Bamboo

You can’t have fruit without the root…

Today, while reading my devotional, God revealed several things to me. The first thing is that we tend to get hung up on the little things. I think that is true for many people in this world – both saved and un-saved. I recently had dinner with a good friend who is extremely talented.  Even though he has a relationship with God almighty, even though he is one of the most naturally talented people I know and even though God has placed him in a circle of friends that could connect him directly to his hearts desire, his heart seemed burdened. He felt scattered and wasn’t certain which direction to go in. How badly I wanted to tell this individual not to worry about it! He seemed to have the big stuff in check but when broached with the little “how to” s of this life, he found himself frustrated.

Isn’t that all of us? You may be very good at what you do, but still have a sense that something is missing, or that you are not in God’s perfect will for your life. Life is like school. There are many different test, check-points and grades. We are always growing but there comes a time when a test will be given and many times, only God knows the grade we get. Because our eyes are covered and we are blinded to whatever it is He is trying to show us, we take the same test over and over until we pass it. The bible says to seek and you will find. I believe that passage is not only referring to a relationship with our Father, but also in finding His perfect will for our lives. That is the journey portion of life many of us don’t want to hear about.

The best example I’ve ever heard of this is the way a bamboo tree grows. As the seed is planted in the ground, the gardener feeds and waters the seed. He must do this for FIVE years before he SEES any harvest. The bamboo tree doesn’t even sprout for that long. The first five years the bamboo tree is growing, it is growing miles and miles of root system. All the growth that is occurring is doing so underground. To the novice gardener, he may give up thinking the tree died. All the while however, it’s growing and growing and growing.

Then, what appears to be suddenly, the bamboo tree shoots straight up and grows 2 and a half feet a day until in six short weeks it is ninety feet tall. So it is with many of us. God has a plan for each and every one of us. It is not the same plan, however. He has a mission for us all. Some will need more time to develop than others. The higher we are going, the deeper our root system must be. We look at others thinking what they have done happened over night but in all reality, we don’t see the part of discipline and obedience that had to take place before they shot up out of the ground.

Just as it hurts us to see our loved ones make unrealistic comparisons, I believe it hurts our Heavenly Father when we do the same thing to ourselves. So, take each day one step at a time, one test at a time. Continue to draw close to Him and with the passing of each day, know that your root system is becoming stronger and stronger until one day, you seemly, shoot up into the destiny He has called you into.

By: Stephannie Martin