Skip to main content

Bamboo

A lot can happen in a year...a lot can stand still too.  Many years ago my mom gave me a 10 year journal.  Each page is dated with the month and day and has a spot for a small paragraph for each of 10 years.  I opened to February 11th today and couldn't resist the pull to read my thoughts from 2013.  So much has changed since that moment, but reading last year's words put a spotlight on the bedrock that hasn't changed and never will.  There is an anchor that holds my soul, a purpose bigger than my days, a reason, a plan, a God who is doing things and can be trusted.  I have a feeling I'm not the only one who needs this reminder of who are are and who's you are  to put some iron in your spine.

February 11, 2013 - journal excerpt
"Yesterday was a really great day at church.  Pastor Ashok from India spoke powerfully from the Word.  Pastor Ashok started with a story....

The Story of the Bamboo



There once was a small shoot of bamboo in the garden of the king.  The bamboo loved to sing and dance for the King.  As it grew in his garden the king came every day to remind his bamboo that he had planted it for his glory.  This happened day after day until finally, the bamboo had grown
 large, beautiful & strong.

 The next time the king came to visit the bamboo he brought news with him.  He told the bamboo that he had a plan and purpose to use the bamboo.  This news was exciting to the bamboo as it imagined finally being of use to it's creator whom it loved so much.  But with the excitement came a cost.  The king delivered some hard news as well. 

 In order to complete his purpose and plan for the bamboo, it would be necessary for the king to
cut the bamboo,
shear off all it's beautiful branches & leaves......
&
cut it deeply down to its very core.  
It would need to actually be split in half.

The bamboo remembered the words the king had spoken over it all those years as it was growing,
"Remember, you were planted here for my glory...."
Trying to suppress a shudder of fear, the bamboo told the king that it was ready to do anything that would bring the king the glory he deserved....and it really meant it, despite its fear.  

So the kind did all the things to his beloved bamboo that he had said.  He cut it down, trimmed and smoothed and finally cut straight through the bamboo's heart....splitting it down the center into two pieces.

He took those two pieces up the mountain to a village full of people whom the king loved deeply.  The village women climbed up to the top of the mountain every day to gather water from a pure, sweet spring.  The king took half of his beloved bamboo and fixed it in the village and positioned the other half at the mouth of the spring.  
The living water flowed through that stripped and broken bamboo and was delivered to the villagers.  The villagers knew that they were loved by their king and they danced and sang...
and they gave glory to their king because of what the bamboo had done."




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Fight for Control - Day 3

Preschoolers' bodies contain a power that defies the laws of physics.  Moms of preschoolers know there is definitely something metaphysical going on in their homes.  It's also clear to Moms like me that every now and then, a special child comes along with whom the force is especially strong. I had a cute little 3-year-old boy who often left me slack-jawed and feeling outflanked.  His will was strong and it was aided and abetted by a deft use of words and logic.  Maybe you've encountered a kid like him.....you can recognize them by the iron glint in their eyes and the furrowed brows of their Mommas.  Maybe you've got one living under your own roof. Even though it felt like Trevor and I jockeyed for position forever...but it was really just a chunk of Trev's 3rd year.  Let me tell you, it was one INTENSE year, but it wasn't eternal.  Our toughest head-to-heads seemed to always happen on evenings Scott was at a late meeting and I was flying solo....

A Cup of Cold Water for Thirsty Mommas - Day 1

For the first time in nearly 20 years....I. Don't. Have. A. Preschooler.  Picking out gym shoes and putting a backpack on Ginger has put me in a reflective mood.  It's obvious that she's ready to begin school .....the question is, am I?  The truth is, it's been an awesome run.  I'm incredibly grateful that I have been able to spend these years at home focused on soaking up the first years of my kids' lives.  I have loved being the one who teaches them colors, how to take turns during board games, why it's polite to use a tissue instead of a sleeve and being able to pass on my awesome Thriller dance moves.  It was an intentional choice that Scott and I made, right at the beginning, to order our little world in such a way that I could focus on being a mom. You see, I believed  my  mom.  She told me to listen to what I've heard about women being able to have it all and do it all.  She told me to dream about a career, dream about ...

Where Are You Going So Fast?? - Day 4

I rushed past a friend of mine and her son walking down the sidewalk.  I had Ginger by the hand, pulling.  We had just dropped her siblings off at school and were heading back to the car for the next thing. We hurried, but my friend and her son meandered.  Her son was showing her things he discovered along the way while she followed his lead and walked at his pace. As we passed, us Moms exchanged pleasantries while in the background, my mind wondered how nice it must feel to have time to walk slowly with her son like she was.  We got to the car, I plopped Ginger in her car seat, buckled, ran around to my side, buckled, turned the car on....and met my friend's eyes in the distance again.  She waved while her son crouched on the sidewalk, looking at something. It started to dawn on me, the only deadline I had to meet was one of my own making. I was rushing just to catch myself, and rushing my sweet little girl along with me. I walked through the rest of...