The Vine

At that time, I was staying in Iran for a Japanese company's oil project. I was a Christian

already, but I felt that I encountered Jesus Christ deeply there in Iran. This encounter with Christ Jesus changed my life completely. I stayed in Iran for three years for work, and for me, this experience was a gift from God. I have a lot of testimonies of being touched by the love of living God. So let me share one of them with you.

I was working with many local workers at a construction site. One day, one of the local

workers brought some flowers to the office and put them in a vase. Those flowers looked strange and ugly. They had big petals which were vivid primary colors such as blue, yellow, and red. But they were not like tropical flowers. It is hard to explain how strange they were, but the flowers appeared very funny and even artificial to me.

To tell the truth, I thought that some of the local workers had done some naughty things on

the flowers, such as to paint the petals with some spray stuff. Anyway, I did not appreciate them at all.

After some time, I took a walk in the wilderness alone, because our working and living place

were surrounded by the wilderness. Then, I found the same kind of flowers which local workers brought to the office. When I saw the same flowers in the office, I did not find them beautiful. But when I saw them in the wilderness, they looked so beautiful and shining. Those flowers adorned the wilderness. I saw that the flowers and the land was in harmony with God's love.

The wilderness is a desolate and deserted place. God dresses such desolate places with

those primary colored flowers. And those flowers exist willingly to make desolate wilderness radiant. Even though no one see them, they exist as the joy of God.

When I saw that a small flower existed for a purpose, I realized the beauty of its existence,

the beauty of life. Surely, I saw the love of Jesus Christ within those flowers.

The Lord Jesus was always happy to make others shine by His own life. By giving His life to

others, Jesus wanted to make their most beautiful selves. And finally, Jesus laid down His life on the Cross. Jesus Christ lived for just one purpose. That is for everyone to have eternal life.

I was moved by the flower in the wilderness so much. I encountered the love of Jesus Christ

in a place where there was no Christianity or church. For the first time, I found out that one small flower heals others. I believe that each existence is full of praises to God.

So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil or spin: And yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (Matthew 6:28,29 NKJV)

Right after I was attracted by the flowers on the wilderness, suddenly a melody came out of me. That was my praise to God. As a little flower is beautiful in God's sight, my existence is also beautiful with my praises to God. I made a song from the melody. It was "A wild flower in the wilderness."

This song is my starting point to realize the love of Jesus Christ. I came to see the life of

Later I was again deeply touched by the verse, "A Tax Collector's Prayer." (Luke 18:10-14)

Finally I made up my mind to work for Jesus Christ. In order to be a worker for Christ, I

"Lord, I have encountered You with your love deeply. You showed me the beauty of

existence through the flowers in the wilderness, and You taught me how merciful you are through the tax collector's prayer. I want to convey Your tender mercy to the whole world. A whole world needs mercy. So please let me be a worker for you."

God did not say anything, He did not say yes or no, but as an answer for my prayer, God

I know that I am nothing before God. I am not worthy, but I stand before God with my heart