"Flowers" Aren't Enough?

 “You know the perfect storm? Not when you fail, but when you succeed and you finally get your perfect life, with you at the center. It’s the poison of your kingdom coming, 

and your will being done.”  Ray Ortlund

 
At the 2024 GRAMMYs, Miley Cyrus’s hit, Flowers, took home two awards for Best Pop Solo Performance and Record Of The Year. Following her first win
, she performed her song featuring the unforgettable ad lib, “I started to cry and then I remembered I just won my first GRAMMY!”

  Flowers is one of the top songs of the year. It has a catchy tune and unlike too many popular songs isn’t laced with profanity. The song is focused on self-empowerment. Many fans believe it’s aimed at Cyrus’s ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth. In the song she nods to her prior relationship with near Taylor Swift levels of easter eggs. It’s a song of independence and a freedom of need from anyone else. As the chorus states:

 

I can buy myself flowers

Write my name in the sand

Talk to myself for hours, yeah

Say things you don't understand

I can take myself dancing,

I can hold my own hand

Yeah, I can love me better than you can.

 
  It appeals to a culture where the greatest achievement is self-sufficiency. Yet, despite her popular song that hasn’t worked out very well for Cyrus with her much publicized bouts of depression, drug use and alcoholism.  
  Like other stars who seem to have it all, I fear for her. The failure of the myth of independence, self-sufficiency, fortune, sexscapades, fame is all around us. The list of celebrities who struggle with addiction, depression, and relationship stability is legion. Though just thirty-one Cyrus is already known for having a dozen different romantic relationships. Based on her past record, it is highly doubtful that independence, self-sufficiency, or empowerment will be in her future. But what about us?
  God designed us for Himself and a relationship with Him. The only thing that will ultimately fill that hole in our soul is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He is there to help ease human loneliness. Yet, God also designed us for relationships and community. Sometimes Christians foolishly suggest that Jesus should be enough, but that never was God’s plan. Remember that the only thing declared “not good” in the Creation was man alone. Jesus encouraged us to meet with each other to find Him: “When two or more gather in my name, I will be there” (Matthew 18:20).
  As we read Scripture, we see a myth attacked that even many Christians hold – marriage and family is enough. Yet, the message of the Bible is about finding connection to Jesus and a believing community, along with one’s biological family. Family is not enough. The message of Scripture is of loving our neighbor and lifting up our brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s a message of timeless truth that a lonely culture desperately needs to hear. 
  In our hunger for relationships American Christians are waking up to a need to move away from the attractional church model or a consumer driven one. People are starving for meaningful relationships. It’s not about “what’s in it for me,” it’s about glorifying Him and loving each other. Thinking too much about yourself will wreak havoc in your life. It’s why we need a church family.
  A family of believers helps us stay grounded in the Word. It’s not just about our feelings, God’s Word is our true north. It speaks truth to us, grounds us, gives us wisdom, and a whole lot more. We’ll have healthy relationships as we’re all in the Word consistently, growing in grace.
  A church family helps us stay more sensitive to the Holy Spirit. It’s vital that we’re biblically literate and feeding our souls on God’s Word. The Spirit uses the Word to cultivate spiritual growth, godliness, and unity. We need a healthy discontent that motivates us to seek to be more like Christ.
  A church family encourages you to serve the Lord and those around you. As believers, we’re invested in the spiritual wellbeing of our brothers and sisters because we’re invested in God’s kingdom. God designed us to serve Him and each other. Together we unite for a vision and mission so much bigger than ourselves.
  As a church family, we love those who apart from grace we probably wouldn’t like and definitely wouldn’t socialize with. Because of the cross, we’re blood brothers and sisters. We believe that others have the potential and ability to achieve what God has called them too. We become their cheerleaders and encouragers. We continually share hope.
  When you love your brothers and sisters, you give away one of your most limited assets – time. Selfishness shrinks. As we take the time to listen to someone who is burdened or struggling, we demonstrate God’s love. Life is not just about us or even our family. Praying for and with others helps us fight our sinful nature of being self-absorbed.
  A healthy church family has an open circle. They’re continually looking to welcome others into the family. They’re not cliquish. A healthy church grows warmer through fellowship, deeper through discipleship, stronger through worship, broader through ministry, and larger through outreach.    
  A healthy church family is future oriented. They recognize that they’ll never be “home” on this earth. Their heart beats with Christ’s love for those who don’t yet know Him. Their hands reach out and their feet are ready to go wherever the Father leads them. They desire more than addition — they desire multiplication through evangelism, disciple-making, more small groups, and church planting until He returns to take us Home.
  The key to happiness isn’t from self-empowerment. A major source of depression is the societal problem of lost connections. It’s why an all-wise God designed us for community. The fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) grows in the garden of healthy Christian community.

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.