As my boots crunched on the parched lawn grass, I remembered longingly five years ago the late summer and fall rains that rejuvenated our soil, our hearts, and our desire to continue pursuing farming and ranching. Even more so, I was reminded how desirous God is to alleviate dry seasons of the soil of our hearts. This five-year old blog post touched a chord with me so maybe it will with someone else, too.
A Tiny Area of Ground
A small piece of dry, cracked ground caught my eye this past summer as I walked past it. The pronounced cracks widened as our part of the state suffered through months with little moisture. Finally, in late July, I snapped a photo of the noticeable deep crevices in that tiny parcel of ground.
As that vision of the parched plot lingered in my mind, I found myself drawn to God’s Word. I located an interesting passage in the songbook in the Bible. The specific psalm penned by David stated in Psalm 68:6:
God sets the lonely in families,
He leads out the prisoners with singing;
but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
How interesting that God acted on behalf of the lonely and provided deliverance for those imprisoned, but a rebellious person was relegated to land like the little patch I had been walking past each day. As a loving parent toward a hard-headed prodigal, God revealed how His relentless love reached unwavering toward the rebellious heart in Isaiah 65:2:
I have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people,
Who walk in a way that is not good,
According to their own thoughts.
The phrase “stretched out My hands” reminded me of seeing a strong-willed toddler insisting on his way, defying the patient parent who cajoled the child to accept the obvious “good way.” Only when the stubborn child changed his way of thinking, agreeing with the parent, was the relationship restored.
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| Photo of the dry, tiny plot taken on August 24, 2018 |
The person who changed the thought pattern toward God had a prayer on penitent lips stemming from a repentant heart. David wrote eloquently of a heart thirsty for God to quench the parched soul in Psalm 63:1.
O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land
where there is no water.
Without fail, God responded to the humble heart by pouring His lavish mercy and grace as He promised in Isaiah 44:3:
For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,
And floods on the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,
and My blessings will be on your offspring;
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| This Photo was taken on September 6th |
The last book of the Bible, Revelation of Jesus Christ, John, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote in his conclusion,
…let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. Revelation 22:17
Just as the late summer rains watered the cracked, dry area in the driveway, the Lord Jesus empowered our lives to move from unproductive to growing, verdant, and flourishing when we received His “water of life” to resurrect us who were “dead in our sins.”
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| The transformation of the cracked, dry ground was hastened by an over 2-inch rain in early September. |
Finally, I chose a photographic progression to show that even though our salvation, just like birth, is a one-time experience, our sanctification is a process even as physical growth is a process. Recently, our Sunday School guide, Explore the Bible Personal Study Guide Fall 2018 defined sanctification as, "A process of spiritual growth as one yields to the the power of Holy Spirit on a daily basis." These two verses written by the Apostle Paul to the believers in Philippi conveyed His powerful, daily work within our lives.
Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6
For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13
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