When it comes to gardening, I don’t have a green thumb. As a matter of fact, I don’t have any kind of thumb or knack for gardening! I’ve tried my hand at many kinds of plants over the years, and what I’ve discovered is that I do best with hardy, strong perennials.

I have some beautiful daylilies blooming right now. I love to study their unique colors. One set is a beautiful crimson color with a hint of amber in the center. The other set is a gorgeous shade of peach with crimson rings in the middle.

One interesting fact about these flowers is that one set was orange the first year they bloomed and the other set was yellow. Over the years, they’ve transformed into the beauties pictured above. The other interesting fact is that they sat as bulbs in a Walmart sack for three weeks before I even planted them! That’s right–yours truly forgot about them. When I finally did plant them, it was with little faith in my heart that they would bloom.

But not only did these wonderful daylilies bloom, they thrived. They pushed their roots far into the soil and clung tightly through hot summer days, hours upon hours of rain, and even when Chris accidently ran the weedeater through them. They were crushed down when chubby little boy feet marched over them, and then they valiantly struggled back up to standing. And in the winter, even though they were no longer visible, I knew they were still there. Know why? Because every year in late spring and early summer, they begin to show signs of life again. Green shoots begin to burst up from the ground that once seemed barren. The plant that had five blooms the year before now has ten.

I’m so proud of these daylilies, and not because of any work I’ve done. I mean, gracious, if I was a plant, the Givens garden would be like a nightmare! My brother-in-law recently pointed out a thriving green vine in my flower bed to me as poison ivy. Oh? So that’s what it looks like…

So I’m proud of my daylilies. These daylilies remind me to bloom wherever I am planted. These flowers are magnificant. They look as it they belong in a fine botanical garden, but for some reason their Creator chose for them to be planted in the garden of a person with no gardening ability. And yet they have still bloomed. Not just a little, but a lot. They have bloomed with a profusion of color and beauty.

The Creator of the daylilies wants His children to be that way. He has sent us to our current situation in order to bloom, friends! Maybe you are in a place where you feel like you can’t possibly be used to your full potential, like you are wasting your time. But God has ordered your steps into this exact place at this time for a reason! He wants you to bloom here. He wants you to sink your roots down deep so that you won’t be swayed by your feelings and circumstances. He wants you to bear down through the dry days and the days that drench you with fear, uncertainty, and disillusion. Maybe you are in your own winter, and day after day leaves you cold and numb, with no fruit to show for it. But guess what? The time for blooming is drawing near! Your Creator has designed you not only to bloom, but to thrive. You are the only one who can show your best colors and your best fruits.

So let’s think for a minute about what He’s calling us to do. If you’ve ever looked closely at a flower garden, you’ll see that no two flowers are exactly alike. The same holds true for us. He has equipped us with different talents for different purposes. What is your gift? What do you feel called to do? If you don’t know what your gift is, spend time in prayer and sincerely ask God to show you what He has equipped you to do. He will show you. The world needs all kinds of people…leaders, singers, teachers, organizers, encouragers, listeners…and the list stretches on.

So many times, we feel like we aren’t being used when we don’t see BIG things happening. For instance, I struggled for years with thinking I didn’t need to write songs and music simply because they weren’t being used in the music industry on a “big” scale. But God began to show me the error in my thinking and reasoning. He sent others to cultivate me. Their encouragement watered my dry soul and their instruction clipped away the dead leaves. A simple, “That song touched my heart today. Thank you for that,” at church showed me that He was using me right where He planted me. Perhaps my encouragers had been planted in the garden right beside me for that very purpose. They were blooming where they were planted, and now so would I. Your local church is one of the absolute best places to “bloom”. The church needs all sorts of hands and feet to fulfill the work of God and will grow you in many, many ways.

Last year, my sweet husband helped me to record and release a CD that we made at home. It was an extremely simple process that involved the help of many people who were firmly planted where their Creator placed them. To many, this project would be considered small-scale. However, it is monumental to my heart. It is a reminder of what God can and will do in our lives when we commit to flourishing where He plans for us to be.

A friend recently said to me, “If God had you to write those songs for one single person this year, it was for me.” And those words were His way of showing me that I had bloomed. If it was just for one person, then I had done what He called me to do. If it was just for Christ alone, and no one else ever noticed, then I would have done what He called me to do.

So thank Him today for putting  you in your current position. If you feel like you are trying to bloom in a spot He hasn’t designed for you, ask Him to move you or to show you how to stay. He is faithful and He will make His will clear to you.

When we are where He wants us to be, He will shower us with seeds of His gifts. He will water us and tenderly grow us. He will sheild us from the heat of life and He will cover us with His feathers during the harsh winters. He will use His other blooming children to encourage us and to help us with their special skills. And each day, He will walk through His garden and enjoy us, His creation. He loves you, you know. He created you to be beautiful and unique.

So bloom, friends! Bloom big! 🙂