We Have a Choice
Our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group was arranging flowers as a craft, and I was so excited. I love flowers and was eager to learn some tips on how to better arrange them. I was not disappointed. The young mother who shared her gift with us did a fantastic job leading us through the process of trimming and arranging the stems. The finished products were amazing!
Throughout the morning, I was captivated by the individual flowers we were arranging, marveling at the unique beauty of each bloom and how well they all complemented each other when skillfully arranged. For me, the intricate design and wide variety of flowers are compelling evidence of a master Creator.
Personally, I have never had a favorite flower. How could I choose between a happy tulip and a regal rose? Or a cheery sunflower and an elegant hydrangea? Flowers seem to have been distinctly created to communicate different things. This is illustrated in one of my favorite books, The Language of Flowers. A story about a young woman who grew up in the foster care system and, after her emancipation, discovers she has a gift. Working for a florist, she helps her customers effectively communicate their sentiments by arranging the perfect blend of flowers for each one.
In the same way, because we are all created in God’s image, we are distinctly created for divine purposes. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10 ESV).
Although we each have a unique individual purpose, like flowers, we can be masterfully arranged with other believers within the church to amplify the glory of God. But God’s glory can also be stifled. One way this can happen is when we fall prey to the comparison trap.
Flowers glorify the Creator by being exactly what he created them to be. A rose would wilt under the pressure of trying to produce a gardenia’s sweet fragrance. Similarly, we glorify God most when we are content with the way he made us, not looking at others, wishing for more, but living out our own unique purpose allowing our own gifts to blossom.
As the wife of a college football coach, I love this quote by college professor Christina Bieber Lake in her book, The Flourishing Teacher:
When I started teaching at Wheaton, there were a few very strong teachers who all the students practically worshiped. The Legends. I’m sure you have a few of them at your school too. I thank the Lord that I learned early on that if I tried to imitate them, I would become a miserable, second-rate version of myself. God gave them the gifting to be the quarterbacks with the dazzling plays. God gifted me, instead, to be the middle linebacker who inspires the team to fight.
Lake goes on to say:
I have a choice. I can rot with envy that I am not the star quarterback, or I can perfect my game and remember that my contribution is important… As with spiritual gifts, so is it with our vocations. We are only responsible for being faithful in exercising the particular gifts that God has given each one of us. (emphasis mine)
We have a choice.
When tempted to compare ourselves to others, we can choose to think about flowers and the way God made them each uniquely beautiful: “Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these” (Luke 12:27 ESV).
When tempted to compare our circumstances, we can choose to examine the life of Joseph. Clinging to God’s purpose for him, he chose to bloom as a servant in Potiphar’s house and even in prison. Joseph never lost sight of his calling as a leader, manifested by his childhood dreams.
John Calvin described creation as a “large and splendid mansion gorgeously constructed and exquisitely furnished,” and everything in it points to the builder.
Every created thing points to the Master Builder. Every single thing. That includes you and me.
As author Ann Swindoll writes, “And so the choice is before us as to whether we will let the lies of comparison keep us in anxiety and fear — or whether we will look to the Lord for our purposes to be fulfilled and for our identity to be secure in Him.”
We have a choice. Simply put, we can choose not to play the comparison game, but instead, to glorify our Creator by living lives of contentment and striving only to be the best version of ourselves.
and her husband of thirty-three years live in Gainesville, FL. They have moved a dozen times, raising three children along the way. They have added a son-in-law, daughter-in-law, and two precious grandsons to the mix. When she is not packing or unpacking, Ann enjoys serving as a mentor mom for MOPS International, joining Bible studies, meeting friends for coffee, taking long walks, and watching lots of football. Ann is passionate about using lessons from her journey to help other women navigate change in their own lives.
Photograph © Zoe Schaeffer, used with permission
