Creation and Compassion: The Sunflower

Sunday, August 30, 2015

The Sunflower

Quite a number of years ago, a dear friend gave me a packet of sunflower seeds to plant in my garden. This was back when some of my children were still somewhat interested in at least planting the garden each spring, so we planted the seeds in several of their individual 4 X 4 foot garden plots, and the seeds grew into huge, healthy, plants that produced multitudes of gorgeous pinkish purple sunflowers. We saved many of the seeds, and salted and roasted them, and there were still plenty for the birds. As the birds came to the plants and feasted, many of the seeds fell to the ground where they remained during the winter, and the following year sprouted and grew, not into the huge pinkish purplish blossoms, but into the beautiful, ordinary, yellow blossoms that you see all over our area this time of year. For several years we allowed the plants to grow, until they threatened to take over the entire garden, and we relegated them to grow only along the northern edge of the gardens. I still leave several plants each spring (even though they require a fair amount of work to clean out each fall) as I still enjoy their bright loveliness in my hodgepodge of a garden.

Today we heard an analogy of the sunflower; how during the long night time the petals of the sunflower blossoms droop, till the sun rises over the horizon each morning, and the sunflower lifts its head to the warmth and light of the sun. Throughout the day the sunflower follows the sun as it moves across the sky from the east to the west, gathering as much energy from the source of light as it can until the evening when the sun sinks once again below the horizon and the petals of the sunflower again droop, waiting patiently for the source of light and strength to return.

We, too, have a source of light and energy and strength: The Son of God, Jesus Christ.