I had been watering the rock garden for at least twenty minutes with a spray nozzle, swinging it back and forth being sure each little plant got a good drink. They all looked pretty good and I was extremely proud of myself for taking such good care of my garden (about ten feet in diameter). Meticulous was definitely the word for my gardening skill.

That’s it for tonight, kids. Drink up and sleep tight.

Before I went in the house I decided to put an artificial tulip in with the verbena (their blooming season was apparently over and I wanted some color), but when I bent down to stick that little pink tulip in the ground (easily after the thorough watering I had just done) it went in about two inches and then refused to go any further! The soil is hard! Hard soil? I had just watered. What’s wrong?

The nursery I called talked to me like a “bloomin’ idiot” and said, “Have you watered your verbena daily? That’s very important and you have to water deeply Ms. Gillham. Twenty minutes with a spray hose won’t get the deep watering your garden needs. AND you should water every day to contend with the wind and the sun. The wind is actually more damaging than the sun. It loosens the root system and will play havoc with your garden. Please call again if you need help.”

What was that word I used, meticulous? Proud of my skill? You talk about deflated!

But I have just learned another great lesson from the silent world around me. Do you see? A random surface study of God’s Word (a chapter a day keeps the devil away) doesn’t provide for me the deep watering I need. Oh, it seems sufficient and I’m proud of giving at least twenty minutes of my precious time, but that’s not going to protect me from the “wind and the sun”. And once in a while doesn’t meet my need for deep watering either. The soil around my heart gets hard, and it’s difficult’if not impossible’to penetrate it without hammering it down…and that hurts! It may be wet on the surface and look good, but the roots need depth if they’re going to continue blooming and bring beauty into my world.

When you take a casual approach in coming to know the Lord and His ways, you make yourself vulnerable to the ways of the world. The “wind and the sun” of the world are constantly “knocking you around” causing weariness and dryness, bringing on brittle emotions, depression, anger, and bitterness. Inevitably you wind up taking any door to escape the stress “just for a little while”. This could be anything’a shopping spree spending way over your clothing allowance or an extended happy hour or meeting someone for a sexual experience or driving wildly down the freeway or eating way too much. Whatever.

We must have the determined purpose that Paul expresses in Philippians 3:10, reading from The Amplified Bible.

For my determined purpose is that I may know Him – that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him,

perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly. . .

Yes, watering deeply is necessary to bring about a strong root system that defies the wind and sun and brings stability into our lives. Once we have that stability our beauty will be evident and long lasting, and we can drink deeply and sleep tightly.