More From Deepika Emmanuel Sagar

Jesus often talked to his disciples in parables—stories that could be understood by those who deeply wanted to learn. The other day during my time with the Lord, God also gave me a story to understand one aspect of spiritual depth. Maybe because I have been a student of botany, the Lord gives me insights through plants. With that light moment, let’s begin with the story:

A sapling was planted in a certain soil one day. This type of plant was expected to bring forth flowers and fruit in its due time. But somehow its phenology was not normal. The sower checked the plant every day, expecting to find flowers, but remained disheartened. He tilled and aerated the soil and also added manure. But the plant’s buds came and dried off without ever turning into flowers. The season came for it to bear fruit, but the buds would not open. The next season came, and the sower, in dismay, took the plant from its site and placed it into another soil. Still the plant showed no new signs of growth. The sower uprooted it once again to put it into yet another type of soil. It was then that the sower realized that the roots of the plant were not growing enough to take hold of the soil.

The soil represents the situations we undergo. Some people learn from each new experience and are able to remain stable when faced with yet another situation of similar kind, but some people falter every time. But if a person keeps faltering, it’s usually not so much due to the situations they are facing but the mindset they have. Often people show some signs of growth but ultimately fail to bloom or fruit. This is not because of what the darkness is doing, but because they are not ready to take hold of the Light.

How many times do we blame our situations or the people around us for our own conditions? We are just like the sower who assumed the problems were due to the soil while ignoring the plant itself. Isn’t that something! The knowledge of the Spirit comes with experience, and understanding follows.

Let’s consider another situation. Have you ever seen glass being molded? It is put in a heated furnace so that it softens up and can be put into any shape or use. But before the glass is shaped, its purpose has already been decided.

I believe that trials are like furnaces, and we are like glass. We have been shaped according to a divine purpose. But when we focus on the teachings of the world, we become unable to accept that purpose or have a vision for it. Our perspective on life becomes more flesh driven than Spirit driven. When this happens, we often need to be molded once again so that we can return to our spiritual purpose. Trials are one of the ways we become soft and pliable, able to recognize the guidance of the Lord.

Our flesh needs to be strengthened by the word. When the Lord molds us according to our divine purpose, it might produce distress in us. But holding on to God and scripture develops in us a strengthened soul. And when our soul has been strengthened by the Spirit, we find stability as we fulfill our purpose. So let’s showcase the strength of our souls and the best of what we have: Jesus.

Deepika’s blog can be found here:  https://desforgod.wordpress.com/. She has also written a collection of devotionals, psalms, and poetry, which is available on Kindle.