How Sweet

I have been driving out to the countryside to find wildflowers and was so rewarded for the efforts. But they are beginning to wane as the grass is growing up over the spent blooms and the seed heads are beginning to appear. I was a little restless as the season points to the hot Texas summer.

Circumstances here with a terminally ill friend don't call for a trip away any time soon, so I have been given a plethora of delights right in my front flower bed. God's provision is extraordinary!

I am getting to watch the incredible system of pollination that God set in motion. The bushes have doubled in size and are blooming with a heavy sweetness that is a siren for butterflies and bees. The bees get so covered with pollen that they retreat to a smooth leaf to wipe off before returning to the banquet. The butterfly bodies swell as they take in the sweet nectar. They are drawn to the blossoms and sweet reward while carrying out the task in the process of spreading pollen from one place to another.

Are we not, deep inside, designed to be drawn to the sweetness of our Lord Jesus? He calls us to the banquet of His love. We take that sweetness we have found and spread it as we touch others with with His amazing presence. We have been fed with manna of the living God, and pass it on to others. As the song goes, "How sweet it is to be loved by you!"

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How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Ps. 119:103

Seeking God

Scripture says that if we seek Him we will find Him. I think my country travels are about communion and stirring up my heart for God. I am looking for and finding many blessings along my way. It is especially nice when I find some livestock and wildflowers together. I feel doubly blessed! They are in green pastures just being themselves.

I find myself listening on my trips by myself for instruction about which roads to take. I am seeking direction for my path. I trust that He is leading me in the way for my good. He wants to be my travel companion. He wants me to find him. My encounters will indeed be blessings, no matter how I feel about them at the time. God is with me.

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If you seek me with all your heart,
I will let you find me.
Jeremiah 29:13-14

Country Girl

The older I get the more I find myself being drawn to quiet country roads. The pavement, rushing, and crowds of the big city are adrenalin to some who are stimulated by being with lots of people. I am an introvert in how I get energized (being by myself or with just a few people), and a drive in the country is a peace pill to me. I feel love spilling over me as I am able to let my spirit be quieted. I am drawn from the freeways to the paths where grass ridges mark the center of the roads. A drive in the country helps me to remember to keep things simple, get enough rest and quiet time, and trust that the Lord will continue to be my strength when I must drive back to the city.

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In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.
Isaiah 30:15

God's Glory

I keep my grand daughter on Wednesdays, so I had a plan to get the new horsey, grand daughter, and wildflowers together today. The joy and trust of a grandchild in your care is such a beautiful gift. She had a great time on the horse and fell asleep on my shoulder when we got home.

After I took her home in the afternoon I travelled down a country road that hardly has any traffic. Only one truck went by while I took pictures of the hillsides of color. I was fortunate to get a butterfly landing on a blossom.

Wildflowers, a baby's trust, playing with a child, getting to photograph a butterfly landing on a blossom; all a journey of glory to glory as I experienced these expressions of God's creativity. The evening ended with a combined choir practice for our new church families meeting together on Sunday. Voices combining to show praise and reverence, to honor our Creator, added another layer of glory to this day. Wildflowers, butterflies, playing and sleeping baby, singing fellowship: all gifts of God's glory! Even, and especially through difficult times God's radiant glory is present for us to see if we but look and believe.

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Didn't I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?
John 11:40

The Big Picture

When I go out on a shoot I especially like to have a point of interest in a field of flowers or on a mountainside filled with trees. It gives a focal point framed by the life around it. Perhaps a bee on a bluebonnet, a gecko on a leaf, a ladybug on a flower. I took this picture and didn't realize until I could see it bigger that the flower had a little caterpillar crawling in it.

Sometimes we beat ourselves up for not having been able to see the writing on the wall. We judge ourselves for missing something that was right in front of our eyes. But each day is a new beginning, and we can look back to see that we are becoming something different. We can give ourselves grace that we are God-created and in the process of becoming more like Him. Through the Spirit we are being developed to see the big picture through His divine inspiration.

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These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit.
1 Cor. 2:10