Bloom Where You're Planted

We can't control what happens, but we can control our response.

Image by Dominique Knobben from Pixabay

"Truly charity has no limit; for the love of God has been poured into our hearts by His Spirit dwelling in each one of us, calling us to a life of devotion and inviting us to bloom in the garden where He has planted and directing us to radiate the beauty and spread the fragrance of His Providence.” -Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva, 1567-1622.

Here’s my hot take of the day: we don’t give enough credit to the little blades of grass that grow in the cracks of the sidewalk. Just think about the odds they’re up against: hardly any soil, very little water, no place to put down roots, and right in middle of where people are walking.

Those little seeds were dealt a bad hand, but they found a way to bloom anyway. There’s something admirable about that, isn’t there? Especially when you see them as a metaphor for making the most of a bad situation.

One of the life lessons I’ve picked up over the past couple of years is that we can’t always control the things that happen to us, but we’re always in control of how we respond. When bad things inevitably do happen to us (or our family, friends, or churches), we can choose to spend our time going down the path of bitterness and self-pity, or we can make an intentional effort to bloom in the garden where we’ve been planted.

The Example of Paul

I think the Apostle Paul is one of the best examples of blooming where you’re planted (although Joseph would be right up there with him). Paul felt an inescapable calling from God to preach the Gospel all over the Mediterranean world, but as he traveled from city to city, proclaiming the good news about Jesus, there were plenty of people who were so offended by his preaching that they began to abuse him. Even though Paul was doing exactly what God called him to do, he was still insulted, persecuted, and imprisoned on multiple occasions. No good deed goes unpunished, it would seem.

But here’s the crazy part: despite the mounting opposition, Paul chose to bloom instead of get bitter. He made the most of his time in captivity — sometimes by preaching to the prison guards (Acts 16:16-40), and other times by writing letters to the churches he had planted. In one of those “prison letters,” the book of Philippians, Paul talks about learning to be content no matter the circumstances:

“11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” -Philippians 4:11-13.

It’s nothing short of a miracle that Paul was able to maintain such a positive, hopeful attitude, even in the midst of severe persecution. What do you think made that possible? What was Paul’s secret to success?

One thing that jumps out is that Paul didn’t let his circumstances dictate his demeanor. When we base our happiness on the emotional rollercoaster of our daily circumstances, we’re going to experience wild swings from elation to despair. But if we can learn to base our happiness on something more consistent, like our unchaining hope in the goodness of God, we can learn to be content in every situation, just like Paul.

It’s almost a given that we’ll eventually find ourselves in seasons of adversity. In those cracks in the sidewalk where it seems almost impossible to grow. But instead of getting bitter about what ’s happened, let’s do our best to bloom where God has planted us.