A Flower

1 Peter 1:23-25 (Isaiah 40:6-8)

Spring has arrived, at least where I am here in Tucson, and the first flower in my garden has awoken from its winter slumber. It is starting that wonderful time of year when the desert is in bloom. In the big scheme of things our lives are like that flower, too. Here one day and gone the next, a mere blip in the history of the universe. Peter talks about this fact, adding a crucial point to a couple verses found originally Isaiah. He writes, "For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. As the Scriptures say, 'People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.' And that word is the Good News that was preached to you (1 Peter 1:23-25 NLT)." I like what Peter adds when he talks about our new life lasting forever because it is from the word of God. This is an important addition because as the Word is eternal, so we become eternal with it when we give our lives to the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ. We are God's, and only our physical body will be just like the flower that is here for a short time and then fades away. So, in reality while our physical body is but a blip in the history of the universe, our spiritual body is eternal and will exist forever, as God exists forever. We are his for all time! So as Jesus did, we should make the most of our time here and be like beautiful flowers displaying the glory of God for the season that we have. But we will always have the hope that as we wither and fade our new life with Him will begin in a place where we will shine forever without fading. With the Lord in us, when faced with the tough questions in life like, "Who am I?," we have a response, "I am yours!"

A great Christian song to go with today's devotion is Who am I by Casting Crowns. This is a rather interesting video using hands to create the imagery in the song.