Sunflower in the Smoke--When the World is Burning Up

 For days, perhaps weeks now, the atmosphere has been filled with smoke from the many fires out west. We have rarely been able to see Pikes Peak for weeks now.

What must it be like a thousand miles away in burning California and Oregon if our own blue Colorado sky is gray with smoke? Here is what the sun looked like a week or two ago when we went for a walk down the road.

Our sunflowers, however, don't seem to be worrying about the smoke. They are blooming more profusely than ever this year. They know a secret they would like to pass on to those who are seeing only smoke, clouds, and dreariness. 

 

The sun is still shining! They sense it through the clouds. They follow it through the smoke. They bloom on even when the sky is gray.  

The world is burning up. The Taliban has just taken over Tabul. Biden has gone on vacation while thousands of Americans and Afghanis are fearing for their lives because of his decisions. Haiti is reeling from another earthquake.

But behind the clouds, the Son is still shining. You can sense Him watching over His people. You can follow His ways through reading His Word. You can know that if evil prospers, it will only be for a time, and then comes the judgment. God's people will abide with Him for ever.

They will bloom on in the smoke when the world is burning up, shining "brighter and brighter unto the perfect day."