“The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God.
They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the Lord is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.”
Psalms 92:12-15
God clearly spoke the word "Flourish" on my heart and confirmed it over and over through this passage in Psalm 92. The thing is flourishing isn't the word I would use to describe myself lately. Maybe "clinging" but not "flourishing". But what I'm realizing is that clinging to the Lord is flourishing in Him. He is teaching me that a flourishing tree is not exempt from seasons, but it learns to get the most out of every season. In Fall, the tree has to work harder at holding on and getting the nutrients to the branches and there are times that we are forced to HOLD onto God's promises with everything we have. Fall is a time where I can go deeper and anchor myself into the promises of God. In Fall, Winter is just around the corner and we must get anchored in the promises. He wants to use the Winter to produce the sweetest and hardiest fruit.
Spring is a time of abundance and a time of blossoms. Blossoms are a promise of fruit, In Summer, we can resent the heat or soak up the Sun(Son). Summer is a time for fruit to be harvested. God is showing me that He wants to make me flourish in every season of life because I am planted in grace. He is using every season to bring forth the best fruit. I have to look at each season in the context of the whole year and trust that God is producing something.
To flourish in Him, we must be intentional to continually draw from His grace. Trials are a time to learn a deeper shade of His grace, love and sufficiency. We must be intentional about setting our sights on heaven. To flourish in Christ, we MUST be intentional about claiming the promises of God. We must be intentional about giving all of our fears to Jesus. To flourish in His will, we must be faithful in obedience. We will never flourish if we are walking in disobedience.
In closing, flourishing in Christ isn't a work of my hands, but a work of His Spirit. He produces it in us as we continually draw near to Him and surrender it all into His faithful hands.
"I have heard that for the finest vineards an artful caretaker will, in crucial seasons, withhold water until the plant almost dies, forcing its roots to dig deeper. Not every vine is designed for this, but those precious ones receiving this master care, bear fruits of a different caliber." - Elisabet Fountain
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