Following the Source

I hug the same curve of the interstate every weekday morning on my way to drop my kids off at school. The car is usually quiet, and the sun rises in front of me until the road turns south. As I move with the slowing traffic, the morning light shifts to the right side of my van, and it’s at this point that I notice them.

Sunflowers.

They line the edges of the highway, tall and skinny but also sturdy and durable. Their height withstands wind and rain—a daily presence in my recurrent drive.

Sunflowers—if you’re ready for a quick botany lesson—are heliotropic flowers, which means they find the sun and then literally turn to face it, following as it moves across the sky. By the afternoon, when I make the same drive, they’ve shifted and turned, constantly locating the position of their life source.

In Psalm 119:36-37, the psalmist writes about his delight in God’s Word: “Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain! Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.”

The psalmist understands the vitality of God’s Word and the fact that He deserves all our attention. His words throughout Psalm 119 serve as a reminder to let the Word dwell in us richly, teaching and admonishing us continually, as we go about our daily lives.

The sunflowers know just where to look. They find the sun and their gaze remains steadied on it, only moving to follow its unchanging course.

We would do well to follow their example.