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| My Neighbor's Lilies |
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus
addresses anxiety. He tells people to
simplify their lives and trust God in order to have a more contented, and less
troubled spirit. Using examples like
birds that do not store away in barns and yet are fed by God, Jesus encourages
believers to quietly trust that God will take care of them. In Matthew 6:28 (ESV), Jesus says, “Consider
the lilies of the field, how they grow.” Today, I’d like to take a few minutes to do
just that.
My next
door neighbor has a bed of beautiful lilies on the border between her property
and mine. They are so attractive that
people have stopped by my house, hoping to get some tips on
flower-growing. I do not, however,
possess my neighbor’s gardening mojo.
Instead of a green thumb, I have a black thumb. Everything I have ever tried to grow has
died. So if you want real tips, talk
with my neighbor. Still, there are some
basics to growing lilies that anyone can understand.
The Gardener’s
Supply Company website[i]
says: “Though lilies look like they'd be fussy plants, they are actually very
easy to grow. They're not particular about soil type or pH and they grow well
in full sun, part sun, dappled shade and even light shade.” If we “consider the lilies, how they grow,”
then we can learn something about the adaptability of the lily. In the larger context of Jesus’ sermon about
contentment and trust, the easy-growing quality of the lily reminds Christians
not to be so fussy about life’s imperfect situations or changing
conditions. Knowing that the Master
Gardener has planted us just where He wants us, we can grow with faith and
without fuss.
On her
website “The Lily Garden,”[ii]
Judith Freeman gives the following suggestions for planting lilies:
Lilies will bring beauty,
color and fragrance to your garden for many years; they only require you to
plant them in the right place and provide for their simple needs. Choose
a well-drained location with at least half a day of sunshine. If it’s too
shady, the stems will stretch and lean towards the sun; trumpet lilies are the
most shade sensitive. Lilies love full sun, as long as the bulbs are deep
enough to keep cool when temperatures soar. They also enjoy a mulch.
Lilies may
be adaptable, but they thrive best when planted properly. They prefer partial shade to full sun, but if
they’re planted in too much shade, they’ll reach toward the sun in order to get
what they need. In the same way, God
created us with the ability to reach toward Him. Ultimately, God wants ideal situations for
our lives, but when real life does not offer the ideal, the Lord has given us
the remarkable ability to reach toward Him and receive the energy of His love.
Lilies like
to be planted deep in the ground, so that cool soil can protect them in summer’s
heat. Mulch also offers a security
blanket for these growing flowers. For
the Christian, growing like a lily means making sure that we’re planted
deep. Reaching upward toward God—soaring
to spiritual heights through worship and prayer—these are essential to the
growth of the soul. But God’s people
need to be deeply in love with Him and deeply connected with the community of
faith. They need to reach deep inside
themselves in order to discover who they are in Christ and who God wants them
to become. Spiritual depth insulates
them from the world’s harshness. It
gives them good soil in which to grow.
Growing
like a lily means trusting God’s provision.
In Matthew 6:28-30 (ESV), Jesus says that lilies neither toil nor spin. “Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all
his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field,
which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much
more clothe you, O you of little faith?” It’s easy to get sidetracked with all the
things we think we need, but people of faith who practice simple reliance on God
know that their Father cares enough to give them what they need.
“Consider the lilies,” Jesus
said. Consider how they grow. Romans 1:20 (ESV) says that God’s “ invisible
attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly
perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have
been made.” The world around us
gives spiritual lessons if we will listen to nature’s voice. I pray that you’ll consider the lilies—that you’ll
pay attention as God reveals His nature to you through what has been made. I pray that you’ll trust the Creator to take
as good care of you as He does the flowers of the field.
[i]
“The Basics: Lilies.” http://www.gardeners.com/how-to/growing-lilies/5326.html. August 28, 2014.
[ii]
Freeman, Judith. The Lily Garden. “Growing
Lilies.” 2013. http://www.thelilygarden.com/pages_general/growing_lilies.html. August 30, 2014.
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