READ: John 3:16
Last year Martha Skelley gave Virginia a blue iris that she planted outside our breakfast window. On Easter Sunday it bloomed. The first bloom lasted from Easter until Thursday. Then a second and third bloom came. Every time Virginia looks at the iris, she says, “Martha Skelley gave us this iris.” Today, I woke up to see a Mahogany Iris blooming out the window. This beautiful iris with dark red petals and a yellow center was my Mama’s favorite iris. When I saw this Mahogany iris this morning, it made me think of my childhood home and Mama and Daddy. What do you have in your life that when you see it the sight immediately brings to mind a memory of someone you love? God wants us to remember Jesus, His Son, so He gave us the cross, a reminder that God loves you so much that He died to bring you near to Him. The cross is a reminder that Christ died for you to save you from having to die for your own sins. The cross is a reminder that Christ conquered death and now lives and has created a pathway into the presence of the Father, and that He will come and take us there. Every time you see a cross today, stop, pause, remember that because Jesus died on that cross for you, you can live forgiven, free, pardoned , and forever.
Last year Martha Skelley gave Virginia a blue iris that she planted outside our breakfast window. On Easter Sunday it bloomed. The first bloom lasted from Easter until Thursday. Then a second and third bloom came. Every time Virginia looks at the iris, she says, “Martha Skelley gave us this iris.” Today, I woke up to see a Mahogany Iris blooming out the window. This beautiful iris with dark red petals and a yellow center was my Mama’s favorite iris. When I saw this Mahogany iris this morning, it made me think of my childhood home and Mama and Daddy. What do you have in your life that when you see it the sight immediately brings to mind a memory of someone you love? God wants us to remember Jesus, His Son, so He gave us the cross, a reminder that God loves you so much that He died to bring you near to Him. The cross is a reminder that Christ died for you to save you from having to die for your own sins. The cross is a reminder that Christ conquered death and now lives and has created a pathway into the presence of the Father, and that He will come and take us there. Every time you see a cross today, stop, pause, remember that because Jesus died on that cross for you, you can live forgiven, free, pardoned , and forever.
– Dr. Tim Thompson