The daffodils are awake. Yellow bowls of beauty open each day to the morning sun, tracing her path across the sky until evening shadows fall and still their movement for the night. It never gets old, this first glimpse of spring with her bright dots of blooms glimmering along country roadsides and in glorious swaths of gold and cream in neighborhoods throughout the city.
I once saw a time-lapse video of a flower following the sun. It is a movement so subtle that most people don’t see it. Micro movements over the course of many hours only become apparent when one has been away then returned to notice the difference in the direction the flower now faces. Sunlight is the beginning of the flower’s life-cycle of photosynthesis and regeneration, and works most effectively when falling full on the broad surface of petals and leaves.
“God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in him.,” says 1 John 1:5.
“In him was life, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it,” says John in John 1:4-5 (CSB).
Jesus said He came to reveal the Father to us.
“If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father,” said the Lord Christ in John 14:9-10.
And when I read the story of Jesus, I see something beautiful and clear…those who believed in Him felt safe with Him. They drew near to Him and followed Him because He loved them and they could feel it. Those who doubted or rejected His love were decidedly uncomfortable, even miserable, in His presence. Read the story of the woman caught in adultery in John 8. The scribes and Pharisees bring her to Jesus, expecting Him to side with them. Instead, He addresses their sins, so they don’t stick around to hear more. They leave. I believe they did not like the way He made them feel because they were arrogant and unrepentant. They thought they were better than Jesus, definitely better than the woman caught in adultery, and His challenge to their assumptions about the woman and their own sinful behaviors drove them away. But the woman? She is left there, alone, with the Son of God and He is gentle with her. He sees her brokenness. He knows what is behind her behavior and refuses to condemn her. She doesn’t run away in fear but hears the words of grace flooding her ears that were likely still ringing from all the shaming and shouting that had been going on around her.
“Neither do I condemn you, now go and sin no more.”
“Go, and sin no more.”
Imagine the love in His voice.
Imagine her relief.
Imagine the gratitude that flooded her heart.
Imagine the peace that filled her soul.
“There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. So the one who fears is not complete in love.” 1 John 4:18 (CSB)
Too many of us who have been delivered from sin’s enslavement by the love of God walk in fear. We don’t trust that we are safe or that we are saved. We focus on our failures instead of the finished work of the cross. We fear the Son and keep our faces low, feeling our hearts shrivel as a result yet crippled by the hellfire and brimstone sermons that have permeated Western culture for hundreds of years. We are afraid to look up because we have been told God is angry. But God is not a god of retribution, He is the bringer of restoration. He refines His children, burning away the dross and molding us into the image of Christ. His discipline is correction, not condemnation. We do not have to be afraid of being punished. He loves us perfectly, and perfect love drives out fear.
As a mother, I have seen this at play over and over with my children. If I am angry, even when it is justified, and act out of that anger there will be no felt safety within them and no fruitful connection between us. Attachment Theory has proven that a child must feel safe in order to bond with their caregiver. God created us with this deep need for attachment, and He models felt safety for us in Jesus. When we feel safe with God, we are finally able to truly love and trust Him. We no longer feel the need to hide or conceal our sins. We can freely turn our faces toward Him and receive the life He offers, knowing we are fully seen and fully known by Him. He is not surprised by anything we do. He did create us, after all, and sees the beginning and the end all at once. I recently heard someone say God does not love us because we are good, but because HE is good. Let that sink in.
The daffodils know where their life comes from, and they boldly stand facing the source, bringing hope and beauty to a land still chilled by morning frost. They are harbingers of Spring, one of the first signs of life when everything else appears dead.
Romans 5:8 (CSB) But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Ephesians 2:4-5 (CSB) But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!
You, my friend, are saved by grace. You are safe. You are fully known and loved by your Father. Beloved, you don’t need to be afraid to lift up your face to the Son and receive His love. He doesn’t love you because you are good, but because He is.
Hallelujah.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this! Rich encouragement for the soul.
Beautiful words and pictures