Where Are You Planted?

As the weather is getting warmer, I am assuming that many of you have started doing more and more outdoor yard work. Some of you have been gardening and planting new plants or tending to the ones already there. Have you ever planted a plant in a bad place for the plant’s health? Maybe it was in a location that didn’t get enough sunshine or maybe it was in location that got washed out. Did you know that we can also "plant" ourselves in the wrong place? As I have been doing more and more yard work, I have been reminded of Psalm 92. We exist to praise and exalt the Lord, even now as we walk the earth. There is no better place to praise the Lord than to be “planted in His courts”. The Lord’s spiritual care of the believer has been compared to a vinedresser in John 15. Let us all seek to dwell in the Lord’s courts and allow the “Vinedresser” to prune and work on us. On Wednesday night, I asked the teens to share one area of their spiritual walk that grew during this time of quarantine. Overwhelmingly, the response was patience! Too often we as humans want immediate results, but growth takes time. We don’t just plant a seed and expect a fully grown mature plant in the morning. Likewise, Christian maturation takes time as the Lord patiently cares and tends our spiritual souls.

“The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,

He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord

Shall flourish in the courts of our God.” Psalm 92:12-13

It’s interesting to note that palm trees have incredible durability, and scientific studies have shown that the root base grows stronger through storms. These trees are always vibrant and continue to grow. They do not have “seasons” per say, but are always renewing their leaves to be as vibrant as possible. Do we have seasons while serving the Lord, and lose our vibrance when the “winter” of hardships come? Are we casting off the “old leaves” of the flesh to sprout new leaves of spiritual growth? Another tree to note is the cedar tree in Lebanon. These were some of the largest trees in the area. On average they could be 40-70 feet tall by 30-60 feet wide. However, it could exceed a height of 100 feet by 80 feet width with age and health! We should be growing in spiritual maturation as we grow older. Where are our roots planted? If we are planted in the house of the Lord we should continue to flourish and grow in praise to our Lord.

“They shall still bear fruit in old age;

They shall be fresh and flourishing,

15 To declare that the Lord is upright;

He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.” Psalm 92:14-15

The Psalmist continues that we should continue to bear fruit as we age, still “fresh and flourishing”. Have we become withered spiritually with age? Our spiritual vitality is dependent on the Lord and being planted in His courts. Would we all seek to sink our roots into the Lord’s courts today? Trust Him completely and praise Him. The reason for our spiritual growth and maturation is for the praise of the Lord. “To declare the Lord is upright” we must also seek to be upright and more like Christ. Let us continue to dig the roots of our spiritual lives deep on the Lord’s foundation.