Like King David, the psalmist, the Lord seems to speak to me
in the night. When I awake, sometimes it
seems, even before I’m well awake, I believe the Lord speaks to me things
He wants me to know. That’s probably
the only time that He has my undivided attention. Early this morning was one of those times.
I’ve been praying that the Lord would help me to do His
will, to know it and to be willing to do it.
Like the verse that says, “He works in us both to will and to do His
good work.” He’s always faithful to help
and to guide. I want to be more faithful
to listen and adhere to His way, not my own.
Yesterday morning, when I had finished reading my Bible, I
prayed that the Lord would continue to renew my mind by the “washing of the
water of the Word.” I asked that He
would bring the scripture I’d read back to mind throughout the day and night so
that my mind could be cleansed and rejuvenated constantly. It’s my mind that needs to be renewed to live
“not my will but God’s will be done.” I
want a new mind!!!
So this morning, before it was time to be awake, this
thought came to mind. “How can I renew
your mind if you’ve constantly got it chasing after other things? You keep focusing it everywhere else but on Me
and My word. What are you planting,
dandelions or tomatoes?” God is always
so good!!!
It’s true! I have
kept my mind preoccupied with so many other things. I like to craft and create, sew, make jewelry,
produce artwork with scripture, photos, digital art, etc. Lately, I’ve been overly indulging my senses
in searching the internet for new ideas and inspiration. I have busied myself to the point that my
mind has not taken the time to “be still and know that God is God”. No wonder that I keep choosing my way instead
of God’s way – I haven’t taken the time to listen to what He has to say.
Now, creating is not bad in itself. God made us in His image and He is the Master
Creator. Using our talents to craft and
create is not a bad thing. In the Old
Testament, the Lord even told Moses that He had gifted certain men with the
ability to be excellent craftsmen in order to make the Tabernacle just like He
wanted it to be made. That’s
encouraging! God expects us to use the
talents and abilities He’s given us for His purpose as well as an avenue to relax
and re-group from our daily stresses.
However, when even what is good takes over, then it becomes
sin because it eats up the energy, the focus, and the ability to see and have
what is best. Martha had the same
problem once when Jesus came to visit.
She was busy preparing food and setting the table for dinner for her
many guests while her sister Mary sat at Jesus feet and soaked up His every
word. What Martha did was good and necessary
in order to be sure that everyone had a seat, a plate and cooked food, but
Jesus said what Mary was doing was better and she could just sit and listen to
Him.
Sometimes, what can be good can choke out what is
better. We don’t often see it, but God
sees it every time. He wants us to have
what is very best. That’s why He sent
Jesus, His only Son to redeem us. He
didn’t send Jesus’ right-hand man or angel.
He sent the #1 Son to do the job.
Dandelions are not bad, really. They have some good health benefits when
prepared properly. Food and drink made
with them contain some deep cleansing properties, too. Creativity and using our hands and minds to make
things is not bad. It’s God given
resourcefulness and constructive “rest” from stress.
Tomatoes are full of vitamins that help us every day. They not only help keep us clean, but they have
vitamins that help protect us from destructive properties. Taking time to read and be quiet and meditate
on God’s word, not only rejuvenates us, but it also keeps us focused on His
unfailing way and protects us from being eaten alive by everything that
bombards us from the outside.
With the words “What are you planting, dandelions or
tomatoes,” came the mental picture of sowing a batch of seeds made with ten parts
dandelion seed to one part tomato seed.
That’s what I’d been doing! I was
expecting a good crop of tomatoes (learning to follow God’s will) with such a bad
mixture of seed. The garden was growing
up profusely saturated with dandelions (saturating myself with outside
influence) while the tomatoes were fighting for survival not even being able to
produce. And dandelions produce more
dandelions with fierce rapidity sucking the water and the very life out of the
soil of the garden (me).
I need to stop, be still, focus on God, His word, His Holy
Spirit. He will guide me. He will revitalize me and restore my mind to
His purpose for me and His perfect plan.
It just takes planting the right seeds.
Thank you God for dandelions! Thank you for tomatoes and for everything You
have provided to keep us healthy and alive.
I’m so glad You gave us your word to guide us. Thank you for loving us enough to stay with
us so that we can learn from You. Thanks
also, a whole bunch, for the creativity You put inside of us. You are so good!!! I love You so much! Praise You Father! In Jesus’ precious name I pray, amen.
Some scriptures that were referenced or drawn from for this
post are: Psalm 16:7; Psalm 42:8; Psalm 63:6; Psalm 119:148; Philippians 2:13; Romans 12:2; Ephesians 5:26; Luke 22:42; Psalm 46:10; Genesis 1:27; Exodus 35:30-35; Luke 10:38-42; John 3:16; Genesis 1:29-30
photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/guest_family/3378253845/">Road Fun</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a>
<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">cc</a>
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