Water, weed, Wait

Read Ephesians 3:14-21

And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts, living within you as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love; and may you be able to feel and understand, as all God's children should, how long, how wide, how deep, and how high his love really is; and to experience this love for yourselves, though it is so great that you will never see the end of it or fully understand it. And so at last you will be filled up with God himself. Ephesians 3: 17-19 (TLB)

Patricia Kinner Kelly is from Florida. Her yard was nothing but grass when she started to fill it with native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers. These new plants are small and rather spindly now; some have seed heads but no flowers. But from past experience, Patricia knows what is to come. The trees will fill out, the shrubs will send off new shoots, and the wildflowers will reseed and bloom. After she puts the plants in the earth to help establish their roots, Patricia keeps them watered, removes the weeds, and waits. This process takes time, but she approaches it with patience and excitement.

In contrast, when Patricia was anxiously praying for an important situation to be resolved and she heard God tell her to wait, her first reaction was frustration. he had to remind herself of past experiences when God answered her prayers in ways that exceeded her expectations. And she had to do her part to stay rooted in her faith: absorbing God's promises, weeding out her doubts, and waiting with assured and joyful anticipation.

God's words of love and salvation are plentiful in scripture. In the midst of past crises, Patricia has learned by heart some scripture passages that bring her peace and comfort and keep her grounded so that waiting can be a process not of frustration or disappointment but of hope.

Prayer: Dear God, help us remember that you are always with us. We wait for you with hope and joyful anticipation, in Jesus' name. Amen.