Green Grass

Yesterday the Lord said to me, “The grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s greener where there is something dead to fertilize it.” This was quite a profound statement to me, but when I posted it as my Facebook status, some found it humorous. Now that I think about it in a different way, it is kinda funny!

Well, what the Lord was saying to me was that me being dead in the place that I’m in is going to make the grass on “my side” of things green. It’s the way of the Cross! My striving, my efforts or my achievements aren’t going to bring about fruit. That’s not the life I’ve chosen to live. I said goodbye to that kind of life and gave up doing things out of my own strength once I embraced the Cross. Now, I am submitted to God bringing things about in my life as I trust and rest in Him. And as I rest in my death with Him, it makes my side of things greener. As I rest in my death with Him, fruit comes about. My death with Christ is the fertilizer for the life I now live, because in my death Christ lives! Apart from me being dead with Christ, I have no life.

Galatians 2:20 says we have been crucified with Christ and no longer live, but Christ lives in us! If we do not see ourselves as dead and crucified with Christ, we cannot see Christ living in us! While not always the case, often times seeing ourselves as dead means resting; maybe even doing nothing. At all. And for some reason, that is very difficult for the majority of us. We want to do something about it. We want to apply ourselves.

There are many things in my life that I would like to “do something about”. But I’ve learned that I can’t just go ahead and start doing things and hope that God will bless what I’m doing. That’s not the way of the Cross! For instance, I’d like a new house, a new car and more money. And in and of myself, I could probably come up with some good ideas as to how I could make those things happen. But there is no faith in that. There isn’t any faith in me hoping God will bless what I want to do. And that which is not of faith is sin (Rom. 14:23)! The Cross isn’t for blessing what we set out to do. The Cross is for hearing, understanding and resting in what God has done for us! And the truth is, Jesus did something for us on the Cross! He did something about it! (Whatever “it” may be!) He applied Himself and His Cross to every situation of our lives! So as we rest, as we see ourselves crucified with Christ, Christ lives in us and we are given eyes to see Christ at work in our lives.

In truth, the grass is greener on our side of things:

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures (green grass!), He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His Name's sake. – Psalm 23:1-3

Lord, we lay down with you in death to see You living in us, to see green pastures in our lives.