“Don’t copy the
behaviors and customs of this world, but let God transform you…” (Romans 12:2 NLT)
A gardener prunes an unshapely bush or tree and makes it
pretty. The really advanced ones can
even make them into shapes like at Disney where the bushes are shaped like the
characters from Beauty and the Beast. They
start out as an unrecognizable mess; it takes an artist heart of love to see
what the bush will become. However, in
the end they become beautiful pieces of art.
Even then though, they require work and pruning to maintain their
beauty.
That’s how we are.
Most other people in the world just see the unshapely mess we are while
God sees the masterpiece we are becoming.
He’s sees beyond the mess to what He is shaping us to be. We are more than our past; we are more than
the mess we are right now. We are a
treasured work of art.
I’m not sure if I find it sad or encouraging, but the truth
is that even when we become shaped as God means us to be we will still find
ourselves being trimmed and pruned. Any
good gardener knows that plants require routine work to maintain their shape
and beauty. Thus, even though I am more
like Christ today than ever before I know there will still be times I feel the
two-edged sword trimming away at me. He
won’t be done with me until I get to heaven no matter how Christ like to world
may say I am. As long as that’s the case
there will be routine maintenance to keep me in shape, growing the right way,
and to keep me from becoming that unshapely mess I’d undoubtedly try to grow
back into.
I’m not sure if I find it sad or encouraging, but the truth
is that even when we become shaped as God means us to be we will still find
ourselves being trimmed and pruned. Any
good gardener knows that plants require routine work to maintain their shape
and beauty. Thus, even though I am more
like Christ today than ever before I know there will still be times I feel the
two-edged sword trimming away at me. He
won’t be done with me until I get to heaven no matter how Christ like to world
may say I am. As long as that’s the case
there will be routine maintenance to keep me in shape, growing the right way,
and to keep me from becoming that unshapely mess I’d undoubtedly try to grow
back into.
This gives me a new perspective into why I sometimes feel
like I am doing all I can and living for the Lord but still feel pain or
discomfort in my heart or life. He’s not
mad, disappointed, or angry as I try to live for Him. He’s not sitting up in
heaven complaining that I’m aren’t doing enough or doing it wrong. Yes, there are times I sin and I do grieve
Him. However, there are other times He’s
simply keeping me trimmed up to His Beauty.
I might be more like Him now, but to keep me growing in the right shape,
He has to cut off the shoots or limbs that are going the wrong way. They may not be “wrong” but they aren’t going
the direction He needs. That gives me a new hope in why things happen the way
they do. It’s not my “get out of jail
free” card nor does it mean I don’t need a regular heart check to make sure I’m
living in a way that loves Jesus but it does mean I have room to give myself
grace. That grace gives me room to be myself, to feel loved, to accept I’m not
always a big mess, but sometimes just in need of a shaping up trim.
I am reminded that sometimes cutting back something doesn’t
mean it is forever taken way. Sometimes
I just need a little less of it. I love chocolate,
but sometimes for my own good I have to limit what I consume. Sometimes I think it’s like that with
God. He isn’t taking a thing away from
us forever, but trimming back how much He lets us have.
