Grammie's Garden
Blooming Where I'm planted - Weeds Included
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Don't Quit
Don't Quit
This is part 2 of "Just Keep Swimming". If you did not read part 1 please click here to read it first.
We've learned to "NEVER Swim Alone", my next rule of swimming is ..."if you get in trouble, DO NOT QUIT!". What happens if you quit swimming? YOU will SINK!
Continuing with our movie theme of “Finding Nemo”, Dory and Marlin encountered all kinds of setbacks, but no matter what, they kept pressing on toward their goal.
Some of us may be going through a season of weeping and mourning. All of us have been through this at one time or another. It is OK to feel sad, to grieve, to cry, to wake up and feel like quitting. But whatever you do: DON'T QUIT.
Like Dory, we must keep on swimming even if the only thing we can do that day is the survival float. Every day is different, there will be days when we can tread water and stay afloat, other days will be hectic and we will be dog paddling as fast as we can and not feel like we are gaining much ground. But if we pray, rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, and ask for the help of our friends, there will be a day when we can do the very fast forward moving crawl-stroke and make great strides. We will even have those wonderful days when we are floating on a raft with a big glass of iced tea. Those are my favorite days.
The Word says that "in this world we will face many trials, but don't lose heart, Jesus has overcome the world!" Don't quit on your toughest day! Remember you are not alone!
Romans 8:18 says "what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later."
Phillippians 3 says, "I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus is calling us."
Marlin and Dory's prize was finding Nemo. They were able to persevere because they never lost sight of their final goal, to rescue Nemo and bring him home. What is our final goal? HEAVEN. It is there that we will be with the Lord Jesus Christ and worship him forever. Never lose sight of Jesus as you race toward your final destination.
Today I encourage you to "Keep Swimming", no matter what, so that at the end of your race you can say the words of Paul in 2 Timothy 4:7-8:
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge will award me on that day and not ONLY to me, but to ALL who have longed for his appearing."
JUST KEEP SWIMMING!
Just Keep Swimming
Just Keep Swimming
May is a fun month. Flowers are blooming, teens are going to proms and graduating, summer vacation begins for kids in school, just a lot of good things going on. Memorial day usually marks the opening of local swimming pools. This of course reminds me of one of my favorite quotes and of a message that I gave several years ago at the church where I grew up.
Have you ever seen the movie “Finding Nemo”?
When my daughter was growing up we watched that movie over and over in our house.
Nemo is a cute little clownfish who lives in the ocean with his Dad, Marlin. Marlin does not have a very bright outlook on life, but with good reason. A barracuda destroyed his wife and all of their eggs. Only Marlin and one little egg(Nemo) survived. Besides being depressed this made Marlin very over protective of Nemo. Then on Nemo’s first day of school, he gets kidnapped by a scuba diver and taken far away in a boat. So Marlin has lost his wife and his only surviving child has just been kidnapped. Times don’t get much tougher than that do they? Marlin is determined to rescue his son, so he sets out on a long journey across the ocean to find Nemo.
Along the way Marlin meets a little blue fish named Dory. Dory lives by a very inspiring motto that you hear her singing at various times during the movie. Dory says, "When life gets you down… Just Keep Swimming!”. Dory is forgetful, Dory is annoyingly positive almost 100% of the time. Marlin often becomes irritated with her.
How can Marlin just keep swimming in the midst of his heartache and troubles and problems? How can we? I will explore this in the next couple of Blooms.
One of the number one rules about swimming is “NEVER SWIM ALONE”. I remember as a kid when we went swimming or on field trips the adult in charge always told us to “find a buddy” so we would not get lost or in trouble. Rule #1 for swimming is to use the buddy system.
Did I mention that Dory went with Marlin on his journey to help find Nemo? She had no reason to go with him. She had never even met him before that day, yet she was willing to battle sharks, jellyfish, landmines and even be swallowed by a whale just to help her new friend. Dory was willing to risk her life for someone she hardly knew. Dory exemplifies the scripture in her willingness to be a friend.
Galatians 6:2 tells us to “Share each other’s burdens and in this way obey the law of Christ.”
Proverbs 12:24 says “a man who has friends must himself be friendly And there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother.”
In order to find a buddy we must be willing to BE a buddy.
Today I thank God for the wonderful friends he has placed in my life. And I pray that I will be a supportive friend to them in return. Do you have supportive friends? Thank God for them today. AND...
JUST KEEP SWIMMING!
My daughter has a decorative sign hanging in her home. It says, “we were together i forget the rest”. She’s had it for several years, since my first grandchild was not quite a year old. That baby is now almost 7 years old.
When I first saw the sign in her house, I read it, and interpreted its meaning in my mind. I immediately thought that I had made my daughter’s childhood so unpleasant that she only wanted to remember things that happened since she had been with her husband. I had pangs of guilt and sadness, wishing I could go back and make things better for her. I did not say anything but every time I saw that sign, those feelings of self condemnation, remorse and regret crept into my heart.
A while back, the topic of the sign came up in conversation. My daughter said, “oh there is a story behind that sign”. She then began to tell me how she and her husband along with the baby took a trip to a tulip farm several hours away to celebrate her first Mother’s Day. It was supposed to be a perfect little getaway and they would have pictures taken in a field of tulips with their sweet little family. When they got there, everything went wrong. The baby screamed all night long. So much that the front desk of their hotel called to see if everything was ok. My son in law had to drive the baby around town for about an hour to get her to sleep each night of their stay. On top of that, it rained and was cold for their entire visit.
On their way home, after a few more mishaps, they stopped at a petting zoo and saw the sign in the gift shop. They knew they had to buy it. The best thing about the trip was that they were together, and she wanted to forget the rest. It gave them a good laugh and they purchased the sign. I was so relieved when she told me the story behind the sign. I had carried that shame around for 5 years for absolutely no reason!
What did I learn from the story of the sign?
EVERYTHING is NOT about ME.
I do not need to self condemn.
1 John 3:20 “If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”–Even when your own heart is heavy with shame, God’s understanding and grace are greater.
What shame are you carrying today? If you are in Christ Jesus, there is no condemnation! You are forgiven. Forgive yourself!
The inspiration for this site is my personal motto "Bloom Where You're Planted". In the picture, the little flower was planted in an unsightly crack in the road. Instead of withering and dying, it pushed through the ugly concrete and displayed its beautiful yellow bloom to the world.
Even though this is my proclaimed motto, I fail miserably at living by it. I fail to “bloom” in stressful situations. My blooms are full of weeds.
But you know what? Even though I produce lots of weeds, I am still producing some blooms. And my hope is that as I grow, there will be less weeds and more and more beautiful blooms.
What is the lesson from the yellow flower? We may not always like where we are planted, but we can choose to be a blessing to others in the midst of our circumstances. We can choose to be content and do our very best in whatever situation. Not by our own strength but drawing our strength from God. Where are you planted today? A stressful job? An unhappy marriage? Struggling with finances? In the hospital? You can still bloom.
In Philippians, Paul states that despite his personal struggles, he has learned to be satisfied, regardless of whether he has abundance or is in need. He states that he can do all things through Christ, who gives him strength.
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