We Only Thrive in the Hands of God

God has many titles. We can think of Him as our Creator or Shepherd. We can even think of Him as the ultimate Artist or Storyteller, but one of my favorites is that He is a gardener. I like to think that God sees Himself this way too, as we see in the Parable of the Sower found in Sacred Scripture.

“And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirty-fold. Whoever has ears ought to hear.” Matthew 13:1-9

Jesus is telling us very clearly in this parable that we can be one of many types of soil but that we should be only one kind of soil. Rich, deep soil is the kind of soil that takes what is given and is transformed by it, bearing abundant fruit. In other words, we should attentively hear the word of God and let it take root in our lives and permeate our whole being. The word of God is not something you should hear and take for granted but do nothing about. Listening to God’s word should cause a reaction in your life to follow God’s will.

I wrote the following little prayer to help you let God’s word make a change in you.

Lord Jesus, make me rich soil not only to be able to receive your Word deep into my soul, but let it transform my heart to be like Yours. I trust that You will bring me closer to You, knowing that I only thrive in Your Hands. Amen.

I have also listed a couple of prayers I found below about St. Therese of Lisieux who was known as God’s Little Flower. She understood what the meaning of growing in grace in the hands of Our Father.

“Little Flower of Understanding-
True to your Carmelite heritage,
You allowed the wisdom of Jesus
To be revealed through the
Beauty of God’s creation.

As the image of your garden unfolds,
And you gather and embrace
The unique quality of each blossom-
You challenge us to release,
From our own judgments,
A hierarchy of perfection
Among the human family.

Expand our hearts, Therese,
That we might be open
To the individual
Colors and textures,
Shapes and fragrances
That combine to make our communal
Gardens of faith.

Fill us with your grace,
That we might truly celebrate
The special way that God calls each of us
To complete the bouquet of life. Amen.”

“O Glorious St. Therese, whom Almighty God has raised up to aid and inspire the human family, I implore your Miraculous Intercession. You are so powerful in obtaining every need of body and spirit from the Heart of God. Holy Mother Church proclaims you ‘Prodigy of Miracles… the Greatest Saint of Modern Times.’ Now I fervently beseech you to answer my petition (mention here) and to carry out your promises of spending Heaven doing good on earth…of letting fall from Heaven a Shower of Roses. Little Flower, give me your childlike faith, to see the Face of God in the people and experiences of my life, and to love God with full confidence. St. Therese, my Carmelite Sister, I will fulfill your plea ‘to be made known everywhere’ and I will continue to lead others to Jesus through you. Amen.”

To end, the Little Flower saint herself put it wonderfully when she said:

“Jesus has been gracious enough to teach me a lesson about the mystery of the differences in souls, simply by holding up to my eyes, the book of nature. I understood how all the flowers God created are beautiful- how the splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not take away from the perfume of the violet or the simplicity of the daisy. I understood that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime beauty, and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wildflowers.

And so it is in the world of souls… Jesus’ garden. He willed to create great souls comparable to lilies and roses, but he created small ones as well… and these must be content to be daisies or violets destined to give joy to God’s glances, when he looks down at His feet. Perfection consists in doing God’s will… in being what He would have us be.”