Bean Sprout Verses Oak of Righteousness

I’ve decided I would like to be an Oak of Righteousness instead of a bean. Lately I’ve been tired and I’ve been worn out from all the “growing” I’ve had to do. Next month my son Miles will turn two years old. This means that for almost everyday of the last two years I have been in the biggest trial of my life. On a recent Sunday after church I was laying in my bed talking to my husband about how long it’s been and how hard it’s been when I saw a picture in my head. I saw a window seal in a Kindergarten class room with rows of plastic cups filled with bean sprouts. When I saw that picture I instantly understood what I was seeing. You know, there’s a reason that Kindergarten teachers let their students grow bean sprouts. A bean will grow quickly. A normal Kindergartener’s attention span usually is that of a bean so it’s fitting. As I was thinking of this I felt like I had to make a choice if I wanted to sprout out of this trial and be a bean or did I want to continue with this trial and become an Oak of Righteousness. A bean is here today, eaten tomorrow and gone forever. An Oak tree lasts for generations. Later that evening I was doing my homework for Women of Worth and this is the verse I read. Isaiah 61:1-3. In verse 3 it says, “And provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.” The Lord is about to do that for me. He is about to heal my son Miles from brain damage. He is giving me beauty for ashes, joy for my mourning, praise instead of despair. He is making me into an oak of righteousness for his own glory.
God wants to do the same for you. What is that thing or process in your life that you would like to give up and be a bean about? Don’t give up! Don’t be a bean! Decide that you want to stick with the Lord as he makes you into a strong and graceful oak of righteousness for his own glory! Take on the motto of our house, “It’s Gonna Be Worth It!”