GOD'S ROSE OF SHARON

I am the rose of Sharon, And the lily of the valleys. Song of Songs 2:1 (NKJV)

God’s Rose of Sharon:
The Prayer of the Healed

And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, [it was] very good. Genesis 1:31 (NKJV)

Do you know of someone who has just received some devastating news? An unexpected hardship, an ominous diagnoses or the grim report of a terminal illness? These situations occur each day to a countless number of people and no one is immune from them. Yet although life seems to be very chaotic or unfair at times it always remains beautiful. From the very beginning of creation itself everything was created in perfect order.

You are not only part of that order or perfection, you are it because you are the very reflection of God. What God saw was very good!

The cards I have designed, God’s Rose of Sharon, addresses these specific events in our lives best described as the valley experiences. Through hope and inspiration the simple message contained in each card is a reminder of the ultimate truth of all healing. The ultimate truth of your own existence.

This portrait is symbolic of both the roses and thorns that define living and it speaks to the beauty of the expected and unexpected things of life. You are life, or the being that animates the human form. That one life that you are or what has been referred to as the breath of God, is eternal. The expression, “death where is thy sting” can only be fully understood in light of your own immortality.

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 1 Corinthians 15: 55 (NKJV)

When you can see and accept the fleeting nature of all concepts and forms then that peace of God will enter into your life. To face death in this way frees you from your earth bound or human experience. You are then able to transcend living and awaken to the miracle you truly are. When death is feared or denied by not facing it daily, life loses its depth. The grave claims its false victory.

Forgiveness: The way of Miracle’s, the way of love

Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do. Luke 23:34 (NKJV)

What is a miracle? A miracle can be defined as an act or the intervention of God in an unexplained healing or a marvelous event that appears to be contrary to the laws of nature. But when you define miracles in that way it would seem that miracles only happen for certain people and others are left with the consolation prize of “God must have been a reason” referring to way your miracle didn’t work out for you.

Why do miracles appear random at best or could there be another definition of a miracle that speaks to the heart of all healing? I believe there is a greater meaning and it is found hidden in the power and sheer force of forgiveness. This powerful misunderstood word of fore-giveness can better be interpreted as the giving forth to oneself. This is the key to forgiveness.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Psalms 23:4 (NKJV)

If most of us were honest we would admit that we only pray or seek out a miracle only during valley experiences of our lives. We do this because when things are going good we figure there’s no need for the miracle. Yet it takes only a slight shift in our perspective to see that miracles are every moment occurrences. The reason that is true is because the being that inhabits your human form is the very essence of life and is timeless in its nature. This is life’s great open secret…you are the love and the miracle that you seek.

The love you seek is you. This is a powerful truth. Our needs, wants, and desires are always for who we really are but the paradox is as long as we are yearning and longing for something to find or add to ourselves, we are betraying the truth that we already are. We need to look at the truth of what it is we are really trying to seek. It is always ourselves that we want most. We simply forget who we are and we are not separate from life.

Jesus emphasized non-resistance to evil or turning the other cheek. This teaching is the highest and purest love and cannot fail when it is understood by the heart. So the word that brings forth all miracles begins with forgiveness. This word is so simple that we keep missing it and have heard it many times. And we still have not grasped its potent healing force. The action of this force is a ‘giving forth’ to yourself the space needed when feeling self-conscious, self-defensive, fearful, contracted or small image of ourselves. This is the prayer of the healed.

God is Love, God is Forgiveness

"People travel to marvel at the mountains, seas, rivers and stars; and they pass right by themselves without astonishment." - Saint Augustine

God is love. To know God is to forgive. The secret to true love is not being loved by another. It is not loving another either. It is seeing the love in you despite the circumstances and emotional feelings of lack and self-pity. It is this seeing and knowing which transcend belief, which is self-forgiveness. When you start seeing your own need for love, you will start ‘forgiving’ yourself and that’s the road to enlightened fulfilled living.

Love is so vast, so all encompassing that it has no beginning or end point. Love can’t be defined or located in one certain area of our lives. Love “IS” period!

I am the rose of Sharon, And the lily of the valleys. Song of Songs 2:1 (NKJV)

God’s Rose of Sharon message is one of forgiveness peace and love. Love dictates that I give of myself through my art and my words so that you might receive healing through them. I love you because I am beginning to love and understand that timeless truth about myself.

So the compassion I feel is born of the mercy and grace that has been extended to me all my life through my endless searching and it is only through that one truth, which is our oneness with God, that I realized we are the miracle we seek and through forgiveness our healing is complete.

Walk in love, as Christ has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. Ephesians 5:2 (NKJV)

Our very lives is the fragrance of the rose that God calls a sweet savior that is pleasing to Him. I’ll end with a quote from our God’s Rose of Sharon card. I hope it will bless you each time you think and pray about it.

“Life is perfect. Fear will whisper that prayers are not always answered. Yet love demands that all prayers are answered perfectly because God is love. To find the “peace that surpasses all understanding” your endless seeking and countless spiritual journeys’ must end here. Wanting is the source of all misery and suffering. The divine, which you are, lacks no-thing. You are completely whole. Any sense of separation from God is the great deception that leads you to believe you need a miracle. In reality, you are the miracle that you seek.”

James Robert Kessler
Because of Him Art Ministry 2011