Flowers & Oceans
“…See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.” Matthew 6:28
“God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:10
I don’t know if this ever happens to you, but once again I found myself hurrying through life and not really being present to see the blessings and goodness of God. The busyness of life tends to steer my focus on going through the motions of work, church, home and back to work again, taking all the added sweetness of living life for granted.
I had a reminder of this with what I call a “God-wink” moment the other morning when pulling into my parking spot at work. I must admit that on that day, it was beautiful, and I wasn’t “counting it all joy” to be going to work. I would much rather have headed to the beach. But on that morning, as I backed up into the parking place, I looked across the way at beautiful blue and blueish purple hydrangea bushes full of blooms. It got my attention, and I sat there for a moment and smiled, thanking God for the reminder of the blessing that He was giving me every day.
You see, hydrangeas don’t bloom all year long but only in the Spring and Summer. These flowers mean something to me because they remind me of my grandmother’s front yard and porch. How I wish that I had a green thumb to grow them myself, but I don’t. So, I am thankful that I am blessed by the handiwork of God and someone else’s ability to nurture the growth of this beautiful creation of God.
This past week, my sister was visiting from out of town and made a statement that goes right along with these thoughts. We went to the beach, and it was beautiful and close to a perfect day. Last night, she shared with us that while she was sitting on the beach, she thought, “look at how God is blessing me with this beautiful day on the beach! He created all of this just for me to enjoy!” What a thought! To stop and think that the God of the Universe who created the world, created the blue sky, the vast ocean and sandy beaches just for me! And a bonus blessing was that we got to see a submarine filled with our impressive Navy men and women who serve our country going out to sea! What an added blessing for this Memorial Day weekend!
The Bible says, “He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them—he remains faithful forever.” Psalms 146:6
“…always giving thanks to God, the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20
So yes, today I am thanking God for creating the flowers, the seas, the sandy beaches and cool breezes just for me. I am thanking God for my husband and children, the laughter and joy of grandchildren. I am thanking God for the messy house to clean and clothes to wash. I am thanking God for being tired at night because I have a good job that I enjoy and good people to work with.
What is the point of all of this? I am thankful that God got my attention to be present in the moment. Because the older I get, the more I realize that it is all of this filled with its ups and downs and “God-wink” moments that make this journey called life truly a gift from God.
