By Judy Taylor
I recently came across this photo of a little pansy which had somehow managed to push its way through a seemingly impossible place, you could say between a rock and a hard place. How did it get there I wonder? Was it a tiny seed brought by the wind or maybe dropped by a bird? A little seed like this would not be expected to flower, to flourish in such a hostile place and yet, against all the odds here it is, brave and beautiful, a glorious splash of colour against the greyness and hardness of the rocks surrounding it. In order for it to grow it would have needed a little earth and water. There must have been just enough soil between the cracks of the rock to enable the seed to grow and the rain would have trickled down between the cracks to encourage it to flourish. Its journey up through the tiny crack would have been a struggle but just enough light would have encouraged this little flower to keep going until it reached the light, the third element needed to grow, (earth, water and light).
How often do we feel that we are ‘between a rock and a hard place’? When it seems that whatever choice we make will not bring about the solution we want. It may be that decisions we have taken have brought us to this place or it may be situations beyond our control.
In the bible, there are many stories of people who must have felt like this, among them, Joseph, sold into slavery by his brothers, who was a victim of betrayal and must have felt helpless and hopeless at times. Daniel faced captivity in Babylon, threats from jealous rivals and the lion’s den. Paul, who endured numerous hardships including beatings, imprisonment, shipwrecks and eventually martyrdom. And then our dear Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane desperately praying that the horror of what was to come could be avoided. Real people with real feelings. In spite of everything however, they all held on to what gave them life, their love of God. Somehow they dug deep, found that little piece of soil to anchor themselves to and with perseverance they came through into the light, against all the odds.
We cannot all be heroes such as these but we can, when things seem impossible, reach into what grounds us, our love of God and his for us. If we can let his love wash over us which may be through others we will find the strength however tenuous to start that journey into the light. Think of the little pansy again – this little flower is somehow declaring that it has arrived! The beauty of its colour, its very being there is a testament to perseverance and the miracle of life itself.
God is with us, God will always be with us especially in the tough times. If we think of the little pansy, we can perhaps find the soil (God) to encourage us and strengthen us, the rain to help us to believe and have courage (which may be the support of others) and with these we can start our journey towards the light knowing that we have come through. We can bathe in the warmth of that wonderful light allowing it to warm us and dispel our weariness. And we can rest too until we, with God’s love are able to embrace life once again knowing that our strength comes from God and He will see us through wherever the path of our life takes us.
Psalms 18:1-3. I love you, LORD; you are my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my saviour; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.