Letters of Hope

Greetings! 

Lilies!  Who has not delighted in the magnificent fragrance of a lily?  After another spate of wintry snow, Spring has arrived – a little later than usual – and with it the Spring lilies.  Last week some friends came to visit, bringing with them a beautiful deep rose-colored Oriental Lily.  It is filling the room with its scent.  

Checking my “Guide to Gardening” I find that the stately lily plants, with their exotic flower forms, are one of the oldest cultivated flowers, and have been cherished for at least 3,000 years – in ancient Egypt, Rome, Greece, China, and Japan.  For centuries only a few species were known, the most famous being the pure white Madonna lily – traditionally a symbol of purity – from the eastern Mediterranean.  Like many wild plants, lily species can be difficult to transfer to the cultivated garden.  However, after more than half a century of hybridizing by professionals and amateurs around the world, many varieties of lilies now exist, and beautify gardens everywhere. 

The Lilies of the Valley with which we are familiar have clusters of small, white, bell-shaped flowers that hang from a strong reedy stalk.  There may be a dozen or more blossoms on each plant.  Their sweet scent has even inspired one of my favorite perfumes.  

Spring is here in earnest in our part of the country, and soon the Lilies of the Valley will be appearing with their delicate white waxy blossoms.  I don’t know how closely these resemble the lilies referred to in the Scriptures, but I know that they are a favorite blossom for their simple elegance and exquisite fragrance.  

I suppose they are a much more cultivated variety than the ones to which Jesus referred when He said, “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;  they do not labor nor do they spin;  but I tell you that Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as one of these.”  He goes on to say that if He clothes the grass of the field that flourishes today, and tomorrow is discarded, how much more will God provide for His children.  (Matt. 6:28-34)  

Six thousand seasons have come and gone, the grass and the lilies of the field have flourished, faded and died with the fall frosts;  yet God has been faithful to His Word in all generations. 

In Solomon’s Song, there is a wonderful metaphor in which Christ is pictured as the choicest of flowers, “The Rose of Sharon, and the Lily of the Valley.”  Charles W. Fry, a song-writer in the 1800s, picked up on the theme and has given us a beloved old hymn that covers it all.  Take the time to meditate on each phrase: 

I have found a friend in Jesus – He’s everything to me;
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul;
The Lily of the Valley – in Him alone I see
All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.
In sorrow He’s my comfort – in trouble He’s my stay,
He tells me every care on Him to roll;
He’s the Lily of the Valley – the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

He all my griefs has taken and all my sorrows borne,
In temptation He’s my strong and mighty tower;
I have all for Him forsaken – and all my idols torn
From my heart, and now He keeps me by His power.
Tho all the world forsake me – and Satan tempt me sore,
Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal;
He’s the Lily of the Valley – the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

He will never, never leave me nor yet forsake me here,
While I live by faith and do His blessèd will;
A wall of fire about me, I’ve nothing now to fear -
With His manna He my hungry soul shall fill.
Then sweeping up to Glory I’ll see His blessèd face,
Where rivers of delight shall ever roll;
He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

Doesn’t that inspire you with HOPE in your heart? 

I pray that God, who gives HOPE,
will bless you with complete happiness and peace
because of your faith.
And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with HOPE.

(Romans 15:13 Contemporary English Version) 

In Agape, Eulene

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Blessings, 

We have recently had occasion to think again about what are referred to as the “natural laws” of the universe.  When Almighty God created the Universe, he set within it certain laws that are irrefutable. 

One which governs everything on the earth, and with which we are all well acquainted, is the law of gravitation – “the force of attraction that acts between all objects because of their mass (that is, the amount of material they are made of).  Gravitation holds the universe together.  For example, it holds together the hot gases in the sun and keeps the planets in their orbits.  The moon’s gravitation causes the ocean tides on earth.  Because of gravitation, objects that are on or near the earth are pulled toward it.  The gravitational attraction that a planet has for objects near it is called the force of gravity.”  

It was the famous scientist, Sir Isaac Newton (1642 to 1727), who is credited with making this discovery.  When he was 23 years old, he noticed an apple fall from a tree, and he realized that the same force that made the apple fall holds the moon in its orbit around the earth.   Scientists have put forward a number of theories concerning the gravitational phenomenon.  

However, scientists have also discovered some laws that supersede the law of gravitation. 

In our physical world, this law is always at work with its downward pull.  But the power of the sun, sweeping over the ocean, pulls the water upward and overcomes the law of gravitation.  So we see two laws at work:  the upward pull of the sun, and the downward pull of gravity. 

The law of aerodynamics is employed to lift and fly heavy machines into the air, thus overcoming the ever present gravity.  Since the first primitive flying machines in the mid-1800s, men have been building and flying bigger and better airplanes, like the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet which can carry as many as 500 passengers plus cargo.  And the supersonic airbuses that can fly faster than sound, at a speed of nearly 700 miles per hour, and a height of 40,000 feet! 

As well, in space travel, a rocket overcomes gravity by producing a pushing force called “thrust” which, like weight, can be measured in pounds.  To lift a spacecraft, a rocket must have a thrust greater than its own weight and the added weight of the spacecraft. 

Jesus tells us to “CONSIDER THE BIRDS.”  If you could ask them whether they were not afraid of the law of gravity, how would they reply?  They would say, “We never heard the name of Newton.  We know nothing about his law.  We fly because it is the law of our life to fly.”  Not only is there in them a life with the power of flight, but that life has a law which enables these living creatures to quite spontaneously overcome the law of gravity.  

The wise writer of the Proverbs listed four things that were too wonderful for him, which he could not understand.  One of them was “the way of an eagle in the air.”   It is the life of the eagle to soar high above the earth in the clear mountain air.  (Prov. 30:18,19)   

Spiritually speaking, the Bible describes the “LAW OF SIN AND DEATH” which became established because of the disobedience and sin of the originators of the human race.  This spiritual law affects the whole human race, as does the natural law of gravity.  “Wherefore, as by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned.”  (Rom. 5:12)    

The 7th chapter of Romans shows us the futility of trying to live a Christian life through our own effort. 

In contrast, in the 8th chapter of Romans, Paul introduces us to another higher law that supersedes the law of sin and death.  That is the “LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS,” which actually liberates us from the law of sin and death.  United with Christ, the believer is acquitted, and is free forever from the law of sin and death.  The just requirement of the law, a righteous life, is accomplished not ‘by’ us but ‘IN’ us – by “Christ Who is our Life.” The law could not do this, but the SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS can, and does free us.  

When we “wait upon the Lord,” our “strength is renewed” so that we may “mount up with wings as eagles.”   (Isa. 40:31)   We may 

“be like a bird which,
lighting on a bow too slight
and feeling it give way, SINGS,
knowing it has WINGS!” 

Now may the God of HOPE
make you full of joy and peace through faith,
so that all HOPE may be yours
in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 Bible in Basic English) 

In Agape, Eulene

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