The celery plant lives on! A couple weeks ago, we cut the stalks off to do an experiment. Jen knew celery can regrow, even from just the “stump,” so she put it in a little bit of water, and it’s coming back! What seemed to be gone and hopeless has another chance!
“Gone and hopeless” might sound a little extreme for just celery, but how many of us can relate to those feelings from times in our own lives? Maybe we’d just gone through a difficult time or suffered a setback, or maybe it was all our fault and we were in a mess of our own making. Maybe, just like that celery plant, we needed a second chance to grow.
Reminds me of Samson in the Bible. He had a Nazarite vow which required him to not cut his hair. He knew God was blessing him with amazing strength, and he knew his commitment to this vow was a part of that. And yet, Samson allowed his hair to be cut to try to please Delilah, a woman who didn’t genuinely care about Samson’s well-being. Samson lost his strength, was captured, and honestly deserved the punishment he was getting because he made the choice to disobey God. But God wasn’t done with Samson! We are way quicker to give up on ourselves and others than God is!
Fast-forward a bit, and Judges 16:22 shows God’s awesome mercy: “Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven.” God mercifully let Samson’s hair start to grow back again!
God gave Samson another chance, giving him that amazing strength one more time (if you’ve never read the whole account of what happened or it’s been a while, check it out in Judges!). Every day, we make mistakes, but every day God offers new mercy (Lamentations 3:22-23). God could have left Samson where he was, but He didn’t. God could leave each of us in the messes we create, but He mercifully offers us another chance. Second chances are amazing! Let’s never waste them!
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