| Dormancy - a state of quiet (but possibly temporary) inaction; "the volcano erupted after centuries of dormancy", the state of being inactive for a season. I absolutely LOVE tulips and it is amazing to see what they come from. Have you ever seen their bulbs? They are dry, brown, rough and just plain ugly and the process reminds me of the hard shelled chrysalis of a butterfly. In time and in the proper conditions and season, a beautiful flower will emerge. Fortunately though bulbs in their dormant stage are tough and are actually called storehouses, but still they must be handled properly for them to mature and flower as they should. Tulip bulbs are just stored potential and are so very attune to the environment around them. Bulbs have to have a certain amount of cold weather to trigger a bio-chemical process that causes them to bloom. If the weather is unusually warm too soon then the flower may bloom too soon and if it is cold too long then they will not flower until much later. It is so amazing that something so small and insignificant in our own eyes has been made with such ingenuity. In the word there is a scripture that is one of my favorites: |
26 Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds. 27 "Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? 28 All this time and money wasted on fashion - do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, 29 but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. 30 "If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers - most of which are never even seen - don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? 31 What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. 32People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. 33 Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. 34 "Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes." Matthew 6:26-34
There are a few lessons here to be learned. First, Like a tulip we cannot look at someone or a situation and think we know what is going on, because there is a dormancy period that we all go through before we bloom and you don't know if they are about to sprout! God is working on all of us and we are all in different seasons of growing and in changing environments. Secondly, Don't get upset at time factors because you want to be flowering and thriving at just the right time in your life. That time frame may not be what we understand or want but we have to trust the one that made us. We have so many factors that can hinder us or enhance us and we want to be in tune to what God's timing is. If we get too anxious we might bloom too soon and not last because the cold season isn't over. Thirdly, like a beautiful tulip we may be gorgeous and colorful and find the next day we are ugly and rough due to our circumstances...just know that you need to embrace the dormancy stage of your life. Tulips are just flowering for a few weeks and then go right back to a rest stage to store up energy. There are times to be quiet and still and to not be in the forefront..that is when we are working on the next phase of our lives and for the next step God is going to lead us to.
Flowers are wonderful creations I believe were made for us to enjoy so don't forget that you were also created to be enjoyed by the CREATOR....the one that thinks you are GORGEOUS no matter what stage of life you are in.
Adjust that Crown!
Jonna
