Spring is here in many areas across the nation and products to boost your garden and lawn’s appearance are lining the shelves. A recent lawn weed and feed fertilizer company boasted the following advertisement for selling their product:
*Kills Weeds.
*Builds Strong, Deep Roots.
*Improves Lawn’s Ability to Absorb Water & Nutrients.
As I passed the product on the shelf, I thought how this could advertise God’s word and yet I wonder if we, as a nation, would spend a millions of dollars to advertised this great book as the best fertilizer for the Christian life.
A fertilizer has many uses, such as nourishing and stimulating the soil. Compost is widely considered a valuable fertilizer, using a mix of decaying organic matter, such as leaves or manure, which aide in improving soil structure and providing nutrients.
I find that fact rather interesting. Dead organic matter helps provide valuable nourishment and promotes growth in plants. Isn’t that also true in the Christian life? It is not until we surrender and die to ourselves that God can grow us and we begin to bloom.
As fertilizer nourishes the soil, so God’s word spiritually nourishes us. As Christians, we will not grow without feeding upon His word and spending time with Him regularly each day. This I know from personal experience, I hate to admit. When we do spend that needed time with the Lord, strong roots anchor deep into the soil, protecting us from falling over in high winds and heavy storms. We may take a beating as the rain pelts against our spiritual bodies, but we will not be uprooted. We will stand erect when the sun shines once again, often producing a stronger faith that is clothed in beautiful blooms.
This is truth in the life of a believer. When we spend time in God’s word, we grow deeper in our faith and learn to stand firm in the midst of trials and tribulations. We are rooted deep in the things of God and are able to withstand the harsh winds and bitter storms of what we call ‘life’. We are strengthened in such a way that when the storms do come, having been grounded in Him, we are not shaken or moved.
Fertilizer is also a great agent in killing weeds. God’s word is also a great agent for warding off temptation. When a believer faces various trials and temptations, it becomes easier each day to mistake sin for ‘fun’. As Christians, we can distance ourselves from God’s standards and in return, our decisions in morality become blurred. Roots that once were strong and firm now shrivel and begin to fade from lack of nourishment and the inability to absorb water which sustains life. When we spend time with the Lord, we are nourished by the Water of Life – the only true source that brings life eternal.
While we are feeding our lawns this spring, let us take a glance at the condition of our own ‘growth’ and see if it may need some fresh nourishment. Are leaves a brilliant green? Are we shining in our lives so that others notice? Are we budding or blooming? Is growth evident? Are the weeds we have allowed to grow, whether we view them as large or small, being eradicated?
It may be time to visit God’s garden shop and grab a bag of spiritual fertilizer. God wants to do a miraculous work by bringing forth new growth and beauty, just as the flowers are beginning to do this spring. Will we allow him to fertilize our hearts or go on until we fall over in the next storm?
Heavenly Father, I confess I have allowed the things of this world to distract me from soaking up the words and truth of Your word. I have allowed roots to loosen that once grew deep into the things of You and grasped instead, other things of this world. Help me to take root in You and not to sway when the trials and temptations in my life distract me, vying for my attention. Teach me to feed upon You alone. May everything I desire fade away as I die to self and allow you to live through me and may the blooms of my life bring you glory, as others see beauty in me, because of You.
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