Springing Back to Life
Spring.
The buds, somehow, push through toughened branch bark, and suddenly my neighborhood is alight with cherry, plum, and forsythia blossom fireworks.
© Sandra Byrd
A tiny seed produces a mighty plant, worming through hard winter soil now tenderized by rain, beginning a journey to create beautiful flowers and delicious fruit. While winter’s hush has its charms, spring beckons us back to life. Sometimes that is true, too, in my heart and spirit. I need to be wooed back to life, and God often sends just the right person to do it (See Rose of Jericho devotional, below).
Rose of Jericho
Plants – florals, edibles, and those that are both, play a huge role in my new book, Heirlooms, as does friendship, and sowing into others’ lives. To celebrate a wonderful, starred review Publishers Weekly awarded the book, and to recognize the seed planters and soul waterers in our lives, I’m hosting a fun event with a unique giveaway celebrating both you and a friend.
Join us! Follow the link at the bottom of the page!
Rose of Jericho
April is when I begin to think seriously about my garden. It’s time to dig out the weeds that are just starting to shoot evil roots. They are easy to remove now because the ground is wet and yielding. When planning what to add to my yard, I consider placing plants with biblical meanings, because this keeps the Lord before me even when I am outside. I consider the rose of Sharon, lilies, and others; one unique plant I just became familiar with is the Resurrection Plant.
The original plant is found in the Holy Land, in the Judean desert, and is called the rose of Jericho. It is a low-growing plant that, after spreading its seeds, curls up like a fist and dries up completely. It resembles a little tumbleweed. Unlike a tumbleweed, though, which is dead and disconnected from its roots, only a few drops of water will resurrect the rose of Jericho. It lies dormant, waiting for someone or something to sprinkle a few drops of water on it. Then it comes gloriously back to life.
I became a Christian as an adult, so I can remember what it was like to be thirsty for the hope, affection, and reassurance that salvation brings. The thing is, I didn’t know that I was curled up in a dry ball until someone showed me the Way. I’m so glad my spiritual parents, who held a Bible study at my college, led me to our Lord.
Everyone needs hope and encouragement throughout their lives. Is there someone in whose life you might sow a seed of cheer or offer life-giving water?
I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.
It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work.
1 Corinthians 3:6-8
Drawn from The One Year Experiencing God’s Love Devotional by Sandra Byrd
Click here for more information on my Spring Seed Exchange and Giveaway!
