Walk the Walk: Mary Mary on Growing Stronger

A life is like a garden. It needs a little dirt in order to grow. Trees, roses all the beautiful things that bloom in a garden are rooted in and flourish and grow through dirt. As people, dirt is also necessary for our growth. Ordinary, not so beautiful dirt is the stuff that deepens our roots and keeps us reaching for the sky.

Think about it. We need resistance to grow strong. We need the “dirt” of struggle or pressure to help us develop stamina and determination for our growing process and maturation. Even if we’d rather skip them, we need the doubts, the shortfalls and the roadblocks of life to motivate us, because what we have to work for, we tend to appreciate more. 

I feel bad for kids who grow up having everything they want or need placed in their lap. When good stuff comes to us with ease, we can’t really understand the true value of it, but  if we work hard for something, we know it costs. My oldest child takes great pride in earning things. She works for the things she wants, and that work is not just getting her a hoped-for reward; it’s growing and shaping her character.

Beauty can bloom from unwanted or unexpected trials to… I did not want or expect my 2nd child to be born prematurely, but she came at thirty-three weeks and weighed just 3 lbs. at birth. I could hold her in one hand! I thought, Lord this is my baby. I want to cradle her and feed her and keep her safe, but she has to stay in this nursery and struggle to get strong. So I went home and she stayed in the hospital — and let me tell you, that was one crazy situation.

She was surrounded by doctors, nurses and machines, and I was helpless to do anything for her. But the more the “dirt” seemed to cover me, the stronger my prayer life became… it blossomed during that time of helplessness. I learned to rely and depend on God in a very difficult situation. The doctors were doing their best “practicing” medicine on my baby girl while God was executing her complete healing.

She stayed there for a month and I prayed about every little thing while she grew strong enough to come home. Today she is the fiercest child ever! She keeps me on my toes, my Meela, and what we struggled through makes me appreciate her strong temperament even more.

Is life throwing or burying you with “dirt”? Gain the right perspective. Don’t despise the dirt; fertilize it with complete surrender and reliance on God. Lean on Him for peace in the midst of whatever you are facing. Focus on the garden that God is nurturing as you struggle and remember we all need a little “dirt” to grow!

When life deals you a difficult situation, ask God to use it to help you grow, then be patient, as He makes something beautiful from your “dirt.”

From our hearts to yours,

Tina of Mary Mary

Just so you can remember you can and WILL survive. Here’s Mary Mary’s latest video “Survive.”