We are dandelions

"I am the vine, and my Father is the vine grower," said Jesus. "Just like a branch can't give fruit unless it's attached to the vine, you can't do anything without me. Anyone who doesn't stay close to me will wither away like a dead branch. But if you stick with me, you'll be my follower and give fruit."

Dandelions are everywhere. They pop up in lawns and fields, and on the side of the road. It seems like you couldn't get rid of them if you wanted to! But if you've ever picked dandelions for someone you love, you know that they don't last long after they're picked. They wilt, turn brown and close up.

People are a lot like plants -- and in this week's Gospel (John 15:1-8), Jesus tells us how.

Kids love to pick dandelions because they're a pretty bright yellow and easy to find. Even a tiny patch of grass probably has a dandelion or two sprouting along the edge! People "sprout" all over the world, too, from places with sunny weather to tiny, unknown places with hardly any grass or trees at all.

Even though dandelions grow all over, they dry up and die when you pick them. That's because they're not connected to their roots any more, which brought them water and life.

In the Gospel story, Jesus compared people to another plant, a vine. Like a dandelion droops when it's picked, He said, and like a branch dies when it's snapped off the vine, people can't live good, happy lives unless they're connected to God.

We need God to help us treat each other well, so we make the world a good place and remember that we're going to heaven someday, too.

If a dandelion stays in the ground, it stays alive and bright. If we stay around Jesus, He promised that we would, too. Jesus doesn't want us to wilt!

(05-15-03) [[In-content Ad]]