Monday 7 July 2014

Floral Display

People often remark about how attractive the chapel looks when you turn into Lancaster Road on a winter Sunday evening. The lights in the windows of the church building stand out against the darkness in an inviting way that is very pleasing on the eye. But now the view of the chapel in the day time has been improved too. The large area of wild flowers, on the green next to the chapel, has suddenly become a blaze of colour, enhancing the bare patch that was there before. What we thought was just a ruse to give the council less grass to mow (!) looks like a great idea after all. The hope is that in time they will also attract butterflies and bees. There, and all over New Inn, these wild flower beds have come to life and look beautiful.

They are a good thing to have in our mind as we enter the chapel for worship too. There are some Bible verses that should come to our mind as we approach the chapel, see them, and prepare for the great privilege ahead of us. The one that came first to my mind was what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount; “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field … will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith” (Matt. 6:28-30).

Sometimes, on a Sunday, our thoughts can be filled with the concerns of the week that has just ended, or our minds can be distracted by worries relating to the week just beginning. As we come to church we are reminded that we are coming to a Heavenly Father to whom we are precious, and to whom we can bring all our cares and worries. He will provide all our needs, and our trust should be fully in Him.

But perhaps there is another part of the Bible which is even more helpful to remember as we see those wild flowers on the way to worship. Isaiah tells us; “All flesh is as grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the LORD blows upon it; Surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:6-8).

As beautiful as these flowers are, we know that they will not be there for long. They will eventually fade and fall away. That was even truer in Israel where the fierce Mediterranean sun meant they had a short life expectancy. Here they are more likely to be spoilt by the rain! But either way, we have to enjoy them while we can. Whether we like it or not, those flowers should remind us of our own mortality. We are like the wild flowers - here for just a short time. But there are some things that are eternal and one of those is the word of God that we come to chapel to hear. It offers us eternal life through the same Jesus who preached about the lilies of the field. We can trust Him not just for the worries of this life, but for eternity. Have you done that?