Again
My Banana Plant, fighting for survival
It was the beginning of spring and I gleefully went outdoors to welcome the spring weather and to see what father winter had done to my plants.
The first plant that came in view were my banana plant/trees. I felt so disappointed because they were very lively looking when I last saw them but this last wintry frost had taken its toll. They were such a stark contrast to my spring plants.
The banana plants looked so raggedly and malnourished while my daffodils and Dahlias were in full splendor.
I surmised that the banana plants had nowhere to go, had no shelter but had to survive the cool weather and winds. But it still struggled to keep thriving despite the tough weather.
Joseph in the winters of Life
This brought to mind God’s teaching about “ I will never leave you, nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5) and the story of Joseph, who like my banana plant was stripped of the beauty of his Kingly coat and ended in the cool, dark winters of life (Genesis 37)
Joseph was sold as a slave by his own brothers and ended as a slave in pharaoh's household, but as a slave he still had those kingly values embedded in him and he performed at his best God-given potential. Pharoah was impressed by this young man and he was promoted to chief in Pharoah's household.
The winters seem to have passed but suddenly it got colder and colder without any hope of the warm seasons, for Joseph was cast in Pharoah's cold dark dungeon due to his upholding his God- fearing values, yet Joseph never lost hope, for God had a plan. For God used his gift of dream and translating dreams to elevate him to the position that he was called to be. (Genesis 37 - 43)
Reflections
So like the banana plant, and Joseph’s story we as Christ followers need to stay focused on Jesus even when our winters come. Do not forget who our Father is: He may strip us of our coats, because we are being prepared for what he has called us to be. Sometimes God has to strip us naked, remove all the false layers of pride, anger, jealousy etc in an attempt to reclothe us with He has called us to be.
Sometimes in these cold season, God is teaching us dependency on him, because sometimes we get so caught up in our self worship and our sense of achievements that we sometimes forget that every thing we achieve is due to Gods blessings and everything we own belongs to God. God is the one to be worshipped not our possessions and things.
So sometimes He has to strip us to the bare bones to bring us to our knees so He can then equip us and reclothe us for our calling.
When the spring comes we will be able to reclothe our self, fertilize with Gods words and continue on the path towards a fruitful season.
By the way I need to now go trim my banana plant, fertilize and water it and hopefully I will be eating home ripe bananas by the end of the year.
Welcome Spring
Comments