Growing Season

Slash and Burn-Method of Cultivation

MY fallow land left UNSEEDED during a growing season has been SLASHED and BURNED. If done correctly, it can actually be healthy, allowing new growth to establish.

~Slashing eliminates old growth to create room for new growth--->food producing trees that are useful are left standing~ ~Burning removes pests and microorganisms--->ash releases nutrients to fertilize the soil~

~Then starts the process of new growth~

We revel and strive for the comforts of peace in our lives and resist the moments of opposition so much that we miss opportunities to grow. Or we allow opposition to cripple and paralyze us to the point of being unproductive for extended periods of time. There are moments when we hit extreme sorrow and pain through situations, then go into a self-pity cave full of the devils fine foods and delectables: depression, fear, anxiety, and Chocolate Turtle Chex Mix :-). Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has plans to prosper us, give us hope and a future...not to harm us. He is not our source of harm. But He will use those situations for something good to come out of them, if you don't resist the opposition/opportunity. I have seen a reflection of myself in my organicosity mirror (I made that up) even in the newness of this year, 2009. My opposition causes me to take a look at myself, point the finger at myself first and not others. It causes me to evaluate the fruitful parts of my life and my character and the old unproductive parts that need to be slashed and burned.

Wake up, shower, eat, go to school, go to work, work-out, drop the kids off, pick the kids up, cook breakfast-lunch-dinner, talk on phone/text, watch tv, play Wii, do homework, run errands, sleep...whatever order or activities you participate in, we live busy lives. In our business our resolution to 'pray in the morning', 'say my affirmations/confessions', 'read atleast one passage a day', 'finish reading that book I started', 'pray before I go to bed', 'debrief', falls off and we become an open target. I know because it happened to me. I became so concerned about rushing to school and work and fulfilling those duties that my guard was down. So here comes my adversary feeding me lies about myself that I got full on. Attacking my self-esteem and how I viewed my beauty, attacking my need to "do enough to be enough" and attacking my most hated part, my emotional self. To take a side journey, Proverbs tells us that "wisdom is supreme...get wisdom" (Prov. 4:7). Wisdom is the parent (authoritative figure) and emotions are the child (free willed, and undisciplined by nature). Wisdom parents your emotions. Wisdom says "slow down and think about future consequences to what you are about to do...is it beneficial, are you being realistic...you are being irrational!" Emotions say "give it to me NOW, i want it NOW, why not NOW!?" Emotions connect us and allow us to express ourselves and wisdom regulates that. For me, my emotional self thought the whole world was coming to an end. My life is over and there is no hope. If things didn't work out or if I got some bad news, I would go into a panic or be depressed (either or both extremes). I knew that was an area that I needed strength in, self control. In my illumination, I realized that I don't have low self-esteem but I allowed seeds of thoughts to be planted and grow. I realized that I can have control over my emotional self and that I am giving and my giving IS enough (although, we can always do more).

Right now I am walking through the valley of the shadow of death and with it lurks fear, anxiety and sadness. Now is an opportunity for me to either react off of emotions or do something different. That something different looks like anchoring my emotional self, my hope and my faith in the Lord COMPLETELY. It looks like rejoicing in the Lord like the Word tells us to do (Philippians 4:4). It looks like having a positive attitude and believing the best. Not to discount your genuine feelings of hurt, but to combat them so you don't fall off into bitterness. I was so busy trying to "suck it up" and keep moving that I did a disservice to myself. Pride tells you not to cry when you need to cry. It tells you that if you cry then you are not in faith. That's a lie. "Weeping may endure for a night, but night doesn't necessarily mean 8 hours. Night can last until...and then your morning will come"~mommy. No one can count how long your night will be but you have the morning to look forward to. And just like the rainfall purifies that atmosphere, catches its impurities and washes away the dirt, our tears do the same. But joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5). Before you know it, a blade of grass will rise up from the ashes and then starts the growth of something new.

I have committed to shedding the unhealthy parts of myself, and cultivating a better version of myself. Computer programs have upgrades, phones have upgrades, heck even cars have upgrades. Why can't we? My journey of growth is not over, of course, but I put my thoughts under submission, surround myself with the Word (good seed), give God praise when I feel like complaining, look to encourage someone else, expand my spiritual knowledge, and wake up every morning running to be closer to my Designer, my Creator. If you want something to rely on that never changes, its your Creator. Put things into perspective. What we long for here on earth won't matter in Heaven. We have a short period of time left, rise to the morning and rise to your assignment.

*Remember: your mind is the enemy's Cedar Pointe. Time to stop giving out free passes into the park.