What They Need to Succeed

Today is another idyllic day; it helps make my disagreeable task less so. Today is fertilizer day.

When I had a yard to garden in, I’d measure out some blue stuff into my huge watering can and hose it full. Then I’d haul the heavy thing from bed to bed--an arduous task. I had adjusted the process to fit my smaller scale container gardens but an (indoor) incident a few years ago caused me to be chemically sensitive. Now I use only organic fertilizer.

I like to buy it from the 100 year old+ hardware store in a nearby small town. Shopping there is always a pleasant adventure so I like to keep the tradition going by supporting them. Besides, I couldn’t find any organic fertilizer anywhere else so I asked at the farmer’s market…

The fertilizer is a powdered mix of things that I don’t even want to know about but I know the plants need it, so I get it for them. It’s not that I’m looking to have big, fat, bushy, record-setting everything, I just want them to succeed at what they’re made for. If they’re flowering plants, I want them to flower well. If their main purpose is to display colorful leaves with attractive markings then that’s what I expect them to do. But they have to have what they need.

In the same way, Jesus expects his followers to do what they are created to do—live a godly life. Living a godly life isn’t only for spiritual giants; it’s the simple, basic, norm. And he has given his follower everything they need to succeed.

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” 2 Peter 1:3