Prairie Grass or Fairy Grass? -Thayerapy Gardens
For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall… ” 1 Peter 1:24
“Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” John 12:24
I have a prairie garden in my backyard. I suppose to the casual passer-by it might look like so many weeds the way the wildflowers and prairie grasses crowd one another in such an undisciplined manner. And indeed, there are weeds that find their own way in this spot of wild creation, often insisting on having more space for themselves than perhaps would be warranted by a better gardener. But still, I like the look of an untamed prairie garden. New flowers that I never planted spring up on their own to reflect the sunshine in my day.
The bible says we are like grass and the flowers of the field. They grow and then wither. Their flowers fall to the ground. I suppose you might think this a morbid thought. But really, it is just the opposite. The frailty of our lives lends scope and purpose to the way we live. Imagine if we lived our lives on earth as if they will never change, never end. We would quite wastefully flit around from this passing thing to that, and never amount to anything of value. We’d miss the beauty that surrounds us in search for something of greater grandeur. Instead, we can choose to be mindful of the season we have before us and live that well, bearing some resemblance to the one who created us and lending shelter to those little ones who seek relief from the storm.
The fact that we, like grass, live for a season and then die speaks not only to the focus of our very day but also to the lives that follow. Unless a single grain of wheat dies and falls to the ground, it remains just one seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Called to ‘die to self,’ our testimony of faithfulness and goodness likewise produces many other seeds, bringing new life to follow our own. We don’t do this of our own power of course, but in the name and power of a Master Gardener, the creator of life itself, and the one who specializes in the regeneration of life.
Rejoice in being like grass. Live a fruitful life!
