Read Luke 6:40

A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.

Devotional Thought

Recently, I spent some time on vacation at a place that had a beautifully landscaped courtyard in between some of its buildings. Tall, white limestone-block buildings that housed the resort’s rooms flanked each of the four sides of the courtyard. And, at the entrance to each of these buildings as you left the courtyard were some of the most beautifully sculpted and tended flowering vines I have ever seen. Even though the hotel was only 10 years old, the vines looked as though they had been there for many, many years.

I was amazed at the precision with which the gardeners had trained the vines to run in specific patterns and how the vines so beautifully flowered according to path that had been set before them. Left untended and with no training, the vines would have crept over the entire courtyard and would have ended in an overgrown mess.

So it is with the act of nurturing and caring for someone in a discipleship relationship. As we disciple others, setting a clear path for growth and training helps to establish purpose and direction. Just as incredible beauty and a sense of purpose and order was the result of the skilled hands and training of the gardeners who tended the courtyard on my vacation, a life that is given training and direction as it is nurtured will yield beauty as well.

Prayer

Father, as I care for others, help me to first always abide in you and seek intimacy with you as my priority. Thank you for your example as a great teacher and for the great care and concern you showed others as you taught them about Your Father. Help me to know how to train and encourage others to grow in righteousness so that they may become more and more like you. May my life to be the greatest example others could see of your love for them.