I have always wanted a bonsai tree. For various reasons I have never owned one. Not the least of which is... I do NOT have a green thumb. The only kind of plant that I have successfully kept alive in my home is a cactus or a plant that can wilt to the point of death and be revived by a quick dosing of water. That is the kind of reminder I need. Now if the plant is fragile and can't withstand that kind of treatment, it probably will not last with me. (Thank goodness children can communicate their needs or my kids might just starve).
Bonsai's are usually fairly costly where I come from...but here they are reasonable enough for me to take a "chance". I found the one pictured above and fell in love with it! I was not so crazy about the pot it was in... but I loved the tree.
I asked about changing the pot. Through translation I was told that this is not the time of year to successfully transplant a bonsai. I am so eager to have this little tree just the way I want it that I ignore this sage advice. This dear, experienced nursery owner obliges me and changes the container for me... against her better judgement. So off I went, with my limited ability and my foliage challenged thumbs.
Everything was wonderful! I enjoyed my bonsai so much. I put it in a special place where it could get just the right amount of sunlight. I watered it everyday just as I had been instructed. I even bought the special mister that was recommended for watering. I told Sugar and Spice to stay far away from it's delicate branches while they played indoors. I sat and looked at it everyday. It made me so happy inside.
Then one day, within a week of bringing my new found treasure home, I noticed a few leaves on it's delicate moss hill. I thought it had to be due to the shock of the trip home on Daddy's lap, in the back of a taxi. The following days brought more "Fall" type activity. This should not be...this is an evergreen bonsai. Everyday I fretted over my little friend, hoping to see an end to it's loss.
I continued watering as instructed. I made sure it got daily sunshine. To no avail, nothing changed the continual dropping of leaves. I was powerless to stop it. At times I convinced myself it had stopped and it wasn't as bad as it looked. Eventually there was no denying it, something was drastically wrong.
It took a few weeks but eventually this is what it looked like.
My sad, little, pathetic looking, bonsai.
Is my story over? No not quite yet. Now it might end up, as it looks... a dead tree, but I am still holding out hope. Even though it has been a slow torture to see my treasure wither...and there are definite signs of death....I still hold on to HOPE.
You see my friends, there is a shred of hope. I am not giving up yet. You have to look closely to see it but it is still there....evidence of LIFE!
TWO LITTLE LEAVES!!!!!
They are lonely, and there's only two, but they are there.... hanging on for dear life!
I have learned so much from this little bonsai!
I was stubborn, unwilling to wait. I was selfish and proud, unwilling to take the advice of an expert. I went ahead with my own plan regardless of the cost to the innocent plant. I wanted my own way. I had to have it now.
I realized we can sometimes be this way with our relationship with God. He is the Master Gardener and He knows what is best for our lives. He directs us so that we will flourish where He plants us but we often ignore His advice. (Or we don't even consult Him at all!)
We complain about the "pot" we find ourselves in. We don't feel it "suits" us. Or we think there is a better one available to us. Perhaps He gave us that particular pot for a reason. Perhaps He will transplant us when the time is right but perhaps He wants us to stay in the "pot" He put us in. Maybe the pot He wants us in is FAR, Far away and we resist the "transplant".
Being the gentleman that He is, He does not force us to take His advice. We think that by ignoring the sage advice of the Master Gardener we will somehow avoid what may lead to disaster. We continue on in or own way and for awhile we blissfully enjoy the path we chose for ourself. We "nurture" and protect our independent decision.
When signs begin to show that all is not well we fool ourselves into thinking it's not as bad as it seems. We say, "This should not be". We deny the real reason for the upset in our life. We blame external circumstances, seldom looking back at the original decision that lead us to this point. Sometimes the "Fall" in our life continues and we try everything we know to stop it, to no avail. It seems hopeless and pathetic.
That may be the case for my Bonsai... but it is NEVER true with our lives when we submit to the Master Gardener! There is always Hope. Our God can revive our lives at any point regardless of how long we resisted His plan. That is the Hope that He offers and the patience that He displays toward us.
Christ is our ultimate Hope and He will never mislead us. His plan for our lives is the perfect plan! Trust Him.
