Every joyful face
praising our Lord,
every glorious
beauty growing
in our garden
glows with a bit
of His glory
graciously mirrored
in our heart and in our soul
and in our mind.
…their gaudier sisters
stretching much taller
seeking the sun above
until they mirror
His glory shining so golden
worshipping
gladly the Holy One: …
EVERY FLOWER A PARABLE
In my garden grows
such an array
of unimaginable
and pretty
parables each singing
with their loveliness
praises to their Maker
declaring His
precise and delightful
unique design
each one a revelation:
His Love is glorious!
Some tiny blossoms
display their own
almost hidden colors in
the shade beneath
their gaudier sisters
stretching much taller
seeking the sun above
until they mirror
His glory shining so golden
worshipping
gladly only the holy One:
His Love is glorious!
I see them lifting
their arms in praise
even as the Psalmist says,
nature’s voice
in one accord a bright and
proud display in the
winds they swing and sway
on a sunny day
lovely queens gracing my garden
inviting the
bees for yellow pollen:
His Love is glorious!
Everything God has made declares His glory. You could say it this way: God is eternally creating parables which reveal the majesty and the magnificence of who He is. I would insist that the most beautiful of His creations are people—girls and boys, women and men. In the absolute uniqueness of every human being there is also the tie which binds us all together—we are made in His image, and so, we bear our own amazing resemblance to the remarkable beauty He revels in Himself—Father, Son and Spirit—all about Him, purposeful and powerful in His Perfect Love.
God also echoes this central Parable of them all—making humanity to mirror His own glory—throughout His Creation: the heavens and the earth, declaring with His redeemed children, the glad message: GOD IS LOVE!
So, let’s just take one of those many parables in nature, the Sunflower, and examine how He tells another Gospel Story all about His Greatness and His Mercy and Grace and Love and Redemption.
Ecclesiastes 3:11a
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
He begins each sunflower with just a seed. They are not so much to look at. However, some folks find them delicious and nutritious as a delectable roasted snack. I enjoy planting those seeds, knowing how each one carries a promise of astounding growth and development until each one grows up stretching toward the glorious light of the sun, which in turn, along with water, eventually transforms that small seed into a tall and mighty plant towering above every other flower in the garden. It all begins with the seed.
Matthew 31:32 ESV
It (the mustard seed) is the
smallest of all seeds,
but when it has grown
it is larger than all the garden plants
and becomes a tree,
so that the birds of the air
come and make nests in its branches.
Then comes the tiny sprout of a plant pushing up out of the soil. Admittedly, the sprout is rather humble still, undistinguished, much like the seed. However, for the gardener like me, there is already excitement and anticipation of the miracle that will arise from a fragile stem and a couple of vulnerable leaves. And, the sprout will never grow to glory unless it is transplanted, as it is, in a way uprooted from its cozy, comfortable bit of soil in some plastic cup. Otherwise, it would soon shrivel, dry up and die. Even a sunflower must be reborn to thrive according to God’s Purpose and achieve the glory He has designed.
Genesis 1:11 ESV
And God said,
“Let the earth sprout vegetation,
plants yielding seed,
and fruit trees bearing fruit
In which is their seed,
each according to its kind
on the earth.”
And it was so.
Once it has been transplanted into the actual soil, with water and sunshine, the small seedling adds leaves and its stalk grows taller and stronger. This time of initial taking root in the garden, and growing both larger and stronger, reminds us of our own initial process of beginning to grow as a newly reborn Christian. Dear Christian brothers and sisters come along-side us and make sure we receive the Light of the Gospel and the Living Water of God’s Word. In this early stage of growth, the sunflower remains vulnerable to any serious interruption in receiving necessary sunlight and essential water. Without both the small sunflower plant will never grow to produce its giant, majestic flowers, which also eventually produce the seeds for the next generation. Without the faithful attention of the gardener, sunflowers will never make it to achieve their purpose—their beauty and their provision of seeds for future generations. We, too, as followers of Christ, desperately depend on His Light and His protection, so that He receives glory and joy as we grow and provide the potential for growing the next generations in His Kingdom.
Genesis 1:12 ESV
The earth brought forth vegetation,
plants yielding seed according to their own kinds,
and trees bearing fruit
in which there is their seed,
each according
to its kind.
And God saw that it was good.
Well, how can you not be excited when you see the yellow beginning to appear and prepare to unleash a bold blossom for the pleasure of the world, as you look forward to the fully formed and dazzling sunflower? And if you look closely, you will see bees who show up for pollen as the fully formed flowers begin to dazzle us who stand around amazed at such bold beauty. Here again nature parables spiritual development—our own faith fully forming, is always sharing with others for the growth and spread of the Gospel.
Psalm 115:1 ESV
Not to us, LORD,
not to us
but to you name
be the glory,
because of your
love and faithfulness.
Neither flower nor man can take glory for a beautifully formed flower all dressed up to worship and to honor our LORD and our God. I cannot see a bright, golden sunflower standing so tall, without giving praise to our God. What a privilege to be formed so purposefully by our Creator who makes all things beautiful in His Time.
From tiny seeds in my hand,
to seedlings, to tiny plants,
to tall and glorious
testaments to God’s Glory!
Praise the Lord!