The plan that Christ works through us doesn’t always involve us sitting in a garden with beautiful roses blooming for our delight. It’s often quite the opposite – closer to a jungle.
The plan requires that we prune the roses and pick the weeds, and keep up with watering and maintenance that takes more time and energy than we are often willing to invest. Throughout the journey of “keeping our rose garden” we will be pricked with thorns or have to watch some of our most prized flowers die, but we will also have the privilege of watching others bloom into perfection. The scent will be sweet.
When I lived in California, my husband and I bought a home with rosebushes in the backyard. The previous owner explained that rosebushes had belonged to her grandmother and that she had transplanted them from her grandmother’s home. I’m not much of a gardener. Okay, actually, my thumb isn’t anywhere close to the shade of green. It’s not my gift. But I did try my best to care for those rosebushes because they were once very special to someone else.
What if we were conscious of the choices we made, knowing they dramatically affected others for the purpose of Christ? What if all of us looked at something as simple as a smile to the woman in the grocery store aisle, or giving the waitress an extra couple dollars in her tip, even if her service was subpar, as a life-changing opportunity? Christ has a larger plan. Are we willing to be the vessel He requires? Even when it hurts? Even when it’s hard?
When I think of what the Lord did through Queen Esther, I can barely contain the awe and excitement I feel about her life. The plan for which the Father prepared her for was without limits – a through process that defined bravery.
I look at the word brave like this: it’s what I must be in order to allow Christ to work through my life. Here’s my acronym for this word:
Bold
Ready and
Available,
Vying for
Everything Christ wants to do in my heart and through my life.
Tomorrow, we are going to talk about Queen Esther and the beauty she contained as a result of living boldly!
Love,
Jennifer
