Flower Bulbs and Wineskins → Alice V. Walters

I planted a few flower bulbs this spring. As I hoed the soil, I found a few old, dried up bulbs that never bloomed. Still I hoed, pulled weeds, dropped in new bulbs…

… watered them, and said a prayer that they would yield beautiful blooms. Tom chose the bulbs and I want him to be blessed by their beauty, my love and God’s tender care. (Well, that’s pretty mushy, isn’t it?)

36 He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.”
Luke 5: 36 – 38

Like putting new wine into old wineskins, there are times
when we need a new mindset, or a paradigm shift in our souls. God blesses us with new inspirations, and creates spaces for themby making us new creatures in Christ.

He blessed me with new inspiration, a new dream, earlier this year. There are some old dreams that still need to be rooted out. The ups and downs of my faith, like rocky soil, need to be smoothed out for my dream to sprout and grow. A new dream needs a clean space to thrive, whether it’s a new wineskin, a fresh flower bed, or a broken and contrite spirit.

God has a perfect plan for each of our lives. With His help, we can cast aside barriers or challenges so He can work out His plan in us.