The Call to Bloom

A small azalea blooming in a place where it shouldn’t have been, reminded me to do the same.

I was taking a break from work a couple of weeks ago and looking out the window. Autumn leaves had just begun falling in my yard and some had landed on the azaleas. My azaleas came with our house and they are huge. They bloom a bright pink in the spring and herald in Easter, but the rest of the year, they remain green. They don’t turn brilliant colors in the fall. They aren’t barren in the winter. They are green and when the rest of the world is dark and sleeping, green is a nice contrast.

As I was looking at my steady green azaleas and thinking about being able to depend on their greenery, a tiny pink blossom caught my eye. It’s October and the entire world around those azaleas is about to turn orange, yellow and gold and yet, that little blossom boldly stood up in pink, seemingly unaware and clearly unconcerned, about the current season.

I smiled and went outside to take a picture and found it hard to capture, yet it was there. I thought about that tiny brave blossom for the rest of the day.

Most of us can definitely say we find ourselves in a season where we have never before been. From the Covid pandemic, to the social unrest, to the constant negativity in our political climate. Goodness and decency seems under assault and I often find myself wondering what has happened to our manners? What would our grandparents say if they were to watch a current newscast?

As Christians, what is our role in the current mess we find ourselves in?

Maybe we should take a lesson from that tiny, out of place, out of season, azalea blossom and bloom, even if we don’t fit in with anything around us.

Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.”

Maybe that means taking a walk and admiring God’s handiwork in nature. Maybe that means snuggling a puppy or having a conversation with a young child. Maybe that means reading the Bible or an uplifting story. Maybe that means calling your mama. Maybe that means sharing something beautiful on social media or maybe that means unplugging altogether.

After consciously filling our souls with the good stuff, we are then able and called to to bloom in our own unique way and share that good stuff with those around us. We can do that in person, through the mail, over text or in cyberspace. Our call to love God and love others doesn’t change with the turbulence of the seasons. We just have to make sure that we remain equipped to bloom.

A wayward azalea reminded me that as people of faith, our call to bloom is not dependent on the state of affairs of our world. We are after all, in this world, not of it. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂