The Fight To Flourishعينة

The Fight to Flourish When I stood up to speak at the celebration of my daughter Lenya’s life, I had to fight against my feelings. I was grieving and didn’t want to get on that stage, but I knew I needed to give my heart a voice and declare that God was there—and that He was good. Little did I know the fight would continue, and little did I know the fight was what I needed to flourish. Sometimes the word flourish feels like a word that can’t describe me yet. In the midst of my struggles and failures, how can I flourish? The word flourish in Hebrew means “to revive, blossom; to sprout, shoot; become apparent, break out.” The Greek version of this word is only found in Philippians 4:10, and is sometimes translated as “revived” or “renewed.” The essence of the word is to return to a former state of being. When God calls us to flourish, it doesn’t mean to become something brand new. It means to revive, to bring back to life what and who we were meant to be. We weren’t created to become something totally different but to become what we were originally designed for. True flourishing comes from embracing the difficulty of growth—to persevere through the dirt and mess and experience the strength to live the life that God has designed for us, even if we can’t see it. God calls us and then equips us. He empowers us. He strengthens us for battle. And He is with us the whole way. God plants us, God waters us, we receive, and we flourish. You may feel as though you’re not flourishing because of the fight, because of the struggle, but it’s the embracing of the fight that will create the space to flourish. Respond What does it mean to you to flourish? What does healthy growth look like? How would you describe your relationship with God right now? What does your battle to grow look like? Prayer Lord, help me to see the way You see. Show me how to look to You and to see Your perspective in my journey and in my fight. I want to flourish in this season that I’m in right now. I want to hold on tight to You and do the hard thing of allowing You to use my pain to do the deep work in my soul. I trust You to do what only You can do in me and through me today.