BYM ONLINE DESK May 2018 English Emagazine | Page 13

May 2018
Flowers Without Fragrance
R
O F I N T E G
My steps were quick and my face was burning
hot with indignation. This was not the first time and I
don't think it will be the last either. They have ragged
me again. I'd controlled my tears. You could never
see me blushing for I am dark. Pitch dark! Probably
God created me in the night!
Oh, why! Why did He create me like this? I'd
tried every fairness treatment that suited my budget.
But, I could hardly change a shade on my skin!
Doesn't God love me? Doesn't He care about the
words they hurl at me? With tears streaming in my
eyes, I sobbed myself to sleep.
I was walking through a garden. How pretty
were the flowers there! Roses, lilies,
chrysanthemums, daisies… There were rows and
rows of flowers. The garden was filled with their
fragrance.
There were also trees and plants bearing fruits
and vegetables.
As I walked past them, I could see flowers on
them too. But these flowers did not have a rich
fragrance. What a contrast! No one would like to
adorn their houses with them. My heart went out for
these flowers. As I was mulling over it, my eyes
caught sight of a plantain tree in the garden. The
flower at the end of the bunch pulled my heartstrings.
It very much resembled me. Absolutely no beauty.
No fragrance. What a shape it had!
As I was gazing at this plantain flower, the
gardener came in with his master's daughter. She
looked beautiful. I presumed that he will pluck one of
his sweet smelling flowers for her. But, he walked
past them and reached out for the plantain flower!
Could it be a mistake? While he was handing it over
to her, he said, “This is rich in iron. It will help you
fight your anemia.” The girl thanked the gardener
and went.
The sound of the alarm woke me to reality. As I
rehearsed the dream, I realized that “I am fearfully
and wonderfully made” (Ps 139:14) and “He has
made everything beautiful in its time.” (Ecc 3:11).
Ye s , G o d h a s i n d e e d c r e a t e d m e
“wonderfully”. I am “beautiful” too. Oh, what a joy!
“My beloved is mine, and I am his” (SS 2:16). How
foolish of me to wonder whether He loves me and
cares for me! If He had not loved me, He wouldn't
have sent His one and only Son to die on the Cross to
pay for my sins. I have forgotten what the Apostle
Peter wrote in his first epistle, “casting all your
anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (5:7).
How self-centred have I been!
Like that plantain flower, I will identify the
purpose for which God has created me and bring
glory to His Name. I will not count what I do not have
but rather focus on what the Lord has blessed me
with.
I am blessed and I will be a blessing to people
in ways the Lord has designed me to be. I will use my
talents for the Kingdom's cause. Be it singing His
Glory, sharing the Gospel to a stranger, comforting
others, sharing my belongings, praying in the closet
for the lost. Whatever it be, I will do it for His Glory.
- G. JerishaMelbin, Missionary, Chennai
*2018*
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