Ezekiel chapter 17: verses 5-8 (NIV)
“‘He took one of the seedlings of the land and put it in fertile soil. He planted it like a willow by abundant water, and it sprouted and became a low, spreading vine. Its branches turned toward him, but its roots remained under it. So it became a vine and produced branches and put out leafy boughs.” ‘But there was another great eagle with powerful wings and full plumage. The vine now sent out its roots toward him from the plot where it was planted and stretched out its branches to him for water. It had been planted in good soil by abundant water so that it would produce branches, bear fruit and become a splendid vine.’”
God gave Ezekiel an allegory to explain to the people of Israel what was going to happen. The beauty of an allegory is that it can be used, like a parable, to reveal different things to people. These verses spoke to me in a different way than outlined by Ezekiel. To me it shows that God gives us the right conditions to flourish and grow in every area of our lives. As long as we take our nourishment from Him we grow as He intends us to.
However too often we take our eyes away from God, and are focus on other things. When we try and take our contentment and satisfaction from other things, we don’t grow as we should and find that aspects of our life are not as healthy or doing as well as they should be.
How blessed are we that God wants to ensure that we have everything we need for a contented and spiritually healthy life. We don’t have any reason to look elsewhere for this, even if it looks attractive and able to satisfy us.
Dear Lord,
I know it’s easy to get distracted by things that seem to offer things that will enhance my life and cause me to prosper but help me to make sure that I keep my eyes focused on the things of God for my nourishment and growth. I know that if I do so I will prosper spiritually as You intend and know what it is to be truly blessed. I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.