Tag: different

BOUQUET

Have you ever enjoyed  looking at a bouquet of flowers, mesmerized by the beauty of the bouquet where there may be many different colors, different sizes, different shapes, and even different kinds of flowers?
Did you notice how each is unique and beautiful in its own way? Maybe you liked the color of a particular one, or maybe a particular kind of flower is your favorite and brings back a special memory of some event in your life.
Isn’t that just like the people in your life? We are all different, even coming in different colors, sizes, and shapes!  Each of us brings different things to life and have different gifts to share with one another.  When we all work together, despite our differences, we are a beautiful representation of God’s handiwork. It is just like the beauty that a variety of flowers brought together can reflect.
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Photo courtesy of C. Palmiter

When you first get a bouquet of flowers, the flowers might be just starting to bud, and over a period of a few days, you might notice the flowers opening up more and being at their full bloom state.
Taking the time to listen to others and share God’s love with one another is like the flowers that are reaching their full bloom state.  We are sprouting, growing nice and tall, opening up to reflect some of God’s mercy and goodness to those around us.
If God’s love does not fill our lives, we are more like the poor, wilting flowers, and we can’t survive long that way.
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To preserve the bouquet of flowers for the longest period of time, what do they need?

…Fresh water daily

…the sun,

…and maybe even a little pruning to their stems.

Isn’t that just like us?

Daily, we need…
…God’s Word to refresh us.
…The “Son” being reflected in our lives to others.
…Receiving the “Son” from others in our lives.
Sometimes, we need a little “pruning” or correction in our lives to get us back on the path of following Him.  It may be painful but He is always there ready to love us and guide us back to Him.  He is our Loving Father!
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For “All man are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.   –1 Peter 1:23-25  (NIV)

RESPECTING OUR DIFFERENCES

Recently, I had an enlightening conversation with my older teen daughter that got me thinking that I think this world needs more people that respect each other and are open minded to the differences in others.
Every person is created by God with their own unique blueprint of qualities. The various life experiences we have all contribute to the way we look at things and even how we view the world around us. It is the same world, but every person sees it a little different…in a unique way. One person’s way is not the “right” and only way to see it.
Those of us who grew up in two parent families in a loving environment might well look at the world differently from those of us who were raised in a single parent home where making ends meet was always a struggle.
You might be very organized and want things a certain way, but to another person, that might not be important.  Maybe spending quality time with loved ones is what is important to you.
Maybe you are happy to be alone while your sibling always needs to be busy doing something.
Is going to an event important to you? Well, it might not be on someone else’s bucket list!
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Photo credit by Celestine Chua under Creative Commons License (CC BY 2.0)
Does the way you do something make you a better person than someone else?
Is the way you look at something the ONLY way to look at something?
Because you see something this way, does that give you a right to judge the way someone else looks at the same situation?
Should you be cutting down others when the way they see something doesn’t match your way?
I think the answer to all these questions should be NO!
The next time you disagree with something someone says, try to catch yourself and ask yourself if maybe, just maybe, it would be better to NOT jump in and complain, but instead respect the other person and their point of view. Sure, you could gently share your thoughts, but ultimately, realize there are many different ways to see something and that’s okay!
Doing that may even expand your horizon and help you see something differently. There can be great blessing in that too.
Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.  –Titus 3:1-2
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. –Ephesians 4:29