Healthy Things Grow
I was reminded the other day of a saying which has meant a lot to me over the years. “Healthy Things Grow.”
Have you ever noticed that healthy things grow? Plants, children, emotional lives, our relationship with God, and our relationship with other people are a few things which come to mind. If these things are healthy, they are progressing, moving forward, changing, metamorphasizing so to speak.
Years ago in a pastoral staff meeting, a pastor by the name of James Ryle addressed us with this saying:
“Healthy things grow
Growing things change.
Change challenges us.
Challenge forces us to trust God.
Trust leads to obedience.
Obedience makes us healthy.
Healthy things grow…”
As you can see, health is a cycle. Even in our relationship with God, it seems as soon as we get comfortable, there will inevitably be some change which forces us to trust God in a new way. I’ve seen it over and over…haven’t you!?
Let’s say you step out and pray out loud for someone for the first time. It is scary. It is change. (But it also helps you grow spiritually.) The next thing you know, you’re praying regularly for others. Before you know it, you’re leading a small group. It is challenging. Things come up which you have no answer for. It forces you to trust God and seek Him.
And then there are those times, when the person in your group does not get healed; the check does not come in the mail; _________(you fill in the blank); and easy answers just don’t come. But we learn to trust God and be obedient to God anyway. It is healthy. It is challenging and it forces us to grow.
We must choose to remember, that even if it is not easy, growth and change can be good. WE may not see the results till years later. It may be challenging, but that forces us into the arms of our Father. (Or elsewhere if we make a poor choice)
Obedience makes us healthy and…..
Healthy things grow!
May your journey be filled with healthy growing things!
Blessings,
Thora
Your example of praying for someone for the first time brought a smile to my face. It reminded me of the first time I prayed out loud… in front of other people (gasp!). It was a prayer gathering at the 43rd & Olive location. VC was in the process of packing up to move to our present location and we were praying about the transition and what God had in store, etc. As I prayed out loud for the first time in front of others my heart raced and my eyelids fluttered. If you would have told me then that I would one day be on the ministry team I would have laughed or groaned or both. 🙂 I SO enjoy being on ministry team and I’m grateful God grew me and is still growing me!
That is awesome! Thanks for sharing,