A lesson from an iris - adversity

Ahhhhh, spring!
The time when flowers pop out and cheer us with their vibrant colors after the dreary, colorless winter. (Unless you count white....if you had snow!)
Sparkling yellows, pinks, and reds amidst the not-yet-awake grasses and mulch.
And purple.
My favorite irises are the deep, dark, purples. (Grin)
The ones you see in the photo above are a real inspiration to me.
Why?
Well, in addition to the fact that they come back year after year like clockwork (but that IS the definition of a perennial plant, no?) . . .
I digress.
These particular irises are growing and blooming in some of the poorest soil I've ever seen. I really think it is devoid of ANY nutrients.
The roots of these flowers straddle the gargantuan roots of a poplar tree.
In fact, they were crushed when one half of that poplar tree was cut down to remove a diseased portion.
They came back.
They're still blooming.
In fact, I could swear that they are more vibrantly colored, with stronger stems and leaves!

Are the plants more hardy because of the calamities they've been through? Are the blooms more lovely because of the hardships?
I don't know if we can say that, but these irises made me remember that some of the most beautiful Christians I've ever known have been those vibrant souls who have overcome adversity.
I enjoy reading the works of Oswald Chambers. His wife compiled his words from her careful notes taken while he was alive. Here is his "take" on adversity:

                 The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being
                 delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being
                 delivered IN adversity, which is something very different.
                 "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall
                 abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall
                 you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling.... (Psalm
                 91:1, 10) -- the place where you are at one with God.
                 If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter
                 adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when
                 they come. "In the world, you will have tribulation, but be of
                 good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
                 Jesus does not give us overcoming life; He gives us life as
                 we overcome.

James gave us a surprising response for troubles -- he said to "count it all joy" when we were faced with trials. (James 1:2-4)  Paul thought along the same lines:

 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3-5)

Both of these apostles understood that in the light of what Jesus did for us by providing our salvation, the difficulties we experience in this life take on a whole new meaning. For a believer, adversity has a totally different meaning than it does for an unbeliever.  We look at it from a whole different angle. The difficulties of this life are channels -- means through which God works to accomplish His will in our lives; He shapes us so that we reflect the character of Christ.
As believers, we can look at adversity and recognize (and appreciate) God's purposes. That's what the next few posts will be about. I'd like for us to think about adversity -- the why and the wherefore -- and hopefully it will be helpful to us in each of our lives.

Hope you will join me!