Gardens along the way...7...cultivating...

Gardens along the way...7...cultivate...

“Cultivate 

cul·ti·vate  (kŭl′tə-vāt′)

tr.v. cul·ti·vat·ed, cul·ti·vat·ing, cul·ti·vates

1.

a. To improve and prepare (land), as by plowing or fertilizing, for raising crops; till.

b. To loosen or dig soil around (growing plants).

2. To grow or tend (a plant or crop).

3. To promote the growth of (a biological culture).

4. To encourage or foster: cultivate a respect for the law. See Synonyms at nurture.

5. To acquire, develop, or refine, as by education: cultivating a posh accent.

6. To seek the acquaintance or goodwill of; make friends with: cultivated the club's new members.” Free Dictionary 

We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thessalonians 1:3,11-12 

As I continue to walk each day, I see the gardens tended by their owners, weeds pulled, ground aerated, plants pruned, watered, flowers-deadheaded, vines-trained, thinned, and even some crops harvested...cultivated...tenderly tended to promote growth, beauty...

Reading through the epistles, I see the same...the writers tending the flocks of long ago doing much the same...the words of cultivation resonating down through the ages...that Christian brothers and sisters grow more and  more in their faith...that Christ may be glorified...

Even through this pandemic time....which none of us have ever seen before...there has been growth, the cultivation of growth all over the world...various social media has helped people encourage, care for one another...we don’t have to wait months for a letter to reach by boat or over land like the people of the New Testament times...

Pastors  and teachers teaching their flocks via YouTube, Facebook, Zoom, FaceTime, email, Marco Polo, WhatsApp, or other conferencing apps...simple telephone calls...encouraging cards and letter through “snail mail”...cultivating growth...

Groups of all kinds cultivating, encouraging one another...standing ovations for healthcare, truckers, servers, supply people, background workers...we salute them...

Yesterday,  the roar of four jets passed over my home, having passed over a nearby hospital on to others in the valley as a solute for their tirelessly caring for the ill...cultivating gratitude...

Leaders challenging groups to new heights in living...raising money for various causes..whether health, food for the poor, shoes for the shoeless, data to communicate, etc...cultivating care for others...

We are admonished to give thanks in all circumstances...so I thank YOU even in this new world order of pandemic...You use all this for our growth, our cultivation to somehow bring glory to Yourself...You are the blessed Controller...thank YOU....