Everywhere I go these days I see reminders of this glorious season. Just this week my dear Momma expressed joy at the beauty of creation while we were on a drive near where we live.; "Oh, look at the trees she exclaimed! The colors are so beautiful, it's as if God created them just for us to see!" With heartfelt glee we giggled like school girls at the glorious view before us. It was as though God knew we were embracing his majesty at every turn.
Just a few weeks ago the trees were bare of colorful leaves and floral displays. I waited with anticipation of the amazing views to come. Pansies, and rows of lovely tulips march along the borders of nearby places we pass every day. Funny how we can take for granted these glimpses of heaven unless our hearts are able to slow down and take it all in. I am thankful to have grown up in a family which gave us opportunities to appreciate God's beautiful world.
On my news feed this morning visions of the cross on which my savior died, remind me once again of the passionate love of the father. To think of how he suffered to save us causes a great deal of sadness in my heart...but knowing the cross was only the beginning makes me bow with gratitude, at so great a cost paid for all who accept him as savior. Can there be a greater love?
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him might not parish but have everlasting life. John 3:16. Oh what a sacrifice, a price paid in full by the keeper of our hearts...Jesus! Pause today and take in the words of this verse as you prepare for Easter. The maker of the universe loved us enough to die for our sins. We can be assured of our salvation once we have bowed down and accepted his authority over our lives. Repenting is only the beginning of a life well lived.
Saturday, March 26, 2016
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Spring without a garden...a new way of life for me...
I bought some lovely pansies today outside the grocery store at our local supermarket. They stood smiling from a display out in front of the store, beckoning me to linger and enjoy signs of Spring. I bent over to choose a few for our patio pots. Like tiny faces they stood up with ruffled petals as if to greet each passer by. This year it seemed strange not to hurry home to pull out my shovels and get busy. For you see I no longer live in a home with a garden. Instead the apartment home where I live provides a carefully groomed array of plantings which the hired gardeners care for.
The truths behind starting over seemed easy to grasp until the warm weather offered me an invitation to enjoy the outdoors after a busy winter season of packing up my life to move back home to Virginia. My garden was a work of the heart! Each row was carefully planned and drawn out on graft paper lest I forget where I planted each newly purchased plant. I started with small trees, roses and bulbs, along with many shared plants from my husbands childhood home.
Dan and I spent many long hours hauling soil and peat moss to each bed and worked the soil until we were able to plant each area with love. Or should I say hard work! For you see, the ground which surrounded our home was filled with buckets of small rocks and even an occasional bit of left over nails and building supplies which were left behind. Often the work was exhausting but I kept my eye on the prize, all the while knowing my efforts would provide a lovely place of solace for years to come.
And so it did. Many mornings I would tip toe barefoot along the grassy paths with delight in search of just a bit of tiny growth at the end of a long winter season. Each green leaf and flowering bulb greeted my winter weary soul with a reminder that all things have a cycle of life. Flowers are the reward of a gardeners long hours of toil. Like anything worthwhile the effort is in the end result.
Life is good and life goes on...a garden is a reminder of the cycle of life we live upon this earth.
From dusk until dawn I lingered in my little paradise called home. In my heart I know one day I just might have the opportunity to plant another lovely plot of happiness in a garden, but for now the memories cause my heart to smile. How thankful I am to have been given a glimpse into my idea of what heaven will be like. Until then I will seek to plant seeds of hope faith, and love into the lives of those I am called to minister to daily. Praying for the fruits of the spirit to cause their hearts to produce a harvest of love in the lives of others along this road we call life.
The truths behind starting over seemed easy to grasp until the warm weather offered me an invitation to enjoy the outdoors after a busy winter season of packing up my life to move back home to Virginia. My garden was a work of the heart! Each row was carefully planned and drawn out on graft paper lest I forget where I planted each newly purchased plant. I started with small trees, roses and bulbs, along with many shared plants from my husbands childhood home.
Dan and I spent many long hours hauling soil and peat moss to each bed and worked the soil until we were able to plant each area with love. Or should I say hard work! For you see, the ground which surrounded our home was filled with buckets of small rocks and even an occasional bit of left over nails and building supplies which were left behind. Often the work was exhausting but I kept my eye on the prize, all the while knowing my efforts would provide a lovely place of solace for years to come.
And so it did. Many mornings I would tip toe barefoot along the grassy paths with delight in search of just a bit of tiny growth at the end of a long winter season. Each green leaf and flowering bulb greeted my winter weary soul with a reminder that all things have a cycle of life. Flowers are the reward of a gardeners long hours of toil. Like anything worthwhile the effort is in the end result.
Life is good and life goes on...a garden is a reminder of the cycle of life we live upon this earth.
From dusk until dawn I lingered in my little paradise called home. In my heart I know one day I just might have the opportunity to plant another lovely plot of happiness in a garden, but for now the memories cause my heart to smile. How thankful I am to have been given a glimpse into my idea of what heaven will be like. Until then I will seek to plant seeds of hope faith, and love into the lives of those I am called to minister to daily. Praying for the fruits of the spirit to cause their hearts to produce a harvest of love in the lives of others along this road we call life.
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