Flourish, Don't Be Overshadowed

May 27
Yard work always affords me the time to hear the Lord. The process of cleaning up our rose bushes, after weeks of rain,  held within an excellent life lesson. Snipping away the old blooms, from where they were overshadowing buds which had not yet had the opportunity to burst forth, caused me mind to contemplate how some individuals get  crowded out and never have the opportunity to bloom.

Being a teacher, by profession, my mind drifted to the classroom, but the lesson is applicable in every day life.  Be it family gatherings, book clubs, team sports, office settings, church, or any group gathering you have your early bloomers, the extraverts, who burst forth with gusto and are grand. While they play an integral part in group discussions and often bring much needed energy/exuberance, without balance and a bit of restraint they can overshadow and intimidate the late bloomers.  The personality make up of these people, also God's creation with great worth, have an equal purpose for His plan.  He made us ALL in his image.  Ha, He is complex! He is in all things!

"The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church:

every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance."

1 Corinthians 12:25-26

"So this is my prayer: 

that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well."

Philippians 1:9-11