Blooming

I was a very young new bride the first time I heard the phrase “Bloom Where You Are Planted.” I heard it in the context of a class I was in called “The Preacher’s Wife”. We were being instructed as to the vagaries of the life we were preparing ourselves for and the certainty that we would not go and live in one place for the rest of our lives like those with secular jobs could do if they chose. Somehow the message came across (and probably through no fault of the teacher) of a jaw-set, grim determination that I should make the best of it. I don’t know about you but when I hear the phrase “make the best of it” I am not overcome with joyful anticipation.

Recently I heard a phrase that I liked a whole lot better - “Bloom with Abandon”. When the kids were little we would take them to the park to play and no matter how many times we’d go they were always ready to go again. They’d run to the car and jump in without a fuss and watch out the window for the first glimpse of their green oasis. They could hardly wait for the car to stop before they were tugging at seatbelts and trying to get out. They obeyed the rules that they wait until I opened the door for them, but only just barely. I would get around to their side, open the door and out they would jump. They would squeal and run as fast as their little legs could carry them to the object of their affection at the moment. There was not a care in the world in their minds – it was time to run and jump and scream and laugh all done at top speed with as much energy as they possessed. Pure unbridled joy. I noticed that it never mattered what was going on in our lives or even in the car minutes before we arrived. They could have been scolded, they could be fighting with each other, they could have just been to the doctor and gotten a shot but looking out that car window and seeing the park erased all of that in a second.

That’s the kind of emotion I think God wants to invoke in us – as we near Him, as we grow in our understanding of the Spirit’s role as our comforter, our help, as we learn to love Jesus more – he wants us to jump out of the mundane and into the joy that he promises. Our Father longs to see us run and jump and squeal with joy as we run to him. Throw all caution to the wind and revel in his love and his presence. That’s what blooming with abandon means to me -- leaving all cares behind, eagerly reaching forward to grow in his awareness and in a sense of responsibility to share the incredible love he has for us.

When I would take the kids to the park in those days long past I would open the door and let them run while I would shut the door, lean against the car, and stand and watch for a second. I’d take that minute just to enjoy their enthusiasm, to rejoice in the knowledge that I had given them something that made them so happy. I like to think that it brings a smile to the Lord’s face when I do the same with this life he’s given me.

Come let us sing with joy for the Lord. Let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let’s come before Him with thanksgiving and extol Him with music and song. Psalm 95: 1-2