“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”—Romans 1:20 (NIV)
I love the outdoors. It’s where I go to relax. I can watch a sunrise or a sunset for hours. The sky is an ever-changing canvas filled with the Master’s brushstrokes and color pallet.
When it comes to the heat of summer, one of my favs is the variations of lush greens with the variety of flowers blooming throughout the season. Lately I’ve preferred the spontaneity of wildflowers. I so admire their perseverance and seeing them thriving on the side of the road or that one dandelion blooming in the middle of a concrete parking lot. Maybe the secret to a thriving flowerbed is to redefine a weed.
This past February when I lost my husband, I was inundated with gorgeous flower arrangements. Their beauty was in such stark contrast to the purpose for which they were sent. With each arriving arrangement I wondered why we send flowers when someone dies. They did look nice on either side of the casket, but what does it matter?
Are they supposed to bring joy? They didn’t. Were they supposed to lift my spirits? They didn’t. They withered and died. Their brief beauty fell to the ground one petal at a time making me even sadder.
So why do we send flowers at funerals?
As I watched the petals fall from the arrangements, their brilliant display coming to an end, I found myself thinking, Well done, beautiful flower. It began to remind me of what life is all about. Its beauty and tragedy. Great bursts of life with our finest moments and an inability to avoid our impending deaths.
Under the watchful eye of an attentive caretaker, these flowers were groomed to become the best they could possibly be. Careful consideration was put into a suitable site. Pruning, adequate water, and fertilizer were applied. Each flower was regularly watched for pests and problems with an immediate remedy at hand. The flowers grew until they reached their peak moments of performance, that which they were created for.
While we’re a lot more complicated than a flower, we’re more like that flower than we may realize.
With God’s own hands He weaves us together in the secret place, in our mother’s womb. From life at conception to our first breath and to our last, we’re given the opportunity to discover His heart for us and what we were created for.
Like the flower, we have an attentive Provider to look after us, but, unlike the flower, we get to choose whether or not we will fulfill our purpose.
Believers and unbelievers alike can/will draw their last breaths here and never leave the legacy they were intended to leave. Everyone without exception was created with a purpose and we are called to leave a legacy that we will be remembered by. Whether you actively create your legacy or passively let life pass you by, none the less, you will leave a legacy.
We should want to be remembered for something beyond wilted petals falling to the ground.
The best investment any of us can make is to love well.
To do so, we want to understand who we are and give to others from a strong, healthy self- identity. This will keep us from becoming a doormat or one who gives out of regret, shame, or manipulation.
A strong self-identify is found in the One who created us. And He is the same one who can show us how to love well. He is the fountainhead of truth and love, two words that are interchangeable. There is no other rock-solid basis to define life outside of the One who created it.
Let’s set it in our hearts that we will show up and take our places in the huge flower arrangement of life. When we fulfill our destinies, we create a generational legacy, something that will outlast us and benefit those who are yet to be born in our lineage.
God has put innate beauty in us as individuals, but there’s even more from heaven’s viewpoint. From sunrise to sunset, wildflowers and roses, it all has purpose and speaks of the things that heaven has already established. When we fulfill our individual purpose, our contributions are the focal point in the purposefully created, grand tapestry of life.
Now LIVE LOVED and THRIVE!
These questions are in no way a substitute for healthcare professionals or any level of professional counseling. I’m an advocate for taking care of oneself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. These questions reflect my heart, NOT my profession.
This questionnaire is an opportunity to journal your thoughts and feelings. It can serve as a launching pad on which to evaluate your heart condition as you understand it. My hope is that you will take what you discover and hold it up to the Light to evaluate it against who God says you are.
- Can you relate to life being like a flower? If so, in what ways?
- Is it hard to imagine that you were created for a purpose? If so, why?
- If you’ve discovered your purpose, what is it and how are you learning to fulfill and grow in it? What sort of goals are you creating, etc.?
- If you haven’t discovered your purpose, write out your goals, dreams, or desires. See if they have anything in common. Ask God to reveal how your strength/passion, etc., is found in the things you’ve listed.
- What do you want people to remember about you?
- What do you think you need to do to ensure people remember you the way you want them to?
- What is something you want to leave behind that will cause people to talk of your faithfulness, generosity, business smarts, amazing kids, etc.?
Use God’s word to take control over traumas in your life. Whenever you feel terrorized by your thoughts, take them captive by replacing them with the truth of God’s promises found in His word.
Print, then cut and carry this Scripture with you and/or post it in places where you will see it often. Ground yourself in God’s truths not Satan’s attacks. Encourage your heart and mind every time you are reminded of His great love for YOU!
Here is what God’s word says to encourage you and to give you an example of His unfailing, relentless, unending love for you:
“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”—Romans 1:20 (NIV)
When you read God’s word say to yourself: God is speaking all the time through His examples as seen in flowers, seasons, the skies, etc. Every day He has made Himself known to me, because everything around me reflects the things of heaven.
Now LIVE LOVED and THRIVE!
