We Become The Garden

Picking Up and Moving Forward 4

Isaiah 58:9b-11
9b“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
10 Feed the hungry,
and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
11 The Lord will guide you continually,
giving you water when you are dry
and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like an ever-flowing spring.
Our passage has given us a myriad of clues on how to move forward. Let’s review what we have
already mentioned.

Clue #1. Find freedom (9).

Clue #2. Don’t blame others (9).

Clue #3. Find someone worse off than you and help them (10).

Clue #4. Experience the transformation of darkness into light (10).

Clue #5. Continual guidance provided (11).

Clue #6. Thirst quenched (11).

Clue #7. Strength restored (11).

Finally the results…
WE become a garden and a refreshing stream.

You see moving forward isn’t as much about a certain place, a job, career, or even an activity. It
is about who and what we are. As we live out these clues to moving forward, we will be like a
well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.

A well-watered and cared for garden will produce fruit and an ever-flowing spring will be a
refreshing influence to all those around us. I don’t care how old we get we can still produce the
fruits of the spirit and still be a refreshing influence.

Triple D: Consider how it would feel to produce fruit be refreshing to those around you? Since
the pandemic started more than a year ago, we have stopped our journey’s in many ways,
but take the time and embrace the life before you.