Part 7: BLOOM

Learn
If we look a little deeper into things, we can see how nature challenges us to exist with passion and purpose.  Clearly, the challenge has been set by God's creation--the rose.

When a rose blooms, it brings beauty and grace to it's place where it is planted. It has no other purpose but to bless it's Maker with it's unique grace, it's variety of color, aroma and texture.  It has no other purpose than to be brilliant in scent and fullness, to "give life" and purpose to all those insects who are created to pollenate the flora of this world.

A rose grows high into the sky, as far as God has granted it to reach. It blooms wide and full for the on-lookers to enjoy.  Even when roses are cut from the plant and de-thorned to be sent to vases of water, they have purpose; to exist outside of their original environment for people to enjoy or for people to be comforted.  Roses are even thrown in the air in celebration of a victor/champion/celebrity, or they are handed to someone who has achieved a dream or goal, or they are handed to a loved one...a beloved to say "I love you" or "you are special, you are important, you are treasured".

The rose has so much to teach us. Let us learn from it.  In this life we have been given, let us bloom with purpose. Let us be vulnerable to the weather and vulnerable to the Creator--the Almighty and Faithful God.  Let us be vulnerable to possibilities of being uprooted or cut from the plant--removed from what we know.  Let us find, in our days of blooming for the world, a deep abiding joy as we bring joy to others. And let us bloom all the more full to showcase the grandeur of God's marvelous works.  The great and Mighty God made each of us with such a grand purpose and ability to bloom for all to see.

Showcase 
Roses reside in so many different settings. Some all alone, growing along a fence of a vast field, some in the big city on display in the front of a business or a church, some in the manicured yard of a house, some among the weeds of an empty lot, some in the cracks of the rocks in the mountains and some in flower pots on patios or porches. At different times in our lifespan, we can relate to those different settings. We sometimes can be like the roses that bloom in the meadow that which not many people see, but He--God-- sees and is blessed by our choice to thrive on a lonely plain.  Maybe we are planted somewhere that many people see us daily as we bloom and grow and we feel we are never out of the "eye" of the on-lookers.  Maybe we are plucked from the plant soon after forming into a bud and have only known what it is like to bloom and thrive in a vase of water in the home of someone in need of hope, joy, peace and rest.  Relating ourselves to a rose's given place of growing, blooming and withering IS a stretch of the imagination, but it is still good for us to think about ourselves and our influence on this planet from a different point of view.

Live
Wherever we are planted or placed, may we know that our purpose on this earth is to make our Creator, the Almighty and Ever Faithful God look as glorious as He truly is because of our lives reflecting that beauty to the world.  May we direct people to standing in awe of God because of the beautiful blooming and unfolding we are doing.  May YOU, dear one, BLOOM and find purpose in your life----by giving praise to God and believing His message of life and hope in His Son Jesus Christ.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."  -John 3:16
"And Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." -John 14:6

God offers us life through His Son Jesus. Let us look to God and believe in His Son Jesus who is able to restore us, save us, and plant us, even, in a new place of love and life. A fresh start where we can bloom for His glory and praise all of our days...making us vibrant and full of joy and hope for all eternity because of His Son Jesus and God's amazing love.