One day, after a visit at Mom's house, I noticed...my flowers were fading quickly. Just a few weeks prior, I had "post worthy" pics of some of these same plants. They were stunning and vibrant. It was hard to even fathom these colorless blooms belonged to the same plants from a few weeks ago. "What in the world am I doing wrong?" I gasped on the phone to Mom. I went through the long list of everything I was doing. Feeling very much like a defense attorney pleading my case! Mom agreed I was doing most everything correctly, but I failed to do one of the most important steps to a thriving garden...
Lesson 2: You must pinch off and remove the dead blooms to make room for new growth.
Mom patiently explained... removing the old, dead blooms was essential to maintaining brilliant color all season long. Without this step, beauty would only last for a short moment.
This was time consuming and a little painful with each nick from the rose bush thorns. However, after a few short weeks, the bright colors of healthy plants again brought color to the green backdrop.
As I pinched off each dead blooms and anticipated the new that would soon replace it, I heard God speaking clearly. "Danita, if you are going to truly bloom where you are planted, you must allow me to remove the dead, lifeless things you are holding in your heart. You must give me space for new growth, new relationships, new ministry and new beginnings." You see, I struggle with holding on to the past. I have also struggled with holding on to seasons of hurt. But by keeping the dead things in place, I was certainly not thriving or reflecting God's brilliant color in my world.
Isaiah 43:19a says it so beautifully, "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? "
What new thing is God leading you to do, but you are holding tight to dead things? God created each one of us to add our own unique splashes of color in this world, but we cannot bloom vibrantly holding on to the past. Hand your Heavenly Father the shears, and allow Him to prune away harmful, dead, old blooms. My heart understands how this step is sometimes painful. There are harmful relationships and thought patterns that are well embedded in our hearts. Maybe at one time they brought beauty, but maybe God is calling you into a new season. Trust the Master Gardner to create a life so full of beauty, you have yet to imagine it.
Every day brings new opportunity. Seize this day with freedom, and bloom beautifully again, my friend. 💐❤️
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