How to Live a Lush and Abundant Life
I had an epiphany the other day when my sweet Pastor husband mowed our front lawn. We have a lush green yard! I felt as if my yard matured when I wasn’t looking.
Before we moved into our home, the builder laid sod in the front yard. We moved in March, too early for our community to turn on the ditch water we have access to for watering the grass. You could see the lines between each piece of sod, and we even had several sections of sod that turned brown. I feared our yard wouldn’t be lush and green until next year.
My sweet Pastor husband tended the yard diligently. He watered it regularly with a movable sprinkler, spread weed killer, and fertilized. He doused certain sections of the yard more often to encourage it to take root. My sweet Pastor husband won the battle, and he now mows a lovely patch of green.
Front Yard Truth
God reminded me of truth as I soaked in the beauty of our front yard.
- We all know growth takes time. However, we don’t always live our lives as if we believe that truth. I didn’t want to wait; I wanted an instantly beautiful lawn.
- We will see signs of what will be before the goal is completely reached. My sweet Pastor husband and I didn’t just have struggling sod, we also had sections of lovely thick grass.
- We can’t focus on just problem areas. We must continue to pay attention to the whole situation, which in our case was the entire front lawn.
- Often, we need to tend to ourselves and/or our circumstance more than one thinks should be normal. My sweet Pastor husband tended to the yard, giving it priority even when he wanted to do something else.
As believers in Jesus, if we want to be growing and reflect a lush, abundant life, we must consider the truth I learned from my lawn.
Living Fully Watered
“O the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.” Psalm 1:1-3 NLT
Delight in the Word
We must delight in “the law of the LORD,” just as our grass delighted in receiving plenty of water. We shouldn’t feel obligated to read God’s Word. Instead, we must see engaging with God’s Word as a gift. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we gain an opportunity to learn about our Creator and Savior.
I know many of us have more desire to sit and study God’s Word than we have time to actually follow through. However, we must make God’s Word a priority or we will eventually lose any visible proof that we are Christ followers. Just like our lawn dried out before we began watering, our souls can also become dry. We must tend to our souls and give God the time He needs to create growth in our lives.
All of us have plenty of options available so we can delve into God’s Word. We can read, or we can listen to God’s Word on an app. Some of us who struggle to understand the Bible can choose to read or listen to a version that makes more sense to us. In addition, we can listen to podcasts that discuss Biblical truth, read (or listen to) books that explain Biblical topics, or watch videos that present Biblical content in ways we can understand.
Meditate on Truth
The Psalmist also tells us to meditate on God’s truth “day and night.” My sweet Pastor husband didn’t just water the lawn once, believing that would be enough. Likewise, we must go beyond just reading a verse, or chapter, or devotional, believing that is enough.
If you meditate on something, you think about it over and over. You ponder, reflect, dwell on, ruminate, process and/or deliberate. We must allow what we learn about God from His Word to soak into the depths of our soul. God desires His truth to seep into our roots and affect our attitudes, thoughts, and behavior.
My sweet Pastor husband and I checked out our lawn on many occasions and discussed its progress. We looked for signs that the struggling sections of sod were taking root. Each of us must also look for signs of growth as well as struggle in our spiritual lives. We must then follow up and examine God’s Word for wisdom to bring us healing along with continued growth.
Clear out the Weeds
The Psalmist provides a warning for us. He tells us we must not follow the advice of the wicked, stand with sinners, or join in with mockers. I believe this is difficult especially when we engage with social media. We find it easier to criticize others, or follow someone else’s definition of good, because we find it so appealing.
My sweet Pastor husband treated the lawn with weed killer and fertilized it enabling our grass to grow thicker. Similarly, the Psalmist encourages us to get rid of anything that is a deterrent to the goal of a lush and abundant life. We must ask ourselves tough questions about what we choose to believe and/or do. We must willingly remove the things that create a longing for a life apart from fully delighting in God.
Continual Refreshment
The Psalmist also provides great encouragement for us. When we delight in God’s Word, when we meditate on its truth and allow it to seep into the depths of our soul, we gain a continual source of refreshment. Jesus refers to this refreshment as a fountain that springs up (John 4).
I think it’s comparable to when we gained access to the ditch water connected to our sprinkler system. My sweet Pastor husband set our sprinklers to water our lawn twice a day. We gained a lovely lawn because the grass received all the water and nutrients it needed.
Lush, Abundant Life
We prosper in our relationship with God when we create habits and rhythms to continually delight in God and His Word. Others may perceive what we do as excessive. However, we must remember our goal is to delight in God, and not the world around us.
I am reminded daily of simple and profound truth by my vivid green lawn. A lush abundant relationship with God requires tending, and growth takes time. God is faithful; He provides what we need to grow. We must commit to receive and soak in all He plants in us.
Watering the Lawn Photo by Jordan Hopkins on Unsplash
