Growth

Here is the second post in my series that are inspired by singular words. Last one was "beautiful" and the word for this post is growth. Again, I will try not to ramble in this post but I am kind of just going to type what comes to mind.

The first thing that I think of when I hear the word "growth" I generally think of plants. So lets think together, what does a plant need for healthy growth? I went online to find a list of things to do for growing healthy plants... I then compiled a list I like for where I am taking this blog.

         1.  Know your plant: no matter how much care and attention you give to plants, they are not                  going to thrive if you do not know their specific needs.

         2.  Make sure their "home" is big enough: there needs to be room for growth so that the space              does not limit the growing process, specifically for the roots to grow deep enough.

         3. Make sure they have enough sunlight

         4. Water the plants as often as they need: do the research to find out what they need. not enough          water will kill them and too much water will kill them as well.

         5. Fresh air and healthy soil: clean air is crucial for healthy growth and the contents of the soil            are absorbed through the roots, therefore healthy soil is very important.

        6. One thing that we do not often think of is time. We cannot rush the growth process.

Now we are not plants but I think that if we analyze the components of healthy plant growth then we could correlate them to our own lives. I decided to blog about growth for several reasons: the first is that one of our speakers spoke to my heart when he talked about how people who suffer together grow closer and experience a bond that they would not have otherwise. The second is from the day that I was looking for inspirational quotes or phrases to write on my calendar for encouragement and I came across one that said "no rain. no flower."


Lets break this down... on a spiritual level.

1. Know your self- know your specific needs because if you do not know them and are not able to meet them, all the care and attention is not going to make the difference.

2. Make sure your "home" is big enough. By home I mean your environment. There needs to be space for your roots to grow. Growth can be stifled by having unhealthy people in your life, or being in unhealthy situations. Don't get me wrong, on the other hand those situations are extremely conducive to growth. Some of the strongest people that I know grew up in some of the most unhealthy and dysfunctional situations you could imagine. However, I do think that it is good to remove yourself from unhealthy situations when possible. (I do not know if any of this made any sense. Sorry guys.)

3. Sunlight. I do not know about you but when I do not get enough sunlight I get sad, lonely, sickly, and even depressed. However, I get some sunlight from other sources. Physical sunlight is wonderful, not only for a physical level but spiritually and mentally too. My best friend, A, has the same effects on my life as direct sunlight does. I love physical sunlight but I also love the sunlight that comes into my life through the wonderful people that God has blessed me with.

4. Water or nourishment. It is crucial to nourish your soul with lots and lots of Jesus!!! Now, unlike a plant, I do not think that you can overdue the nourishment in this area; it will not kill you. Devotions, prayer, worship music, fellowship, and intimate time with Jesus.

5. Fresh air and healthy soil. I think it is a pretty known fact that you start to become like the people that you surround yourself with. If you surround yourself with healthy people then you will start to replicate healthy things from their lives. If you surround yourself with unhealthy people then you will start to replicate unhealthy things from their lives. It is okay to let go of toxic people. That does not make you a bad person, it means you are keeping yourself healthy, and that is totally okay.

6. Time. Growth and change is not going to happen overnight. Give it time. Be patient. Growth will come and sometimes it come from the most unexpected places.


Growth is stimulated from so many places. Suffering, heartache, health, happiness, rain, sunlight, and and endless amount of places. Growth can be painful, exciting, wonderful, scary. God can use so many things for growth. Do not be afraid of growth, accept it.


Luke 12:27 "Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these."

1 Corinthians 3:7 "So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."