Transplanted

Transplant: (according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

1: to lift and reset (a plant) in another soil or situation

2: to remove from one place or context and settle or introduce elsewhere: relocate

As an amateur gardener, when I think of “transplanted”, I think of the numerous plants I have moved to new homes among my flower beds around my house. Some were bought at nurseries and transplanted into my garden. Others were gifts from neighbors, friends, or family members from their gardens. Some were here when we bought the house and I rearranged their placement to fit in with the additions.

When I think of “transplanted”, I also often think of people that have moved from where they originally grew up and are now living in a different part of the country. Both my parents were “transplants” from the Philly area to upstate New York. I am a transplant in Lancaster County, along with a few of my friends. I know many families involved with the armed forces that have been “transplanted” numerous times as they move from base to base being transferred every few years. Sometimes our own choices lead us to be “transplanted” in a new location; other times its circumstances beyond our control.

In another line of thought, when I think of being “transplanted”, I think of God as the Master Gardener and we are the plants in His gardens. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are transplanted in His soil and we begin to grow. He tends His gardens with care, overseeing the growth of each of His plants in each of their locations. Then there are times when He transplants us into a different part of the garden or a different garden altogether, with different situations, to help us grow even stronger. Sometimes this happens multiple times in our lives. Ultimately, we are growing in His gardens until we mature enough that we are ready to be “picked” and taken to our eternal home. It’s really not a perfect analogy, but I find it helpful to remember that I was not made for this world (this garden), but that I am made for the eternal purpose of bringing glory to God, and eventually that will be in heaven. For now, He has transplanted me here, in this location, to help me grow and mature, so that He can have glory brought to Him as I grow.