by Darcia Kunkel

Burst Forth and Bloom.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”
Psalm 1:3, English Standard Version

Spring and Fall are my favorite seasons. One brings cooler weather, the other brings warmer weather, but both yield an array of colors. This purple foliage has begun to grow in the flower bed that lines my driveway. It is vibrant. It signals the rebirth of vegetation from winter slumber.

Spring also initiates the cycle of trees, and plants, bearing fruits and vegetables. Summer and Fall harvests are the culmination of those early seeds taking root. Tree buds begin to burst forth. The sun starts to warm us, and the rains nourish the ground.

The Psalmist urges us to become like trees planted near streams that bear fruit in season. We are called to a specific purpose…to yield God’s fruit. If we hibernate, and remain dormant, will we not wither and die?

The plant pictured is a perennial flowering plant. It persists for many growing seasons, with the top portion of the plant dying each winter with regrowth in the spring. By contrast, annuals complete their entire life cycle from seed to flower to seed in a single growing season, with roots, stems, and leaves dying annually. Only a dormant seed bridges the gap from one generation to the next.

Am I an annual or a perennial? Do I persist in my faith life perennially, or just for a season? I will admit that there have been times in my life when my spiritual buds did not bloom. I was dormant, going through those dark days wondering when the sun will shine again. Even during those days the roots and seeds of faith remained, and I became fruitful again.

Lord, let me always strive to be a perennial…persisting, blooming, and bearing fruit each and every year.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado