growing up to grow out
Concerning the man (or woman) who delights in the law of God:
He is like a tree planted by streams of water.
Yielding fruit in its season.
With leaves that don’t wither.
Prospering in all that he (or she) does.
I’m sure some of you are familiar with the words above. A healing balm to the spirit, a nourishing flow to the soul.
Like a tree planted by the streams of water. Sounds nice, right?
Madison and I have been planted by the streams of water for a long time now. We could go back six years to when our hearts became fully devoted to Jesus. We could go back to high school and remember all of the faithful people who shared Jesus with us. We could even go back to our first memories of going to church with our families when we were little.
I’d like to go back a little further.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Did you guys see that? Before Madison and I were formed He knew us. Before we were formed he set us apart. Before we were born he appointed us to do something special. How awesome is that?
We’ve been planted by the streams of water for a long time.
Growing in God through the seasons.
Producing fruit that doesn’t wither.
Prospering in all that we do.
There are a few specific memories I have of God growing Madison and I.
I remember a time when I was six or seven years old. My family and I consistently attended church growing up, and I would find myself talking to Jesus at a young age. It wasn’t a particularly formulated time of prayer, I was just talking to God about anything and everything. Little did I know it at the time, but God was teaching me the importance of interacting with Him as a friend. This has been absolutely crucial in my relationship with Him.
There was another time when Maddy was seven or eight years old riding on a plane, and she asked Mac (what we affectionately call her grandmother), “Can we see God from here?” Little did Maddy know, but Jesus was instilling inside of her the heart of a pursuer. Someone with the childlike faith and perseverance it takes to see God wherever she goes and in whatever circumstance. What a powerful lesson to learn at such a young age.
And how could I forget the moment Jesus asked me to win Maddy’s heart? We were far removed from our elementary years, but the things God had taught us in our youth echoed in this new season of romance. Maddy had been through past relationship hurt, so it took all of her childlike faith and perseverance to give an imperfect person like me a chance. And it took all of my friendship with God to be patient with her as she questioned whether she should be with me or not. If it wasn’t for Jesus—we wouldn’t have made it. Thank God we did.
God has grown us into something beautiful. Once as separate spectacles, but now as one married marvel. All with the purpose of giving us an opportunity to grow out of our current lives into something new and exciting.
And yes (for those of you who know us), I am talking about moving to Africa one day. But it’s so much more than just moving to Africa. This is about taking everything we have ever learned, from every influential person we have ever met, and bringing that with us to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28).
The object of our growing and planting years was never to stay in the same place, it was to grow us up into something beautiful and life-giving. Something beautiful and life-giving that we would share with the world.
And that’s the current season we are in. God has grown us up in Arkansas and Texas so much so that we are now growing out everywhere we go. We are like Holy weeds growing in your yard or garden. Our current place can’t contain what God has done inside of us, so now we must move to a new place where we will have more room to share all of those things.
So we will hold onto our last season as altars of remembrance. With God’s help, we won’t forget all that He has brought us out of. We will hold these memories in our hearts to carry us and motivate us to be who He wants us to be. We have experienced His word coming alive in our lives these past few years. And it is that word that will never fail us.
Wow. What a beautiful thing it is to be planted by the streams of water.
Time to find a new stream.
