Song 2:2 "Like a lily among thorns is my darling among the maidens." NIV
"She is so gorgeous! Her swaying in the breeze is so delicate! Her white petals
shine so brightly! She is the flower of my life," the bee thought, humming
happily by.
As the bee continued to hum by this beautiful lily, day in and day out, the
flower finally noticed him. They became acquainted with each other and started
to enjoy its other's company. Love sprung in both of their hearts and wedding
plans were formed and celebrated with a big fanfare.
"You will be my only nectar," the bee promised. "You will be my only glorious
husband," the lily replied.
Soon though, life seemed to accelerate. There was always so many things to do.
Still both the lily and the bee hoped that somehow life would slow down and that
they could enjoy each other the way they used to.
Time went by. By now, both had many tasks, more than ever before. Besides the
daily tasks of life, their son bees and lily daughters were demanding more and
more of their attention. It seemed to the lily that she never received any help
from the bee. In fact, she thought that he was so busy with his own work, that
he ignored her. It seemed that the only thing of importance to the bee was to
feed himself from her pollen. What about her? Why didn't he put her first in his
life? Were his tasks more important than her?
It's then that she noticed the awful looking thorns that were growing around
her. "Where am I, and why is my bee not taking care of me?" She wondered.
But the thorns became familiar. They began paying attention to her, and soon
they didn't seem threatening at all. One, especially, tried to become her
friend. At first they only talked about things they had in common and things
they enjoyed. "Wow! That thorn is so nice and we have so many of the same
interests!" Thought the lily. "I wish my bee would pay me this much attention!"
And so her thoughts started to wander more and more to that thorn that seemed to
care so much for her, and soon she starting sharing her burdens with it. And it
understood her! It even understood how inconsiderate her bee was! It started to
dwell on how much better it could take care of the lily if it were in the place
of her bee. And the more the lily contemplated this, the more repulsive and
egotistical her bee became in her mind. The thorn was so much nicer! And her
attention became more directly focused sideways, on the thorn, and she no longer
looked up to find her bee humming by.
As the lily and the thorn grew closer, and the bee seemed more and more distant,
the lily convinced herself that the thorn was the one who really cared for her.
Her thoughts began to wander down dangerous pathways: "Maybe I should…" But then
the thorn pricked her, and a drop of blood surfaced on her petal. The blood
seemed to fill her entire being. "Ouch!" She cried. "What have you done?"
Before long her bee came by, and the lily called out to him. She told him
everything about the thorn who had hurt her so badly. What had seemed so
innocent had nearly led to the break up of a relationship that had once been so
cherished!
This story, however, has a happy ending. The bee and his lily began to talk to
each other again--to really communicate with one another. The bee found time in
his busy schedule to be with the lily, to help her with her many tasks, to
listen to her and to love her. Priorities were reset, and they began enjoying an
intimate relationship, closer than ever, until the end of their days. They
realized that their friendship was precious, and that the thorns could only
destroy them.
My friend, how is you relationship with your spouse? Are you still communicating
with each other and sharing all you intimate thoughts with each other? Are you
spending time with each other and expressing your love towards each other?
If not, it is still not too late. Even if your mutual feelings have drifted,
start reaching out to your loved one, now. Don't let the thorns of this world
take advantage of your alienation. Spend time with each other. Listen to each
other and share with each other your inner thoughts. Before you know it, your
relationship will be closer than ever, even closer than the day you married each
other. Not only will you remain husband and wife, you will become lovers and
will develop an appreciation of each other that you never could have dreamed of.
The same is true with your relationship with God. Are you still communicating
with each other and sharing all you intimate thoughts with each other? Or is it
a one way communication, where God is trying to reach out to you? Are you
spending time with each other and expressing your love towards each other?
Come back to Him and enjoy fellowship with Him. Only He is the One who can
fulfill your dreams. He is waiting for you. Instead of concentrating sideways to
the worries and attractions of life, let us look upwards and admire the One who
really does care for you!
Matt 13:22 "The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man
who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth
choke it, making it unfruitful." NIV
Heb 12:2 2 "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,
who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat
down at the right hand of the throne of God." NIV
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
messages. HTML and plain text versions available.
The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.