Wilted Flowers

Ready for another one of my strange analogies?
If you answered "no" to that question you might just want to stop reading right about..... now.

Part of my job here entails watering the flowers and hanging plants outside of my office. When the weather is cool and not to humid I can get away with not watering them for a couple of days, and even then only using water to rehydrate them. To be completely honest, I've had to have a few people kindly remind me to water the poor things.

The last few days, however, our office has been preparing for some very important people who will be coming this weekend. I decided that I wanted to make the flowers look the best they can so, not only have I been watering them more consistently, I've taken the time to add some plant food.

Lo and behold, today on returning from lunch, I look and see a large crushed spot on the pot of flowers nearest the door. Like something fell on them.  Not only that but the weather has been unnaturally humid causing them to look wilted and sick and sad.

Some how by brain jumped from wilted flowers to spiritual life.
How many times do I find my self when the weather is good pulling away from God a bit? Not in a rebellious way, just things are going well and I don't feel desperate for Him. I'm getting a little dry, but hey, I'm still blooming. Right? I'll have my devotions, but not throw my self at His feet desperate to be filled with Him. Just enough water to stay alive, but not enough fertilizer to really bloom to my full potential. Finding myself content with good enough.

Then something happens. Maybe a good thing, a wonderful reminder that He is the Bride Groom and He is coming back, and so you start preparing yourself. You don't just want to be a bare stock when He comes back, you want to be more than just hanging on. Doesn't it always seem like when you finally come to that decision the weather changes, and now instead of just coasting you actually have to hang on more than you ever did before. Things happen that are just our of your control like falling objects that crush your spirits, make you feel like even your best efforts aren't going to be good enough.

I don't really know how that applies in your life, but I know for me I can choose to just get by slide by day by day without any real effort. It so often feels like whenever I decide to go after God beyond what is easy that bad things happen, or trails spring out of no where, things I can't control throwing up opposition every way I turn. It's in those moments when your looking down at the wilted flowers in your hand that you have to decide to just press in that much more. You know that you were created to be more than ok, you were created to be beautiful. You know that in your heart and that's all you really have to hang onto, but you hang on to that because you were created for more.