Holy Spirit, Spiritual Growth
Growing Grass 101- Light
Wayne and I love trees. When we built our home, we were careful to leave every tree possible on the lot. We wanted lots of trees and we got them! Huge live oaks, bay trees, I hate those huge rubbery leaves, loquat, fig, orange, lemon, pine, hickory and scraggly scrub oaks.
But what we don’t have is grass.
We have installed sod twice. Seeded it. Fertilized it. Prayed over it. The man that sod our yard the last time promised that this special grass, which we paid extra for, a lot extra, would grow under trees! Well, the truth is– nothing much grows under trees and I have the bare spots to prove it!
Because the reality is– green plants need light.
Even big trees will twist and turn to find some sun!
They need it to grow. Some trees will shoot up tall to reach the sun they need. Others, will twist and turn, leaving limbs and branches twisted and turned permanently as it grows toward the light. Look at this tree. Joy Hemler and I think it did this trying to grow toward the light.
I’m not telling you about anything new, you know plants need light. You check the light requirements on the back of the seed package or plant tags. You plant in full sun or partial shade according to the directions, or you WILL watch the plant refuse to grow in spite of watering and fertilizing.
But do you realize that if you want to grow, if you want to be fruitful– you need the light?
Look at Ephesians 5:8 in the King James Version “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)”
It says the “fruit of the Spirit” which is referencing the Holy Spirit. But NAS says (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth).
I love that it uses the word light here for two reasons.
- One of the major roles of Precious Holy Spirit is to “turn on the light” or be the light that opens our understanding to truth that is hidden in the context of Scripture.
- He wants to reveal truth.
- He wants to show us Jesus.
- He wants to give practical understanding, so we can live out the truths of Scripture.
- If you’re gonna grow fruit, and every believer should, then you must have light. If we walk with Him, we walk in the light.
But walking in the light isn’t always easy.
Sometimes the glaring truth I see makes me want to put on sunglasses so I don’t see what I see. Sometimes I see things makes me feel uncomfortable. I see needs that made me feel sad. I’d rather be happy, so walking in the light can be challenging. Often it means something in my life has to die-habits, attitudes or wrong motives.
Or it can mean that I see an area I have to grow in, like witnessing—now that’s a scary thought. Sometimes, it means I have to forgive or give someone a helping hand or say something encouraging.
When I walk in the light, I never really know where it will take me. The light never stays on safe, level pathways. The Light takes me to exciting places and challenging places, to beautiful places and dark, lonely places.
Sometimes I struggle to stay in the light and sometimes I rejoice in the Light. One thing I know for certain, there’s life in the Light. If I want to be fruitful, if we want to be fruitful, we must walk in the Light!