Today’s 333 Devotional: “Coming Out of Your Shell”

Back in college several of us would hike out in the desert to a secluded hot spring. After an especially hard winter that saw the desert blanketed with snow, followed by an abundance of spring rains, we noticed all kinds of flowering plants popping up.

But we weren’t the only ones, so did all the botanists around the world as they recorded new species of plants and flowers not seen in over a hundred years. You see, certain plants encase their seeds in protective shells only to open when enough water is present to support life.

Some of us are like these plants. We’ve encased our hopes and dreams in protective casings unwilling to come out until we’re satisfied there’s enough nourishment to support them.

The reason we place ourselves in these protective shells is because of past hurts making us afraid we’ll experience the same pain that put us in our shells to begin with.

The sad part is that once these flowers bloom, they’re absolutely beautiful and a joy for all who see them.

Don’t allow the hurts of the past stop you from being the beautiful person God has created you to be. God made you into a valuable and beautiful creation to be admired and shared with the rest of the world. And to bring this out, God has given His living water.

It was such water that brought out the Samaritan woman. She didn’t have an easy life finding herself in one relationship after another trying to find meaning and purpose. But Jesus came who knew her true need and told her He had living water, the type of water where she would never thirst again (John 4:1-26).

Jesus knows exactly what you need and has provided you the living water of the Holy Spirit, and when you allow the Holy Spirit to fill you, you’ll emerge from your protective shell and provide the world around you the wonderful sight of a new creation.