Bloom Where You are Planted

On the last day our family is together in Arizona, 

I have the most fabulous story to tell you...

Two days ago in the midst of the packing frenzy,

I looked out into our backyard and saw my Echinopsis Camarguensis.

When we first moved to the desert, this english perennial gardening girl decided to embrace

her new southwestern habitat by planting a bed of . . . cacti.

I ripped out a row of ugly, prickly bushes, visited every nursery in the valley,

sketched out a plan and went to work.

It was a lovely variety of succulents.

An array of cacti with different growth habits:

Globose, cylindrical, flattened-padded, columnar.

It was.....well, like an english garden with southwestern species.

I was a bloody mess after that endeavor (gardening in the desert is dangerous work)

  but I loved the finished product. . .

and patted myself on the back for

 "embracing my new home"

&

"Blooming where I was planted"!

Well, a couple years later we relandscaped the backyard 

and my sorry excuse for a perrenial garden  lovely project had to be sacrificed.

But, my friend karen, the landscape designer, saved my

Echinopsis Camarguensis and tucked it under the big mesquite tree.

FIVE YEARS LATER......the week we are moving, it produced its first bud!

And it was an extraordinary sight.....

And I can't tell you how it warmed by heart.

I made the whole family run to the backyard and adore it.

We were all (or maybe it was just me) filled with anxious expectation!

And this morning, on our very last day in Arizona.....I woke up to this beauty

I was overjoyed.

And it brought to mind a passage in Isaiah 35:1-4

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;

the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus;

 it shall blossom abundantly

and rejoice with joy and singing.

The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,

the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.

They shall see the glory of the Lord,

the majesty of our God.

 Strengthen the weak hands,

and make firm the feeble knees.

 Say to those who have an anxious heart,

“Be strong; fear not!

Behold, your God will come with vengeance,

with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”

Calvin's commentary says this about Psalm 35:

After having spoken of dreadful calamities 

and predicted the lamentable ruin of the whole world, 

the Prophet comforts believers by this promise,

 in which he foretells that all things shall be restored. 

This is done by Christ, by whom alone they can be renewed and made glad; 

for he alone renews everything, and restores it to proper order; 

apart from him there can be nothing but filth and desolation

-----

Upon moving here, I saw this new place 
as a barren, harsh, miserable

 place to call home.

But as we sought the Lord, 

He redeemed this new home for us in beautiful ways...

We saw the Lord grow and challenge us as a family, 

drawing us ever closer together as we set out to explore its possibilities

We watched Him provide new opportunities for ministry and strengthen our weak hands for His service.

We behold His glory and the power of His grace while we sought to

faithfully obey Him -- He was making us new bit by bit

not unlike the unfolding of that blossom as we trusted fully in Him.

In Christ we indeed found great joy and gladness in the desert!

We saw magnificient friendships take root and flourish  - -

And as we've said before, it is our friendships we will miss the most.

As for cactus gardening, not so much.  

Glad to be returning to perrenials!

The truck just pulled away minutes ago.

Houston - we have lift off!!!

Next post will be from our new home in a new place . . .

another work of our Sovereign Lord!


Jesus Christ is my redeemer.
He makes all things new!
Even the desert bursts forth with His majesty.