Rose Stems

 

Rose Stems              March 2017

When I was working my way through college, on my third attempt at obtaining a Bachelor’s degree, I found work in a bucket stand. Each morning, first thing, the most important job was to trim off a little piece of the tips of the flowers’ stems. This was necessary because in 24 hours the flower had hardened the old cut, and water from the bucket would not flow up into it to keep it nourished and fresh. This capillary flow, ignoring gravity, was the only thing that kept the flower from drying up and falling apart.

We saw all kinds of people.   The man that was buying arms full of everything I had, said he hadn’t been home for several nights. A ninety year old gentleman in a suit inquired about the prices of all which we offered. I asked was this some special occasion; to which he replied, “I’ve never bought her flowers before.” Subconsciously I wanted to caution him that it might give her a heart attack at this late point in life. We found a nice orchid corsage in a box, and it proved to be a delight for him.   They were all attracted by the beauty and fragrance which would have been lost if the stems had gone untrimmed.

We are just like that.   Christ described himself as the water of life. Our form of capillary action is natural but only in as much as we desire Him in ourselves. He is the water, we are the stem, and the capillary action is our attitude about open communications. To get more of him we must daily trim away a little of ourselves. Without that, He is blocked off from us, and we begin to dry up.   Time in the early morning before the house stirs, is essential to start my waking day correctly. It is His desire to be with me. Reading the Good Book, praying with Him to the Father, and dwelling on His purpose for my life for that day are the essence of a good start.   Each day done this way embraces my purpose on a 24-hour clock so that I don’t get caught up in some grand scheme.   In this I will accomplish what He has in mind for my day.

How I live my life, keeping attentive to His desires, His water into my life, draws Him into me.   Then I can understand what it is that I am to do. Bill Evans reminded me what A.W.Tozer said about this, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”  It is a bi-directional flow as we think of Him and He thinks of us. Without it, the gravity of worldly matters draws us down to the earth and eventually, yes, even into it forever. With the capillary attitude we pull Him up into us.