The speaker asked a piercing question that zeroed in on its intended target: my heart.

“Do I let the fragments and particles of the world collect on my soul?”

Starting with an analogy, he shared, “My wife wondered why her plant wasn’t growing right. She went to get advice from a gardener who told her that if she dusted the plant it would be able to get the light it needed and grow better.” Sure enough the trick worked.

He compared this dusty plant to our lives. Thought provoking questions followed.

By leaving unconfessed sin alone to accumulate, do I keep from receiving the light God has to share?

Do I dismiss the little things, thinking that they alone can not hurt my walk with God — only to turn around and find that a whole impermeable layer has formed?

Do we let the little hurts and ugly words add to that layer, adding them to our baggage rather than brushing them off and forgiving the source?

John 8:12 “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’ ”

Shortly after this talk, I attended a garden party at a friend’s house. This friend has over 200 species from around the world planted and labeled with both botanical and common names…