Selfless Surrender

¹Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, ²instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. ³And God permitting, we will do so. Hebrews 6:1-3 | NIV84

Winter came early last year and quite unexpectedly. There just wasn’t enough time to gather up all the leaves that had fallen and were scattered all over the lawn. By the time it was possible to get outside and finish winterizing the lawn, it was simply just too cold. It didn’t matter how many leaves covered the grass because the grass had gone dormant and wouldn’t start growing again till Spring anyhow. Winter not only came quick last year, but it has held its grip rather tight too, almost unwilling to give any sign of relief. This past week, the temperatures rose and even the sun poked it’s head out of the clouds for a few days. No winter coats or gloves required!

I’ve been so used to being cooped up in the house, that when the sun broke through the grey clouds, I was eager to go outside, even though it was only 43°F. 43°F is not 34°F and when the sun is shining, it’s actually refreshing. I couldn’t wait to get outside in the yard and cleanup last year’s leaves. Upon getting outside and surveying the yard, I found it was littered with broken branches scattered everywhere coarsely decorated with a massive amount of pinecones too. Then I remembered there had been an unusual amount of wind these past two years. After scouring the yard and hunting down every pinecone, I ended up with a 5 gallon bucket full of them. Why so many pinecones, I thought while glancing up at the huge pine tree. 

As I was raking around the garden, gathering up dead branches and old leaves, I began to think about the growing season. In no time mowing will happen, flowers will bloom, and suddenly everything will simultaneously take off, and look absolutely beautiful. The warm air will sooth away the chill of winter. The birds will return and the sounds of nature will fill the air with the promise of additional little creatures roaming the backyard. Winter has grabbed it’s coat and left, at least, for the time being, that is.

Nature does its growing thing naturally which was put in place the moment God spoke way back in Genesis. From the moment God spoke, nature will continue to go through it’s cycle until the end of time is sealed up and thrown away. Nature doesn’t have to force itself to grow, growth is instilled inside it’s DNA. No matter what, nature always finds a way to grow. Just look at how a plant can cause concrete to crack in its pursuit of seeking sunlight to grow.

The human body is much like nature in general. Meaning, the human body grows regardless too. Babies are born, and they grow into children, then adults, and then eventually into elderly people. At first glance, it would appear that people and nature have similarities, after all, they both physically grow. Although they are somewhat similar, there is a drastic difference between the two. A person has an eternal spirit living within them and nature, even animals, do not. The spirit was given to man by the act of God ‘breathing’ a part of Himself into the body of a man. The part God breathed into the man was His eternal nature, the spirit-being that lives within the human body. So people really comprise of two different things. A body and a spirit. What’s interesting is, the spirit has a will of its own unlike the growth the body performs. The spirit can choose to grow or it can choose to remain stagnant whereas, the body grows regardless.

While I was clearing away the dead leaves and branches from the backyard garden, I thought about how often people, in general, do not clear away old habits, but rather, they choose to remain the same as they have always been, or in another words, they choose to remain stagnant. A static soul is a sorrowful soul. This is why there are people who are physically classified as adults, but still emotionally act like children. This is also the reason why many Christians never actually grow-up spiritually. They learned what they consider ‘enough’ to navigate church and maybe even enough to slide through life, but they never really get to experience true growth and enlightenment of who God really is.

It was back-breaking work, cleaning out the dead leaves, branches, and pinecones out of the flowerbeds, yard, and garden. My soft hands got blisters and my lower back ached. It was not only a physical challenge, but it took me between 2 days, 6-8 hours… and I’m still not fully done. I still need to clean out the flowerbeds on the northeast side of my home and prune the rose bushes. Not to mention edging, planting, and distributing mulch. In fact, the yard is an endless job. There is always something that needs to be done. It’s a lot of work and even though it may appear as if I’m complaining, I actually enjoy having something to do; something to occupy both my mind and my body. And when I’m doing these, my spirit grows.

While living upon the Earth, work is technically never finished. While we are alive, we are always still physically growing and/or changing. It should be the same with our spirit. Jesus completed the work of Salvation through death on the cross and rising from the dead, but it wasn’t until He sat down at the right hand of the Father that the work of Salvation was finished. He is still at work, interceding in Heaven for His brothers and sisters. We have been set free by having faith in what Jesus did on the cross in our place, but there is still work to be done while we are still here on Earth. The ‘work’ I’m referring applies to the growth and maturity of your spirit. I’m not talking about doing good deeds, going to church, and trying to be a better person. I’m talking about rolling up your sleeves, opening up the Bible, and digging into the Word. I’m talking about prayer, fasting, and listening to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. And then, of course, when God does speak to you, that you obey and/or do whatever it is He has shown you. This is the ‘work’ I am referring to. This is the kind of work that will mature your spirit so it can catch up to your physical body. 

Leave the way of immaturity and only knowing simple Truths of Jesus Christ, and press on to clearing away the dead leaves and the old branches so new growth can begin. New growth that will lead you to the Living Well that never runs dry. New growth that will nourish you through the winter and provide food for your soul. God is never interested in the short term of anything. He is very interested in your long term growth toward maturity.

It’s time to clean out the old stuff, and throw away the things that hold you back, to make room for new growth to develop that will lead you to spiritual maturity. Don’t let last year’s leaves get in the way of new flowers that want to bloom in your spirit.