Won't you let Him?

When I wrote the first devotional on dandelions I never imagined that God would wrap so many lessons up in this little weed.  That's me putting Him in a box, I'm sure I could never look at another flower in my life and He could show me something new about Him through this bright flower every day until I die.  But we do that don't we, put Him in a box?  We forget that He is so amazing and try to limit Him.

Or maybe you just limit His use of you....  Perhaps you feel to unworthy for Him to use you.  Or you just can't picture how He could.  After all, you have done ___________(fill in the blank with your own hidden act) in the past and if anyone knew, they wouldn't listen to you about how God has changed you.  Or this morning RIGHT after you finished your Bible study and your cup of coffee you yelled at your kids, or said some not nice things about the guy in the car in front of you that cut you off, or you thought some unkind words about a co-worker.  How could He use you if you can't even manage to keep it together for an hour, much less a day?

Here is the thing, God can make ALL things beautiful.  My daughter and I have been observing a dandelion in my yard for about two weeks now.  The bright, colorful yellow flower only lasts a few days, it is short lived.  Reminds me of our life here on earth, it doesn't last long in the grand scheme of things.  After those first two days the flower closed up and we have marched outside to stare are closed flowers on top of some jagged leaves for days and days now.  Ever looked at one?  It's not a beautiful picture.

Kind of like our past.  We may have had a few bright moments where we thought we were beautiful creatures, but we all have sin in our lives.  We all have more moments where we look like the picture above.  But then we meet Jesus and hidden in that flower bud He works the transformation that I spoke about on Tuesday.  And then something amazing happens...

Hidden within that bud are up to 100+ seeds.  Watching them bloom is a beautiful sight.  And each seed can be lifted by the wind and carried to start a whole new plant.  God wants us to be like that.  He has equipped us to impact the world around us, to spread His love to the world. But first we have to open up our tightly packed, protective bud.  We have to share the transformation.

It's so tempting to keep it all in.  After all, it is a personal relationship, isn't it?  When we are going through our transformation, when we allow God to work in us and change us from the person we were in the world to the new person He is creating us to be, we don't really stand out.  We can still kind of blend in to the world.  You may not actually be like the rest of the field, but you are still green so you aren't obviously different.  To open up and let the transformation show will definitely make you look different.  But.....

Have you ever observed an uninterrupted field over a season?  You might see one or two dandelions to begin with, but before long you see more...and more......and more dandelions.  They spread quickly.  The seeds easily take root in any soil.  And the message that God has placed in you, the unique way you can reflect Him in this world, can spread like that too....if you let it.  Won't you open up and let it?