Gentle Lessons From Nature

This sweet little plant has made its home in a crack on my patio. I love how it seems to be thriving and it’s pretty purple flowers look fabulous against the white wall. It stands out and makes a statement even though it is so small. It seems quite happy and content with where it is.

I find that nature can often be a great teacher. So many lessons observed in nature can be applied to our lives. This little plant for example, living in such an unexpected place under less than ideal conditions is doing just what God intended it to do and doing so looking beautiful. I feel blessed to be living in the home we are living in, right out in nature, even though it’s not in the county I would like it to be 😊. Still, I am reminded to ‘bloom where I am planted’ until the Lord sees fit.

Then there’s the lesson of hope in what is to come. I see this in the garden as I watch the delicate flowers of the raspberries and tomato’s bloom; slowly develop into fruit; then ripen in it’s season to nourish our bodies. Our own lives should be bearing fruit but I am reminded that there is a process that goes on before we actually see that fruit. First there is a stage of dormancy and rest. Nothing seems to be happening but a time of quietness and resting is needed for the growth that is to come.

Are your roots firmly in the Word of God? Are you drawing up and storing it’s goodness, making ready for the growing and fruiting season? Is the fruit to come useful to others? Will it nourish their souls and build them up. How important each stage of this process is. I’ve been viewing the dormant/resting stage as not good. But that’s not true at all. It would only be bad if I never moved out of this stage.

The Lesson of Abundance. If I am faithful to put my roots in Christ then I will have an abundant life. From May onward, I notice how abundant everything is. The plants are flowering, the hedgerows reach out and touch our cars as we drive down the lane and are packed with plants that offer free food; elderflowers, blackberries, nettles. Birds, butterflies and insects have made their home in the hedgerows and as we walk or drive along the way they dart across out paths. 

In each season of life, God offers us abundance if we trust in Him.

Who we choose to associate with matters. This year I placed my tomato plants next to my lavender shrubs for no reason other than that spot receives the most sun and I quite like the look of them there. It’s had an unexpected benefit that I had not foreseen. My tomato plants are about the healthiest they have ever been. They have not succumbed to any pests or mildew such is usually the case. They are strong, healthy and thriving. Likewise, who we choose to plant ourselves with makes a difference to the health of our lives. Do we have people in our lives that literally suck the life out of us, that criticise, break-down and discourage? Or are the people we surround ourselves with encouraging, kind and help build us up to be a better person? 

Do you ponder on such things? I sometimes wonder if I’m a bit strange when I relate weeds in my garden to weeds in my heart 😂 and that sort of thing. I would love to hear your thoughts on lessons you have drawn from nature, your garden or the world around you.

Blessings to you all today…