ROSES AND THORNS

A certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully, and before itblossomed, he examined it. He saw the bud that would soon blossom andalso the thorns. And he thought, "How can any beautiful flower comefrom a plantburdened with so many sharp thorns?" Saddened by this thought, heneglected to water the rose, and before it was ready to bloom, itdied.So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The God-like qualities planted in us at birth grow amid the thorns of ourfaults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, thedefects. We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come fromus. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. Wenever realize our potential.Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else mustshow it to them.One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reachpast the thorns and find the rose within others. This is thecharacteristic of love, to look at a person, and knowing his faults,recognize the nobility inhis soul, and help him realize that he can overcome his faults. If weshow him the rose, he will conquer the thorns.Our duty in this world is to help others by showing them their rosesand not their thorns. Only then can we achieve the love we should feelfor each other; only then can we bloom in our own garden.

Romans 8:28
" And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose"