SUNFLOWERS are some of the tallest flowers found. They can reach as high as twelve feet into the air, dwarfing all other plants in our garden.
We cannot help but notice the sunflower, even from a great distance. It has pop and color, and its iconic shape is unmistakable against other plants.
That is our God, standing head and shoulders above all others, and visible even from far away. His every action pops with vibrancy, and when we wish to find him, he stands out in the crowd. He is the SUNFLOWER that we cannot miss.
Let’s look at our SUNFLOWER God:
S – He makes us as the STARS in the heavens.
Deuteronomy 1:10 falls in the midst of Moses’ declaration of the Law, before the children of Israel entered the Promised Land. He stresses God’s goodness to them, for they have become as numerous as the STARS in the heavens.
People will notice our blessings when we trust in the Lord.
U – He UPHOLDS his righteousness before all creation.
Hebrews 1:3 speaks of Jesus’ exalted position, for he sits at the right hand of the Father. All things are UPHELD by the Word of his power.
There is no thing that will be abased if God chooses to lift it up.
N – He NOURISHES us when we are in times of drought.
Genesis 50:21 relates the deeds of the archetypal Christ in the man of Joseph. He tells his destitute brothers that he will NOURISH them, lifting them up to a position of note in the fertile kingdom of Egypt.
When we face desolation, we can trust in our Lord to lift us higher than we have ever reached before.
F – His FACE shines on us with his peace and love.
Numbers 6:25 reflects God’s instructions to Moses, where God promises to make his FACE shine on his people, bringing them the promises of his blessings.
God is always above us, towering high, and nothing can block his love from reaching unto us.
L – He is our LODGING place when we can see no other future.
Philemon 1:22 reveals Paul’s desperate plea to a friend. He wishes for a LODGING place to be made ready for when he is released from his Roman chains.
We are not chained by Rome but by sin. Jesus is our place of peace as we are battered by the trials of life.
O – He OPENS his hand, and all good things come unto us.
Psalm 104:28 speaks of the all-encompassing power of our heavenly Father. If he chooses to do so little as OPEN his hand, we are filled with more good things than our hearts can contain.
Jesus has no end to his storehouses. We may be in lack, but he has the resources to supply all we need and even more besides.
W – He WATERS the earth that it might provide for his creation.
Isaiah 55:10 shows the cycle of God’s care for us in the rains that do not return to him, but instead WATER the ground for our sake.
Sometimes God doesn’t want anything in return for his blessings. He simply wants to offer us the joys of being his children.
E – He sets us over all EGYPT.
Genesis 41:41 rings with the words of Pharaoh unto Joseph. “See, I have set thee over all the land of EGYPT.”
For 20 years, EGYPT seemed to be Joseph’s stumbling block, but God turned it into a footstool underneath his feet.
R – He RESTORES us to greatness so that we can shine for him.
Isaiah 58:12 speaks to a broken people, and he says that from the foundations of many generations, he will RESTORE us to the heights of our most magnificent glories.
It does not matter how badly battered we are; when God steps in, we will be as the sunflower, and we will rise head and shoulders above all our problems.
We are sometimes blinded to the greatness of our God, and all we can see are the troubles that cloud the sky. Even so, God is the SUNFLOWER that catches our eye, and when we reach for him, all the shadows of the night will fall away, and we will stand above the darkness.
When we look around us and can’t find God, look up! That’s where he’s been all along.
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Code: FGO.G.07.14b.vp