A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Daily
Encouragement on
Wednesday, July
17, 2019
This
photo was taken in our back yard seven years ago with
a super-sized sunflower voluntarily growing in our
then garden area. We're not accustomed to seeing a
flower right outside our 2nd floor bedroom window.
Sunflowers are "happy" flowers, since they make us
think of the sun and happy faces are modeled after
them. They are a beautiful flower to see early in the
morning prompting a consideration of the song "Oh What
A Beautiful Morning" which I awakened the Lapp
children with this morning.
"A Lesson On
Christotropism"
Message
summary: In
our lives we all
need to have a
characteristic I
will call
Christotropism,
that is, we need
to turn or orient
our self to the
Son of God, Jesus
Christ.
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Corinthians 3:15-17).
We have written about the enjoyment we have in planting flowers all around our property. Brooksyne has grown them from seed in the past and of course we give greenhouses a good business. But one of the most prominent plants in our landscaping typically grows on its own and requires little care; the Helianthus, usually called the Sunflower.
Each summer we have a variety of sunflowers growing. No telling how many seeds germinate from seeds that fall from our birdfeeders! The lead photo today was taken seven years ago and is the largest sunflower we have ever grown. I would guess it was between 10-12 feet tall. The world record tallest sunflower measures 30 feet 1 inch and was grown by Hans-Peter Schiffer in Germany.
It may be assumed that sunflowers derive their name due to their sun-like appearance but they also demonstrate an interesting characteristic known as heliotropism, a word derived from the Greek words "sun" and "turning". The growing sunflower turns or orients itself to face the sun.
Brooksyne slightly laments that we cannot get the sunflowers to face us wherever we happen to be but this Creator-designed feature is a marvel in design.
When we travel Brooksyne often reads devotional materials to me as I am the main driver in our family. Last Friday she was reading the daily edition of "Our Daily Bread" which was titled "Son Followers" which makes this point:
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Corinthians 3:15-17).
We have written about the enjoyment we have in planting flowers all around our property. Brooksyne has grown them from seed in the past and of course we give greenhouses a good business. But one of the most prominent plants in our landscaping typically grows on its own and requires little care; the Helianthus, usually called the Sunflower.
Each summer we have a variety of sunflowers growing. No telling how many seeds germinate from seeds that fall from our birdfeeders! The lead photo today was taken seven years ago and is the largest sunflower we have ever grown. I would guess it was between 10-12 feet tall. The world record tallest sunflower measures 30 feet 1 inch and was grown by Hans-Peter Schiffer in Germany.
It may be assumed that sunflowers derive their name due to their sun-like appearance but they also demonstrate an interesting characteristic known as heliotropism, a word derived from the Greek words "sun" and "turning". The growing sunflower turns or orients itself to face the sun.
Brooksyne slightly laments that we cannot get the sunflowers to face us wherever we happen to be but this Creator-designed feature is a marvel in design.
When we travel Brooksyne often reads devotional materials to me as I am the main driver in our family. Last Friday she was reading the daily edition of "Our Daily Bread" which was titled "Son Followers" which makes this point:
Young
sunflowers are
just as patient in
their growth.
Following the
sun’s movement
throughout the
day, they turn
sunward daily in a
process called
heliotropism.
Mature sunflowers
are just as
deliberate. They
turn eastward
permanently,
warming the face
of the flower and
increasing visits
from pollinator
bees. This in turn
produces a greater
harvest.
In
our lives we all
need to have a
characteristic I
will call
Christotropism,
that is, we need
to turn or orient
our self to the
Son of God, Jesus
Christ.
Let us examine a passage in 2 Corinthians which has this phrase, "but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away".
Bible teacher A T Robertson notes that the scripture portion, "a veil lies over their heart", is a "vivid and distressing picture. With willful blindness the rabbis set aside the word of God by their tradition in the time of Jesus (Mark 7:8,9)." The veil is a symbol of spiritual blindness.
"But whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away". What a blessed truth!
There is a sense that this is a onetime turning, speaking of our conversion when we repented and turned from our sin and to Christ.
But there is also an ongoing aspect of turning to the Lord. The world clamors for our attention and we must willfully seek to stay focused on the Lord. This is well-expressed in the old song "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus".
Let us examine a passage in 2 Corinthians which has this phrase, "but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away".
Bible teacher A T Robertson notes that the scripture portion, "a veil lies over their heart", is a "vivid and distressing picture. With willful blindness the rabbis set aside the word of God by their tradition in the time of Jesus (Mark 7:8,9)." The veil is a symbol of spiritual blindness.
"But whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away". What a blessed truth!
There is a sense that this is a onetime turning, speaking of our conversion when we repented and turned from our sin and to Christ.
But there is also an ongoing aspect of turning to the Lord. The world clamors for our attention and we must willfully seek to stay focused on the Lord. This is well-expressed in the old song "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus".
Turn
your eyes upon
Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
Prayer: Father,
You have given us
so many beautiful
and colorful sites
to enjoy as we
journey here
below. The
sunflowers are
certainly among
the more
pleasurable
flowers we watch
growing each
summer, whether
they were planted
by the birds or by
humans. Just as
the sunflowers
must be nurtured
by the rays of the
sun, we too must
be nurtured by the
light of Your Word
if we are to grow
in maturity and
devotion to You.
Keep our eyes
firmly fixed on
You all our days
we pray. Amen.
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
Prayer: Father,
You have given us
so many beautiful
and colorful sites
to enjoy as we
journey here
below. The
sunflowers are
certainly among
the more
pleasurable
flowers we watch
growing each
summer, whether
they were planted
by the birds or by
humans. Just as
the sunflowers
must be nurtured
by the rays of the
sun, we too must
be nurtured by the
light of Your Word
if we are to grow
in maturity and
devotion to You.
Keep our eyes
firmly fixed on
You all our days
we pray. Amen.
Ester and Brooksyne standing among our "Mammoth Sunflowers" growing right outside our front door 6 years ago. What a "happy" view we saw each morning when we opened our door.
Another
pond we passed
on Sunday on
our drive
through the
Lancaster
County
countryside.
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
With
all the rain
we have had
this summer
the corn is
very green.
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
We
arrived home
late last
evening from
our trip to
Knoebel's
Amusement Park
with the Lapp
children. this
morning we'll
take them back
to Strasburg
where they
live and then
will have
breakfast with
Joel and
Adrienne
Charest and
their children
who are
missionaries
to Mozambique.
Joel and
Adrienne
faithfully
worked for
several years
with
the children
in the church
we served in
New England.
Ever since we
met them in
the mid
nineties,
while students
at Zion Bible
Institute,
they had a
mutual call to
missions. We
attended their
wedding and
shortly after
that they went
to Africa
where they
have served
ever since
(about twenty
years).
On
Thursday and
Friday we hope
to share some
more photos of
them as well
as some from
our Knoebel's
visit.
Today's
Suggested
Music and
Supplemental Resources
Tallest
Sunflower - Guinness World
Records Video
Time Lapse:
Sunflower Following The
Sun Video
The bud of a sunflower is
heliotropic - meaning it
follows the sun. This
behavior stops once the
flower blooms. Take a look
at this time lapse - a full
day of movement in 2
minutes!
"Richard Kent's
Fun Facts -
Heliotropism" Video
Today's message
was in part prompted by a
recent entry in the "Our
Daily Bread' titled "Son
Followers"
Finally today:
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Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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