As Spring has finally arrived, new life has come back into our world. Robins have begun to appear. The trees have sprouted new buds and the grass has once more turned green and started to grow. Another plant that has started its Spring growth is that little yellow flower that appears everywhere (usually where we don’t want it.) Though you may have already made up your mind about this abundant weed, read below for another viewpoint.
dan*de*li*on (dan’de’li’on) n. A plant with composite yellow flower heads and deeply toothed, edible leaves. [F dent de lion lion’s tooth; with ref to the shape of the leaves]
“DANDELIONS” by Janice Kempe
Dandelions! No matter how carefully you try to pull one up, you never get the whole thing! The root stays deep in the ground, threatening to grow up and blossom again. But, despite their bad reputation, dandelions are pretty little flowers with their yellow strands all tucked neatly into the center. Truly they are the most beautiful of all flowers when presented clutched in a child’s dirty little hand. No one ever gets yelled at for picking them. Perhaps they grow only to be used and enjoyed by children.
Dandelions are ignored or attacked, never nurtured or cared for, yet they always bloom profusely. They demand no pampering or special attention to yield their bright blossoms. They pop up in fields, in lawns and between the cracks in the sidewalk, even in the best neighborhoods. Can you imagine trying to grow them in a garden? They’d sneak through the boundaries and pop their sunny yellow faces up in the surrounding lawns. They would never stay put!
Christians should be more like dandelions. Our sunny yellow faces should be a reminder that simple faith has deep roots that are impossible to dislodge. Our vast number should show the world that though we are not fancy or pampered we are evident everywhere, even in the best (and worst) neighborhoods.
We should be as easily accessible as a dandelion. Jesus was. We need to get out of our gardens and jump across the boundaries that keep us where people expect to find us. We need to show our sunny, bright faces in all the spots that need a little brightening up – the cracks in the sidewalks of the unloved, in the lawns of those who are bereaved and in the fields of the lost and lonely. Be a dandelion and let God’s love shine through everywhere.
Hope your enjoyed this.
Pastor Baker