Media Outreach

Last week I decided that it was time for me to be responsible with something “living” and try to keep it alive.  I’ve not had very good luck in the past with this.

1.    My fish (R.I.P. Celerina) died because I kept her in a wine glass. I think she died because of dizziness and not from a lack of food or attention.
2.    Fall Mums- I was excited about them, but they lasted a week because I forgot to water them. They sat, all dried up, on my balcony for the past 7 months. I finally threw them away this week!

SO! Last week, I went to Home Depot (never mind that I locked my keys in the car…) and bought some plants to plant in my pretty, ceramic flower pots.   I don’t know what the plants are…one is a tomato and the others are just “pretty” and can survive in shade. Unfortunately, I read on the little tags that they require water everyday…now THAT could be a problem.

However, I was excited to get my plants in the pots and have them displayed on my balcony. But, in the process of planting them, I realized I didn’t have the right tools.

1. A Rudy’s BBQ Restaurant plastic cup served a shovel.
2. I bought the wrong kind of soil…I thought dirt was dirt…it’s apparently not!
3. A Nalgene bottle served as my watering can.
4. I didn’t have a tray under the pots to catch the water that seeped through

This got me thinking of how so many times we hurry and jump into ministry or get involved in a program that we aren’t prepared for. We don’t have the necessary equipment/tools/preparation to fully execute to our full potential.  We have this idea, and it’s a great idea (pretty flowers…), but we fail to fully think through the process of making sure those flowers (people) are going to grow.

We throw them in the soil (small groups/women’s ministry/prison ministry..etc) and expect them to survive and blossom.  The problem is that they need to be cared for continually. They need attention. They need to be watered, fed and fertilized.  They need encouragement along the way along with training to continue to bring glory to God.

But on the flip side, it also made me be creative because I didn’t have all the right tools. I had to think outside the box and use the “tools” I had available.  So, maybe you don’t have all the newest technology or the latest gadget…but you have creativity, so use what you do have.

Take it for what it’s worth. Maybe I’m stretching it a bit….but for now, I’m going to go water my plants!

Photo By: Muffet