Wishing Well

So I was with a dear friend today and her sweet little boy. We stopped at a huge fountain and gave him coins to toss into the water. He was at first amazed that we would allow him to pitch pennies into the splashing water, but loved the game. Happily he toddled back and forth from us to the pool and tossing pennies one by one into the bubbling water. The coins seemed to vanish magically.

Have you ever done that? Have you pitched a penny into a fountain and tossed a wish in with it? It's a fun way to dream...whether it's a wish for winning the lottery, finding a soul mate or just hoping for a good parking spot at the grocery store, we love to wish.

Sometimes people look at God as a wishing pool. They summon on their best prayer skills and cast their wish into the sky...in hopes of Him granting it. And when an answer doesn't come, or they hear a "no"...they move on to the next fountain that might grant their wish.

In John 15:7, Jesus said, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you."

Some people grasp onto the last part, "ask whatever you wish" and forget the first part.

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you..." You see, God wants us to have the desires of our heart. (Psalm 37:4) He loves to give gifts to His children. (Matthew 7:11) When we only come to Him with our wants and never stop to build our relationship with Him, we become a child playing at the fountain...casting our pennies in one after another, never abiding, never listening to His words.

We go away with a few less pennies, and a few more unanswered wishes. And we wonder, does He really care? Will He ever answer?

Dear reader, if we would only learn what it means to truly abide! Abide means to dwell, live with, remain. Can you truly say you abide with Him? Does His word abide in you?

I challenge you to take at least a week and really abide. Shut off the TV, open your Bible start and end your day with His word. Take those few minutes of your day...the ones you consider as not so important, like pennies on a sidewalk, and give them to Him.

Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you. Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And the door will be opened for everyone who knocks. Would any of you give your hungry child a stone, if the child asked for some bread? Would you give your child a snake if the child asked for a fish? As bad as you are, you still know how to give good gifts to your children. But your heavenly Father is even more ready to give good things to people who ask. Matthew 7:7-11

Miracle Grow

A curious thing happened with a bouquet of roses at my Dad's house. These roses were given by my Mom's brother for her memorial service. I was cleaning up the wilting flowers and noticed that several of the long stems had sprouts of new growth on them. I had never seen that before. We saved some of those long stems to see if they would root. Sadly, they did not take so they were discarded. It was amazing to see the new shoots grow to over an inch long.

When you read about caring for roses, you find out that they are actually two plants in one. One half is the sturdy rootstock. This has been chosen to resist disease, handle cold and heat, as well as survive pretty well in questionable soil.

The other half is the branches that are grafted into the rootstock. These are chosen for the number and size of blooms, color and fragrance. A horticulturist will spend years developing a special hybrid. And once he is satisfied with it's uniqueness, beauty and fragrance, he gives it a name.

Once grafted, it is a relationship between two plants that is a delight to experience.

In my ladies' Bible study this week, we studied John 15. It's all about roots and grafting and I was loving the word picture Jesus painted.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. John 15:4

We had the stems in a vase of water with a root hormone and Miracle Grow...but this was not enough. These new shoots could not produce more blossoms because it was not grafted into a rootstock.

This what happens when a Christian only practices being a Christian on Sundays. Yes, you get a sermon, you worship a bit and you leave your offering. By Tuesday you've forgotten the message and wish you had that offering back for an unexpected bill. Jesus says "Abide in me..." That means dwell, remain, be grafted in and grow in Him...every day.

What happens when we "abide"? Think about yourself as that lovely rose sprout that is grafted into the rootstock.

You were thought of in the beginning, God knew exactly what He was doing when He created you. And when everything was just right, He called you by name. You were chosen because of your unique qualities that nobody else has...your talents, your life experiences, your demeanor.

When you become a Christian, you are grafted in to the sturdy rootstock of Jesus Christ. You experience a growth like never before seen--even in questionable soil. Without the "Root of Jesse", you are like these stems in water...you will only see a little growth. When you abide, you don't have to grow by your own strength, you draw it from your rootstock--Jesus Christ.

I want you to take time today to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the "rose" inside of you, waiting to bloom. Abide, dwell, remain in Him by reading His Word, praying at all times and sharing that fragrance and beauty that He found special in you. Believe me, it is a relationship that is a delight to experience.

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5