Peonies & Patience

Looking out my kitchen window as I do dishes I can see two peony bushes. The one is full of beautiful pink blooms that are in various stages of bloom. The other has about 4 buds on it. Four little buds. But the 4 buds are precious. You see, I almost dug those bushes out last year because they weren’t flowering. I wanted flowers there and they just weren’t holding up their end of the bargain. They were just green bushes.

They used to bloom beautifully. Both of them. They were in a different spot in the yard and 4 or 5 years ago we moved them to make room for some trees. Since we moved them, no blooms. Yes, we get a nice green bush of leaves, but no buds, no blooms. So that’s why I was thinking to dig them out. Was I ever glad we didn’t.

As I was thinking this, I started to think God’s work was like this in our lives sometimes. We were also moved. Moved out of the ways of the world, and transplanted into His kingdom. How impatient are we with ourselves and others to see those big blooms, to see big evidence that God is working in our lives. We totally ignore that there is a beautiful green bush that is alive and doing well. And what I failed to see in my peony’s is that the root system has been healing and rebuilding in it’s new soil. The roots have been getting stronger and bigger so that it can properly nourish the whole plant. And this year blooms! God works that way sometimes in our lives and because we are an impatient sort we fail to see that He might be laying a strong foundation, building up a good strong root system to feed our Christian walk.

I’m so glad I didn’t tear up my plant. But how many times have I torn up the work of God in my life because I’ve become impatient that I don’t see the blooms of God’s work in my life. Or how many times have I judged others because I don’t see buds on the bush of their walk with God.

But because I continued to fertilize my peony bush and water it and hoe it it eventually bloomed. And our walk is like that too. When we continue to fertilize with God’s Word and prayer/worship and fellowship with other believers, and when we continue to encourage and build each other up in the Lord to keep going, our roots can go deep and be built up and one day we will bloom with beautiful evidence that God has been deep at work in certain areas in our lives also.

Lord help me not to be so impatient and to just keep on going and to keep fertilizing others walks and mine own, so that we may have that beautiful big evidence of blooms and fragrance of You all over us. Help me to keep faith that if I continue to seek you, you are building my roots so that they are strong and not easily torn up. They will sustain my walk when the winds blow and rains come. All to your glory, Lord!