3rd - 9th November 2025
Over the past few years, I have been trying to get a rhododendron in our garden to flower with no success at all. Each year it is covered in green leaves, it is alive but alas it is also fruitless, it has never flowered!
I have tried to follow the advice of experts by providing the soil with some extra nutrients, checking its acidity, being careful not to be insufficient or excessive when watering, pruning at the right time of year, with the confident expectation that it will start to flower sometime between March and June, giving us around three to five weeks of beautiful colour in our garden. And when June goes, I hold out hope for a second bloom (which would of course be my first) in the fall or early winter.
But each year there were no flower buds to be seen. Last summer my wife suggested we dig it up and just replace it with something else that would bring some colour into the garden, which I duly did.
However, rather than just dumping it I decided to plant it on the other side of our garden fence on the edge of a little stream that runs behind our house. At least it would provide some foliage if nothing else. There are lots of brambles, nettles and sticky weeds on our bank so the chances of it surviving were slim. As expected, the weeds grew up around the rhododendron. Over the winter months, as I normally do, I emptied the ashes from the wood burner in our house over the fence onto our bank.
As spring approached and we were working in the garden, I decided to cut away all the brambles, nettles and sticky weeds that were covering and choking the rhododendron, to at least give it a chance of survival and, as expected, there were no flower buds. As summer came the leaves were green and we had some foliage on the bank as expected.
Then, over just a couple of weeks as autumn ended and winter approached … one, two, three, four and then numerous flower buds started to flower. It was quite incredible. We now have this really beautiful pink rhododendron bush on the bank at the back of our house, flowering!
At first, it seemed a real mystery. But perhaps there was more going on beneath the surface. The ashes that were regularly cast upon it have changed the soil’s composition, the proximity to living water nurtured its roots with maybe just the right amount of moisture and the removal of choking weeds gave it space to breathe. Once it was rooted in the right environment the once dormant potential within the rhododendron plant finally managed to break through allowing the plant to bloom for the first time … it was and is amazing.
Isn’t that how we are sometimes, spiritually speaking? We can be alive, even thriving on the surface, with plenty of “green leaves”, good habits, outward faith, even serving in the church or community. Yet something within us longs to blossom, to bear fruit, to radiate the beauty of God’s life within us in a way that makes others take notice and wonder why. But we cannot do that when we are planted in the wrong soil, cut off from living water or entangled in the weeds of sin, distraction and self-reliance.
Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.” (John 15:5). To blossom in our walk with God we must remain rooted in Christ, our living water, and we must be nourished by his word. We know this, it is not like this is some new discovery that we have suddenly stumbled upon. In fact, God reminds us in his word that, ‘His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.’ (2 Peter 1:3 ).
We must allow him to prune us where necessary and remove the weeds that choke our life. The ashes of our failures, griefs, mistakes and hardships, when surrendered to Father God who loves us unconditionally, become the very fertiliser that enriches our faith and produces beauty from our brokenness.
Like the rhododendron in my garden, God can take the seasons, even years of frustration, disappointment and apparent barrenness, and transform them into places of unexpected growth and beauty.
Sometimes he will replant us, move us to new soil, new surroundings, new relationships, to give us what we lacked before, to ensure we are in the right environment to become all he wants us to be. God knows exactly where to plant us so we can flourish. Trust him. Let his living water refresh you daily. Allow his pruning hand to cut away the weeds that bind you from being free to follow him and allow him to mould you into the person he wants you to be. And, in his time, you will reach your full potential in him, for his glory and for your good.
Written by David Mairs
MONDAY
Rooted in God’s Word
“Blessed is the one … whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.” Psalm 1:2–3
Heavenly Father, I pray that you would plant me deeply in the soil of your word. I confess that I sometimes skim over your word when I actually take the time to read it, without letting it soak into my heart. Like the rhododendron that needed the right soil to grow, I need the richness of your truth to sustain me. Teach me to linger in your word, to delight in it, to meditate on it until it becomes a part of me. When the world’s voices confuse and distract me, remind me that your word is truth and also help me to see it as my nourishment and stability. Let my roots sink deep so that, when storms come, I can stand firm. Help me not just to read but to live your word out in my everyday life. May my heart become that fertile ground where your truth can take root and produce a fruit that lasts. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
TUESDAY
Drinking from the Living Water
“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” John 7:38
Dear Jesus, you are my living water. I admit that I often try to quench my thirst with lesser unsatisfying things like success, approval and personal comfort. Help me to understand what it means to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit. Let his presence in my life refresh every weary part of my soul. Where I have been spiritually parched, renew me. Where I have relied on my own strength, teach me to depend on your strength. Flow through me so that your life overflows to others through me. May my words, actions and thoughts reflect the reality of your presence within me. I pray in your name. Amen.
WEDNESDAY
The Weeds of Sin
“Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” Hebrews 12:1
Heavenly Father, I see the weeds in my life, the habits, attitudes and fears that choke my growth. I’ve tried to manage them but realise I need you to uproot them from my life. Forgive me for allowing sin to linger, for letting bitterness and pride entangle me. With gentle hands can you please remove what does not belong, even if it hurts. I surrender those hidden areas of my life where I have resisted your pruning. Will you make room in my heart for new life to grow. Teach me how to walk in repentance and freedom, so that nothing hinders the work of the Holy Spirit in my life. Amen.
THURSDAY
The Ashes of Failure
“He gives beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning.” Isaiah 61:3
Heavenly Father, I thank you for being a gracious God who ensures that nothing is ever wasted. The ashes of my mistakes, losses and disappointments are not the end of my story. Like the rhododendron that thrived on ashes, you can turn my failures into the fertiliser for my future growth. I give you my regrets and my grief, trusting that you are able to bring beauty out of brokenness. I long for the day when I will be able to praise you with my heart restored. Help me to see that what feels like ruin now can be a pathway to restoration when surrendered over to you. Fill my heart with hope again and let joy take root where despair often lingers and grows. Help me, I pray. Amen.
FRIDAY
Pruned to Bloom
“Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:2
Loving Jesus, the gardener of my soul, I know that pruning is part of your unconditional love for me. When you cut away what is unnecessary, help me to realise and accept that it is not to harm me but rather to help me grow and flourish. Teach me to trust you in seasons of loss or change. Help me not to cling to what you are seeking to remove but rather help me to yield to your wise hand. Shape my life to reflect your beauty more fully. When it hurts, remind me that fruitfulness often follows surrender. Thank you for caring enough to prune me so that I can be fruitful. I love you, Jesus. Amen.
SATURDAY
Flourishing in Hidden Places
“Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:6
Heavenly Father, thank you for seeing me even when I feel unseen. Like the rhododendron growing quietly behind the fence, you nurture me in hidden places. When I feel overlooked, remind me that you are always working beneath the surface. Help me not to seek recognition but to be faithful where you have planted me. In the quiet, will you grow character into my life, will you strengthen my roots and will you enable me to bloom, not for my own glory but to reveal yours. Amen.
SUNDAY
Blooming for His Glory
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
Heavenly Father, when others observe me in my everyday life let them see glimpses of your beauty, not mine. May every act of kindness, every word of encouragement and every step of obedience reflect the life of Christ within me. Forgive me for the mistakes I make along the way. Keep me rooted, nourished and humble. Remind me that my purpose is not to impress or be perfect but to be myself and, in so doing, may I inspire others to consider who you are and why I choose to follow you. Let my life be a living garden bearing fruit that lasts and makes a difference for eternity. Amen.