"We shall not sleep, though poppies grow....In Flanders fields." That is the end of the short poem by John McCrae....that became so popular during World War I. I remember having to read it in high school. The meaning....concerning the poppies....is that even the drowsiness brought on by the flowers would not let the buried dead sleep without remembrance. In The Wizard of Oz....the Wicked Witch forces Dorothy to pass through a poppy field....to put her to sleep.
I've posted on this topic a number of times....days just like today....in this case....the birds are singing....the daffodils are in bloom....the trees are starting to sprout their leaves....and the temperature is a pleasant seventy-eight degrees here in Western Pennsylvania.As beautiful as this is....and as calming....and as enjoyable after weeks of a cold spring....it is every bit a war zone as was the time and place that In Flanders Fields was written. The war here is against the Christian....to put him or her to sleep....just as Samson slept in Delilah's lap.
I love a day like this....as much as most anyone else....but it is a minefield if we let it take our minds and hopes off of our Savior and coming king Jesus Christ. The world today does not give us the luxury of anything but short respites....and restful times to refresh....before we begin again the march toward the Celestial City.
That is....if we are indeed soldiers of Christ. Something that Spurgeon said in one of his sermons....that I only recently heard....sticks in my mind. He addressed those in his congregation....who were genuine believers....in that as much as Spurgeon would preach on the glories of Christ....they could not yet see the same glory....or at least the glory in the same way. Spurgeon did not want his preaching to be a burden on their back. He told them not to condemn themselves if they could not rejoice in the gospel as they should....but then he said this....that though they should not condemn themselves....they should feel sorry for themselves.
It was such a short statement....but with so much meaning. No....the Christian is not to beat themselves up because they cannot use words such as....'precious'....with Christ....but that state of drowsiness....is not something that we should be satisfied with....for it does not bring glory to God....it is not even in the battle....and therefore....we should as Spurgeon said....feel sorry for ourselves.
So enjoy this wonderful creation that God has made out of nothing! Gaze at the flowers in amazement....and listen with appreciation to the concert of the songbirds. Bask in the warmth of the sun....and admire the beautiful vista as it sets....but even the many pleasures that we have at times in this life....pale in all of those areas to living eternally in the glorious light of Jesus Christ....but to get their is warfare.
Everything that you see around you that is not beautiful....the violence and the hate and the death and the tears and the pain.....comes to us from the enemy in this warfare. His weapons come in many shapes....and putting us to sleep is but one of them.
