The Green Grass Get the Water
- Shauna Neville
- May 18, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 13, 2021
One of my favorite areas is Provence, France. We lived in Germany for a few years as pastor missionaries and France was just a few hours drive away for us. One 4th of July week, we traveled to see the famous lavender fields. We came across this old, beautiful monastery, Abbaye Notre-Dame de Senanque.
The building was well cared for and the grounds and fields were carefully cultivated. It was absolutely breathtaking. It’s so easy for me to daydream of living in such a pretty place.
I was reminded of this place in France, because the other day while scrolling through Instagram, I came across a picture of a beautiful villa with a fabulous outdoor eating area. Of course, it was “picture perfect,” right. I could totally see myself sitting there, drinking my coffee and having my personal morning time with God there... and my mind continued to wander...
It’s easy to come across these gorgeous photos or see fabulous places in person and think to myself, “How great it would be to live there.” Yet, I tend to forget about all the work that goes into taking care of it, let alone all the time and money. Ugh! Then of course there’s the cleaning and regular daily maintenance. "Ain't nobody got time for 'dat."
These pictures make me think of my relationships with people and with God. I can look at good relationships people seem to have with other people and with God... and it’s easy to wish I had good relationships like that... yet I tend to forget that just like these fabulous properties, they take a lot of time, effort, and investment to upkeep and maintain.
My husband’s been working on an upcoming online discipleship conference for PCGlobal Network and so, I was able to go to lunch with him and the key speakers the other day. The group of pastors is older and they’ve been friends for years and so their relationship with each other was pretty cool to watch.
One of the pastors, the younger one, told us that it took a lot of work to build that relationship. Then speaking of another friendship he has with another pastor friend of his, he said that what it took for that relationship, was for him to constantly make the calls and pursue the friendship. (It started out as one-sided.) HE had to make the investment and calls to get together etc. Today, still, he is super glad that he put in the effort.
God created us to be with people, not alone. It’s not good for any of us to be alone. I hope that you would be encouraged. If your friendships with people and with God aren’t where you wish or would like them to be... put in more time and effort.
Maybe you feel that you don’t even have any friendships to speak of... don’t let that stop or discourage you. I know someone that knows you, sees you, and loves you. If you already have a relationship with Him, awesome! The Bible tells us in John 15:13 that Jesus calls you and I friends. Jesus is your friend.
[If you don’t have this relationship with Jesus that I just mentioned, please know that He wants to be your friend more than anything else. He has been putting in time and effort and even made the most amazing investment just to be YOUR friend. His name is Jesus and his father is God.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17
Good relationships don’t happen overnight ...they take time, effort, and lots of maintenance.
The grass looks greener on the other side, because it gets the water.
My Prayer:
"Lord, I lift up my friend to you. You see where they are in life. You know their circumstances, their wants, their needs, the problems going on. You know it all. I pray that my friend would see the friend they have in you, turning to you and allowing you to fill any and all voids they may possibly be feeling.
I pray also, that you would show us relationships in our lives that need some "extra water" right now. Give us the power and boldness to take the necessary steps and to make good investments into others.
Lord, let your Kingdom come and your will be done in each of our lives. Amen."
God is so good. He loves you more than you can even imagine. He's right there. He sees you. He hears you. Call on the name of his son, Jesus. The Bible says that believing in his son, Jesus, is the only way to God and into his Kingdom.
God sent his son, Jesus, to this world to save us, not to condemn us. And all we have to do is believe it, accept it and speak it audibly and we will be saved and have everlasting life with Him.
*Please let me know if you believed in Jesus for the for the first time. I would like to help get you connected to a good, Bible believing church and help get you growing in your new-found faith.
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