Light beams on the kitchen sink.
Fresh flowers starting to wink.
Each morning. New.
Each day. Glorious.
The Lord’s love. Never failing.
God’s grace. Never fading.
My birth flower is the morning glory. A climbing plant boasting trumpet-shaped flowers. I wonder whether we are not all that different from this flower. I wonder whether our trumpet-like tongues boast of God’s excellencies or echo of self.
We are instruments of glory,
a creation fashioned for the
purpose of projecting worship
back to our wondrous Creator.
If we are like flowers, what good are petals that remain inward, protected, closed-off in shame? Do we withhold worship from our Creator when we choose to bury our life inside, instead of openly and outwardly expressing the wonder of the life we hold inside?
If we are like flowers, then our growth is the truest thing, the lengthiest thing, as we are born to blossom, to bloom. The testimony of this truth, this growth, is not the final petal, the flower we form into. No – that is the climax.
Instead, our development – the seasons, our form, our flower, our petals – they are all temporary. Our growth is a transitional trajectory toward an eternal form, an everlasting fragrance.
So what, then, is the eternal truth to our flower-like existence?
What holds hope is the seed, that which is buried underneath. This seed remains, regardless of season. Though the seed changes, the soil changes and the flower changes; what doesn’t change is the sustenance. The fertiliser, what nourishes. See the seed changes, grows, develops, endures, remains, according to it’s sustenance. It is the water that comes down from the heavens, nourishing the earth, that enables this seed to sprout forth.
Ground to sky.
Dark to light.
…
There.
…
The morning glory.
Dark to light.
Exposure.
Declaration.
Transformation.
Beauty.
Form.
Truth.
Growth.
What a metaphor for faith.
Newness of life.
We are flowers, made new every
morning by his glorious grace.
For optimum growth, the morning glory needs (1) poor soil, (2) full sunlight, and (3) regular water. We can extend this analogy to the optimum growth required for us to release the aroma of Christ. See we are not all that different from the morning glory, as we too can bloom under these conditions with the right fertiliser.
(1) We need a saviour.
We are poor-soiled souls. Dirty. Lacking the nutrients we need to sustain ourselves. We can look to others to bring nutrition to our souls, to feed and satisfy our needs. But that will never complete. We will still feel empty.
This world cannot fertilise us, we need the Word.
To grow, we need to feed on truth. Some fertiliser for our spiritual poverty. So that our poor-soiled souls can be sustained, and remain, no matter the season.
Jesus, the one and only Saviour of our souls, made a way for us to receive true life. He is the way, the truth, the life (John 14:6) – the fertiliser for our dry bones, our cracked shells, our poor-soiled souls.
He redeems.
He sets free.
He gives us the Spirit, a new seed.
In the Spirit we thrive, despite our poor-soiled souls. As we grow, we grow in the knowledge and grace of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). As we are transformed by the Spirit, we are transformed so that we shall be like him (1 John 3:2-3). We must remain steadfast despite the seasons, for we await eternity – where we will enter the new heaven and new earth (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1), where our souls soil will be fertilised forevermore in his presence.
(2) We need true light.
There is darkness in the world. As seeds, we love burying ourselves, hiding our true wineskins, living ashamed, asunder, in the deep abysses of anonymity. However, to be the flowers we were born to be, we need that which is hidden underneath – the seed, dead in darkness and captivity – to be raised to life, to see the light, and to be free.
In the dirt and darkness of the world, we require full-exposure to the true light, God’s glory in Jesus Christ (John 1:14, 13:31-32). The Word of life, the light of men, is “the light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:4-5). This true light has come into the world, as the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14).
Listen to Jesus words recorded in John 8:12:
“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me
will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
We long for clarity in the future, for the unknowns to be made known, for things to be exposed, revealed, to be seen for what they truly are. These are not mere desires, but give weight to doctrine – for there is good news. The testimony of Jesus, the revelation of God and his glory, his authority, his love and grace, and power to break every chain of darkness that keeps you underground – this is the truth that will set you free (John 8:31-2).
So arise. Let darkness no longer engulf your seed, your identity. Instead, depart death by embracing Christ – the light of life. Sow the Word into your heart, and the Spirit of truth and revelation will bring clarity to that which is dark. That is the Lord’s promise to you – his Word will not return to him empty (Isaiah 55:10-11).
{ see also Ephesians 5:8-14 & 1 Corinthians 15:36,42-44}
(3) We need living water.
To form flowers fragrant with God’s glory, the aroma of Christ, we need the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Spirit (Titus 3:4-7). This cleansing can only occur through Jesus, who came by water and blood (1 John 5:6).
We cannot grow by our own means. We require living water. This what Jesus offers us. He satisfies our thirst and supplies us with life. This river of the water of life flows directly from the throne of God and of the Lamb (Revelation 22:1). This is the access Jesus provides us – he enables us to receive sustenance and have a relationship with the Lord.
You will overflow with joy and thanksgiving when you find ourselves at the floodgates of heaven, where there is an abundance of love and grace. He is the fount of blessing, provision, identity, and hope. Worship will well up within you, and your thoughts, words, and heart will be an incense of praise to the King of Kings when you soak more and more in him.
“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said,
‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'”
– Jesus (John 8:37-8)
The morning glory.
A flower with a form like ours.
A flower that frames how fresh God’s mercy is each and every day.
A flower that frames how we were made for glory.
To glorify God.
The Word that breathes life to the limbs.
Note: these photos aren’t actually of the ‘morning glory’ flower, for any nature-lovers out there!
