I thought this rose bush was dead.
We moved into this house almost a month ago and the front landscaping (as you can see) is all weeds and sticks and thorns. I thought I’d spend some time this fall researching how to prune and care for rose bushes so that we might see blooms in the spring. It really was the last thing on my list of priorities right now.
And then, it started to rain. I think we got 5 inches in one day after months without a single drop! When I woke up the next morning and opened the blinds to a canvas of pink it took my breath away. Right outside the window, where there had been only crunchy weeds the day before, was a rose bush full of blooms. And they just keep blooming! I didn’t even realize it until after the rain but there are actually FIVE rose bushes in front of the house. They’re full of color and life and fragrance right now – when I thought that they were dead. Three of them I hadn’t even noticed! I just thought there were a bunch of thick weeds and branches that needed to be dealt with as soon as the triple digit temps disappeared.
I swear y’all, God has been speaking to me through these roses for the last two weeks. Every time I go outside to trim new blooms off to put into a vase, I feel him right beside me. Here’s what he’s been saying: our eyes don’t see the whole story. We can’t comprehend what’s waiting to happen in the unseen.
Somewhere under that thing that looks dead to our eyes, life is waiting to spring up. Did you know that our words have the same life-giving power as a good, drenching rain? When our marriage, our finances, our health or whatever it is looks “dead” – maybe it just needs some water?
What if we stopped saying things like:
• I’m too tired.
• We can’t afford that.
• My husband is so annoying.
• I’m sick of being sick.
and we started watering those “dead” places with words like:
• I’m thankful for new energy each day.
• I’m believing for provision.
• I’m in awe of the way my husband (fill in the blank!)
• I know my body is healing and I make choices each day to cooperate with that healing.
Don’t you think we might start smelling the sweet fragrance of new life? Don’t you think hope would rise up? Don’t you think we’d see new color in places that once looked completely lifeless to our eyes?
I know from experience that we will! So, water all the “dead” places in your life with the power of your words. Watch and wait as new life springs up!!!