“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. “ Isaiah 53:5

For me, one sure sign of spring are the daffodils in my yard that burst forth each year from the dormant earth and open their petals like little faces lifted to the sun.  I anticipate their arrival and wonder at their simple beauty.  I found the daffodil pictured above while still in bud, laying flat on the ground. A victim of a neighborhood dog I suspect. As Paul Harvey used to say “Now, for the rest of the story”….  I couldn’t just leave it there, so I cut its stem and lifted it from its makeshift grave.  On closer inspection I realized that in the process of being beaten down and crushed, a pine needle had pierced the tender blossom.  I didn’t have much hope for the bruised and punctured bud to bloom but I removed the needle, took the limp flower in and put it in a vase of water anyway.  Much to my surprise, a few short hours later what was once a seemingly lifeless bud had lifted its head and spread its petals to become the flower you see in the picture, the flower it was meant to be.  It may seem silly but it brought me such a sense of joy to see what was once left for dead to now be full of life and beauty!  As I admired that daffodil, I noticed the holes in the delicate petals left behind by the piercing it had endured, and for a moment I just stood there, breathless….staring……it was as if the blinds in my heart and mind had been lifted and the “Son” was brightly shining in.  I had no idea that when I bent down to pick up a fallen daffodil, my sign of spring and renewal, it would so vividly remind me that Jesus was beaten, bruised, and pierced.  He was then put in a makeshift grave left for dead. Just a few short days later He lifted his head, walked out of the tomb, and spread His arms to show the holes in His nail pierced hands. Jesus, risen and full of life and beauty had endured the unthinkable for one reason and one reason only, so that you and I can be renewed and become the people we were meant to be.  The miracle of Easter shown to me through a daffodil.  Hallelujah!  And now you know the rest of the story……..

Pierced

Put on a cross

Innocence ignored

Endured torture and pain

Ridiculed

Cursed

Encumbered by my sin

Died so that I may live