During my involvement at church over the years a common expression was that ‘healthy things grow’ – meaning we know what we’re doing is right or healthy if the programs we run grown in numbers and momentum builds.

On one level I still believe that – any organisation, idea, business or project that’s working correctly will gain popularity and grow.

But sometimes unhealthy things grow too – like weeds and rumours, fake news and fear. When I really think about it there are a lot of unhealthy growth in the world. On the flip side something can be very healthy but be in an environment that is stunting its growth – by the ‘healthy things grow’ yard stick these things would be often deemed as unhealthy with is unfortuantley not true.

Maybe over time the unhealthy things shrivel up and the healthy things thrive – but in my everyday life I’m beginning to stop using growth, momentum and influence as a marker for healthy or unhealthy.

A loud voice can be more damaging than the small whisper.

Hype can make unhealthy things look like they’re flourishing.

Movement isn’t always positive.

Stillness is a more reliable compass for me than speed.

Maybe healthy things grow is another example of not really living my outer life from my inner world. It’s making external judgements based on external evidence – it sometimes takes time for the external to reflect the internal. For the life that’s flourishing inside of us to introduce itself to the outside world.

…and in this unfolding rhythmic life we all find ourselves in, maybe unhealthy things need time to grow into healthy things.

[Art by Johnathan Cooper]