisions and choices will make on our own growth and success. What is the quality of our lives? Are we planted in a thriving, encouraging, peaceful place — in an atmosphere conducive to healthy growth — like a church or group of people that are positive, who bring uplifting and motivating words and experiences that cause us to flourish, or are we tolerating adversarial circumstances, negative people, or even cramped in a location that is stagnating our spiritual growth and maturity?
Maybe it’s time to RE-LOCATE. Maybe it’s time to consider the long-term effect of our surroundings. If those things are making us better, making us stronger and wiser, then we’re in a good and favorable place for long-term success. On the other hand, if we’re becoming bitter, grumpier, sadder, or weaker — just maybe it’s time to get out the shovel and plant our TREE in a better place!
Psalm 1:1-3 “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.”