Spiritual Perennials

About a year ago in the spring, our daughter, Lisa, helped us lay out a flower border in the front yard. She chose a variety of plants and placed them thoughtfully, with a plan in mind. I didn’t fully appreciate her plan until this spring, when a lovely array of plants and flowers began to bloom. Nearly every day that little garden surprises and delights us. Because Lisa chose perennials, this little garden will be a haven for birds and butterflies for years to come. Every plant and flower speaks to us of a love more extravagant than the colors and varieties that astound us. For those of us who enjoy flowers but don’t have a lot of time for gardening, God created the perennial.
God loves gardens. What fun He must have had designing the endless varieties of plants and flowers….I can imagine that He fashioned each one with thoughtful care, creating colors, textures, aromas that would delight the senses. Genesis 1:11 records that God created grass, herbs and trees instantly by merely speaking them in to existence. But, I believe He had planned everything out, in detail, before He
began His physical creation. And as He surveyed His creation, He relished that it was good! The Creator of it all enjoyed walking in His garden in the cool of the day (Gen. 3:8).
Throughout His word, God uses garden analogies to teach spiritual lessons. Especially in the New Testament, where Christ declares that He is the vine and we are the branches. Matthew 13 records the parable of the “sower of the seed.” The seed that fell on good ground yielded a crop of up to a hundredfold! But some lessons are not recorded in His word, they are written in His creation for us to observe and absorb….for the invisible things of God are clearly understood by the things He has made (Romans 1: 20). Consider the perennial….
The perennial typically has a deep, extensive root system. Because its root is protected below ground level, it helps prevent erosion, it is stronger than weeds (less need for herbicide!), and it can even withstand wild fires! A perennial can survive extreme environmental conditions, and it will come back year after year, not
just surviving, but growing! Spiritually speaking, I want to be a perennial! Ephesians 3:17 speaks of being “rooted and grounded in love.” The word love here is “agape” which refers to the highest kind of love…God’s love. To be rooted in
that love will protect us, make us stronger than our enemy and enable us to withstand the fires of life.
I Cor. 3:9 states that we are “God’s field”….may that field be overgrown with spiritual perennials!