1.
Devotion-
Where Are You Planted?
The picture
on the right is the head of the stream where the river begins. The water is
coming from a cave right there on the hillside which you do not see in the picture.
The picture on the left is just a few feet away from the head of the stream. This
area is a tourist attraction and is very beautiful. Just looking at how broad the
river head is takes your breath away. I took this picture at Roaring River in Westmoreland,
Jamaica about four or five years ago.
This morning (June 25, 2013), I was looking at the
pictures that I took and as I looked at those taken of the river, right away
the Holy Spirit ministered to me. The Scripture that came to mind was, “And you
shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit
in his season, his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall
prosper” Psalm 1:3. At the time I
did not remember where the Scripture was found so I googled and found it. Psalm 42:1-2 “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after
thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come
and appear before God.” Matthew 5:6
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they
shall be filled.”
As I
gazed at the picture of the fresh, clean and beautiful water flowing in
abundance, flowing endlessly, I thought of how Jesus asked the Samaritan Woman
for water to drink then He told her in John 4:10 “If thou knewest the gift of
God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have
asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” In verse 13 Jesus
went on to say, “Whosoever drinketh of
this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall
give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in
him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Upon
reflection I thought of the symbolic significance of water how it represents
Salvation and cleansing. My soul rejoiced in thankfulness to God for forgiving me
and cleansing my heart of my own sins. Looking at the water I thought of how
Jesus went to John by the River Jordan to be baptized and the events that
followed such as the Holy Spirit descending on Him as a dove and how He was led
into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
I
observed the plants by the river banks and they were healthy looking even
though it was summer time when I took those pictures.
What
is the lesson? God’s abiding and sustaining grace is able to
keep us even in the “heat” of battle. Regardless of what we are going through if
we faint not God will preserve us and bring honor to His name. We will be better
for those trials. We will be strengthened and renewed. Our faith will grow beyond
that of a mustard seed and our joy in the Lord will be full. At that time just be reminded that God is preparing you
for the next challenge. Can God count on you? Can He use you in such times to bring
honor to His name?
May God bless you richly. Please visit my Blog by clicking the link above and leave your thoughts to bless someone else. Sincerely, Dr. Jasmine Gordon
