Several years ago, I purchased a pot of beautiful, lush, succulent plants. Over time, and most likely due to poor choice of placement and my frequent bouts of neglect, they began to wither and die. But I read somewhere that even though they appeared to be trash-worthy, I’d better think again! There was plenty of life left if tended to in the proper way. So, I followed the restoration instructions by doing a little pruning and relocating the bowl to a sunnier location on our mostly shady balcony. Lo and behold a few weeks later, new growth began to appear. I stood silently with a coffee cup in hand and pondered the wonder of things that God has made. What we think has no more value couldn’t be farther from the truth for Him. As long as there is life, there is value.
As is my usual routine, I took the time to gaze out over the canyon, then up and out to the vast landscape of my horizon. It didn’t take long for me to return to the reality of my heavy heart. My Dad had recently moved to heaven. Our family was grief-stricken, but truly, my Mother’s heart was desperately broken. I looked back again at the shaggy plant and thought of her.
Oh how easy it would be for her to think that there would be no life left for her. She doesn’t think that, for she knows better. That said, for over 75 years she lived in the shadow of my father’s prolific life. She may have seen herself as the dark, life-giving stem behind his endless blossoms. Her entire purpose was to support him, care for him, love him, minister with him, and now, God had pruned him home. What was left for Mom?
As a family, we have talked many times about the sovereignty of God. Every day of our lives, according to Psalm 139 has been determined. There is no doubt that God knew that July 8, 2024, would be the perfect day to bring His servant, Bob Kleinschmidt home. This man fulfilled his purposes for the kingdom of God. The corn on his cob was fully ripe and ready for harvest. But for mom? Not yet. She still had ministry down here. Time to move this pot to a sunnier location.
For those of us who belong to the Lord Jesus Christ and have spent time feeding from the life-giving Scriptures, we know that there is a purpose intended for each one of us as long as we are alive. If we’re not blooming, it’s most likely from malnourishment.
Time now to share one of the most precious and obscured truths that changed my whole perspective on life and death and the timing of it all. And wouldn’t you know it was yet another thing I learned from my precious Dad? It was a lazy afternoon and he called me into his home office and asked me to pull up a chair next to his desk. “Look here!” He began to read, “You shall come to your grave in ripe old age, like a sheaf gathered up in its season. Behold, this we have searched out; it is true. Hear, and know it for your good.” (Job 5:26, 27) He followed this with something I couldn’t wait to write in the margin of my Bible. “This is not related to the number of days on earth, but the fullness of God’s time. No child of God dies before they have reached their full age.” And Friends, nobody knows this number, but God.
At the time this was written and thousands of years after, farmers would walk down rows of corn, twisting the ears from the stalks and throwing them into a wagon. Not one cob would be removed until the farmer determined its readiness. Some ears stay on the stalk much longer than others. The farmer decides. That puts such a different light on the millions of lives that are born and pass away, doesn’t it? Why don’t we all live until we’re almost 100 years old? Why are the infants taken so unexpectedly? What of all of those who are in between?
I love what Matthew Henry observed and will rest in this conclusion. “It is a mercy to die seasonably, as the corn is cut and housed when fully ripe; not till then, but then not suffered to stand any longer. Our times are in God’s hands; it is well they are so. Believers are not to expect great wealth, long life, or to be free from trials. But all will be ordered for the best. And remark from Job’s history, that steadiness of mind and heart under trial, is one of the highest attainments of faith. There is little exercise for faith when all things go well. But if God raises a storm, permits the enemy to send wave after wave, and seemingly stands aloof from our prayers, then, still to hang on and trust God, when we cannot trace him, this is the patience of the saints. Blessed Savior! How sweet it is to look unto thee, the Author and Finisher of faith, in such moments”
May we all, with confidence and grateful hearts – bloom where we are planted. Even when we cannot trace Him.
