Category: Watching for God

God is all around us. All we have to do is look for Him. If we seek Him, we will find Him at times in the most unlikely places.

Magnolia Reminders

Posted on by Wendy
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.” Matthew 6:28-29

 

I have had the joy of working with some elementary student field trips at our local arboretum over the past couple of weeks. I love how children remind us to be in awe of the parts of life that have become mundane to us.

Children tend to be naturally curious and so they ask lots of questions, especially in new environments. I was standing with a class while they were waiting in line to use the restroom, when a little boy picked up a small red seed to ask me what it was. I explained to him that it was a magnolia seed an that the huge tree he was standing under, came from a small seed just like the one he was holding in his hand. He seemed very surprised.

When I found a picture of a magnolia flower on my phone to show him, he was even more surprised. I went on to explain to him that not only are magnolias beautiful, they also smell great.

I’ll have to admit, after reflecting on our conversation later that day, that I too, found myself in awe of how a giant magnolia tree with huge perfumed blossoms can come from one tiny red seed. The finished product looks nothing like its humble beginnings. Furthermore, after doing a little research, I learned that the hard wax coating on the red seed is broken down after it is eaten by an animal and after that process, the seed can grow into a mighty tree.

That’s a lot of moving parts, to create a tree. Yet, we have magnolia trees all over the South. As I looked at a magnolia tree in my own yard, I felt a reminder deep in my soul that if God goes to that much effort and detail for a tree, He certainly puts a lot more planning and effort in humanity

Psalm 139: 13-14 says, “For you created my inmost being;  you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;  your works are wonderful,  I know that full well.”

Sometimes I think it’s easy to forget how precious we are to God, but thankfully we have scripture to remind us. Children can also serve as good reminders. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

God is Always Working

Posted on by Wendy
From a distance, the pond looks like a still body of water.

I was recently out for a walk when I felt the nudge to stop and take a seat at a bench next to our pond. I resisted and continued with my walk. I was trying to get in my steps for the day. It had rained for an entire week and when it finally stopped, I felt a deep need to move. When I came back by the bench, I felt the nudge again. This time I stopped. A light breeze swept gently across the water as I soaked in the stillness and caught my breath.

It wasn’t long before I saw a big fish breaking the surface on the other side of the pond. A few minutes later, I saw some minnows swimming near the edge. I  heard frogs croaking and then I saw a turtle poke its head head up out of the water.

As I sat there, it occurred to me that when I rushed by a few minutes earlier and resisted the nudge to stop, the pond looked completely still. It wasn’t until I took the time to be still and observe, that I saw just a few of the many types of life that it nurtures. I know there are different kinds of turtles and fish in the pond, but I don’t often see them.

In fact, most of the work of living that goes on beneath the surface, is never seen by human eyes, yet I never question its existence.

The lesson was not lost on me. There are times on our faith journey when we wonder where God is. Why is He not answering our prayers? Why is He allowing continued suffering? Is He even listening?

While we may not get the answers to all of our questions on this side of eternity. We can rest assured that He is always listening, always close and always working. If we need a reminder, we can follow the gentle nudge from the Spirit that encourages us to be still, pray, and read His Word. The Bible tells us repeatedly not to be afraid, to be at peace and to be still and know that God is in control.

If we know in our hearts that He is writing our story, then we have to know He is always working, even when we can’t see Him. A visit to a pond reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

God is Not Done

Posted on by Wendy
As long as we are still breathing, God is still at work.

It’s getting towards the end of the summer growing season in my garden. I missed some important opportunities to prune just about everything, and then we had five days of rain followed by cloudy skies. Between bugs and blight, my zinnias are looking rough. I’m still getting some blooms, but not nearly as many and most of them have black spots on them.

I was out in the garden, harvesting what I could and deadheading the blooms that were spent or just in bad shape, when a beautiful butterfly caught my eye. It was busy working on the center of a pitiful flower. At least half of its petals were gone and those it still had were tinged in brown. If I hadn’t seen the butterfly on it, I would have definitely cut it and thrown it over the fence.

I marveled at how hard at work the butterfly was on the seemingly spent flower and I couldn’t help but snap a photo, then left it alone to do its work. I circled around the bed and when I got back to it, a bee was busy working on it. Needless to say, I left the flower right where it stood. It clearly still had worth to nature, even if I couldn’t see it.

I thought about that half-eaten flower for the rest of the afternoon. I thought about how quickly we are to attach worth to the people and things around us and even to ourselves, based on what we see. The Bible tells us that God sees with different eyes than we do.

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

Friend, the truth is that if you woke up today, if you are reading these words, God is not done with you. You may feel like the half-eaten, tattered flower in my garden, but you are here and our God can still use you. Your unique journey matters, all bruises and scars included. Jesus understands. He too, has some scars.

A butterfly reminded me that we are never too far gone for God to use us. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Finding the Fruit in Wilderness Moments

Posted on by Wendy
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17

I was recently going through one of those times where God felt far away. I think of them as wilderness moments. Now, I’ve been walking with Jesus long enough to know that faith is not based on feelings. He is always close and always at work even when I can’t see Him or feel Him. Interestingly enough, a friend of mine called to check in and eventually, we got around to how I was feeling.

She was quick to reassure me that God was definitely working behind the scenes. She encouraged me to keep reading the Bible, keep praying and to lean into Jesus and always to expect big things. These were of course, truths that I knew but, I was so grateful for her call and her encouragement.

I took a walk and said a prayer of thanks for our friendship and marveled at God’s timing. She and I text regularly, but she just happened to call me when I was in a wilderness moment and really needed to hear some words of truth and encouragement. As I was walking, I found some wild  muscadines along my path. I stopped and picked up a couple and popped them into my mouth.

They were wonderfully sweet and transported me immediately back to my childhood when my sister and I would shake a muscadine vine that climbed a tree in our yard and gather the sweet grapes that dropped seemingly from the sky. I immediately looked up and saw the vine that was very high in a tree above. I smiled and thanked God for the surprise treat on my walk and then a Bible verse popped into my head.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17

It was the ultimate reminder that every blessing comes from God, the God who is always close, the God who cares about our everyday ups and downs, the God who nudged a friend to call me and remind me of His love and the God who sent me some fruit simply because He could. There are days that I need reminding. Perhaps you do too,

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Arrange the Flowers

Posted on by Wendy
The intricacy of the flowers can remind us that God is concerned about all of the details in our lives too.

This year when I planted my vegetable garden, I planted lots of zinnia seeds. I planted a couple of beds with only zinnias and then I added them randomly to the rest of the beds. I planted them because they attract pollinators and maybe more importantly, because they bring me joy.

Most mornings, when I pick the garden, I pick the flowers first. The vegetables may feed my body, but the flowers feed my soul. Their colors are so vibrant. Some are big and some are small, but they all serve as stunning evidence of God’s work and creativity in His creation.

One day last week, as I was having my morning coffee, I was feeling stressed. I had so many balls in the air and my mind was on a seemingly endless hamster wheel running in circles surrounding things I had no control over and couldn’t possibly fix. As I began to feel a bit overwhelmed, I said a silent prayer for peace.

Almost immediately, I felt a gentle nudge to “arrange the flowers.” I looked over at the jar of flowers I had picked from the garden the day before. I hadn’t had the time to do anything with them, so they just remained in the jar that I had placed them in when I picked them.

“Seriously?” I thought.

I had so much to consider and solve, plus, I had to be somewhere that morning and I was supposed to arrange flowers?

Now, I have been walking with Jesus for too long, to ignore a nudge from the Holy Spirit, so as mundane and trivial as it seemed at the moment, I complied.

Not surprisingly, I felt a peace almost immediately, as I examined and trimmed the first perfectly amazing stem. A couple Bible verses popped into my head: 27 “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!” Luke 12:27-28

When I looked up the verses, in Luke 12, the entire passage is a reminder for us not to worry. Jesus uses the beauty of flowers as part of His illustration of God’s love for His creation and His people and He used the same illustration for me, standing in my kitchen that morning.

I would love to tell you that I never worried again, from that moment forward, but that wouldn’t be true. What I can say is that when I prayed for some peace in a current situation and got quiet and listened, Jesus found a way to use something special to me to remind me that I am loved and He will provide as He always has. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Wisdom from the Waves

Posted on by Wendy
The waves never stop, but neither does God’s love for His people.

 

My daughter recently had the day off of work and she wanted to take a quick trip to check out a nearby beach.  Since she knows how much I love the ocean, she asked me if I would be willing to go. Spoiler alert: she knew I would say yes. I was more than happy to be a part of her coastal whim. We happily got up at 6:00 AM and made the three hour drive.

We were blessed with gorgeous weather and we spent the entire day basking in the sun, walking on the beach and playing in the waves.

I have always considered the beach to be one of those thin places, where my heart and soul feel close to God. A peace settles over me as I watch the waves roll endlessly in and out. The tide comes and goes at its own pace. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the news or down the street or in my personal life. The ocean pauses for no one.

It’s been a few years since I have swam in the ocean, but when we waded in together to waist deep water, it was like a balm for my weary soul. The waves would gently pull me out and then I would try to catch one just at the right time, to ride towards the shore. Sometimes, I would jump too soon and not get anywhere. Sometimes, I would wait too late and get a face full of salt water. But, sometimes I would move at the perfect time and ride the wave almost completely back to the beach.

I don’t know how long we laughed and played in the ocean; I just know I was pleasantly exhausted when we finally drug ourselves out. I was reminded of playing in the ocean with my parents when I was a child and then playing with my own children when they were little, but this time, I felt like God was holding me close and smiling as I delighted in the wonder that He made.

As I thought about it later, it was almost a physical reminder of my spiritual walk. The ocean would pull me gently out, like God pulls me close, but then it would push me back to the shore, back to where people are, inviting me to share the experience with others who might need to hear about it.

Sometimes the waves are calm and easy and we can just float. Sometimes they are big and scary and we have to swim really hard. We might even get pushed under and have to fight for air, but if we keep our eyes on Jesus, we will always make it to the shore. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Just Keep Growing

Posted on by Wendy
If we are breathing, we are called to keep growing.

 

Last year, we planted some cherry tomato plants that produced more tomatoes than we could ever eat. We gave tons away and froze even more. After we pulled them up at the end of the season, they reseeded and came back until the frost finally killed them, or so I thought.

This spring, I had two of those same plants come back in between cracks in the rocks in the garden.

I plan to put cement in those cracks, but since I hadn’t yet, I decided to leave them and see what would happened. My brother cut one of them completely down with a weed eater because he thought it was a weed.

It came back.

I  took a close look at it today. It was thriving, covered in blooms and fruit and a little garden spider has made her home in it. I found myself as I often do when I’m in the garden, in awe of God’s work.

Sometimes even when I am determined to make something grow, it doesn’t. I do research. I work on the soil. I fertilize it and water it, but sometimes despite my best efforts, some of the things I plant, fail to thrive.

And then I have instances like the cherry tomato, that is determined to produce fruit whether in good or bad soil, even without any fertilizer to encourage growth or without water from me. Even when all seemed lost in the winter time, they were still working underground, unseen by me, to make a comeback.

It’s as if those seeds are committed to survive and thrive no matter what.

I feel like there is a lesson here. Sometimes we find ourselves in seasons when we feel we have nothing left to give. We may even believe that our time of producing any sort of fruit has passed.

That cherry tomato reminds me that God is always at work. The Bible reassures me that nothing is impossible for Him even though current circumstances may look impossible, He can see what I can’t.

My job is to keep reaching for Him, reaching for the light and to keep growing. He will do the rest. The good fruit always comes from Him.

A determined cherry tomato plant reminded me to just keep growing. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Gardenia Lessons

Posted on by Wendy
Seek and you will find.

 

I recently left a mason jar of gardenias on the kitchen counter. Mama was enchanted when she saw them and wanted to know where I had picked them. When I told her they came from the bush in front of the barn, she commented that she was surprised such perfectly formed flowers had come from that bush.

She planted it many years ago in an effort to spruce up the barn, but with the inability to get water to it, she eventually left it to fend for itself. It’s in a tough spot to bloom. There are briars and vines everywhere. Daddy cuts the briars out of it every now and then, but for the most part, it’s on its own.

One of my favorite things to do in the summer time has always been to pick flowers and bring some of God’s handiwork indoors to enjoy. This current season that I find myself walking through, has me being very intentional about seeking and focusing on the beauty around me, so when I saw that particular gardenia blooming, I went to investigate further.

Honestly, the fact that it was surrounded by overgrowth, fire ant beds and some questionable holes, made it all the more enticing. “Seek and you will find;” was a verse that kept running through my head.  My perseverance paid off. The bush was covered with blooms and buds and I snipped away enjoying the bonus of the intoxicatingly sweet smell of those pristine white blossoms.

When I returned from being out of town for a couple of days, Mama had put together her own arrangement  of fresh blooms in the kitchen as well as  a mason jar of them for me. I smiled.

My intentional search for beauty had encouraged her to do the same.

Later, as I sat admiring those flowers and God’s excellent craftmanship, (I mean, beauty and scent that comes from dirt!), I was reminded that our faith walk is also a call to intentionally seek His beauty, His will and His voice.  Just like those gardenias, when we seek Him, we will find Him and when we find Him, if we are brave enough to share, the people around us will naturally do the same.

An old gardenia bush reminded me that when we are willing to seek and share, we are often rewarded with more than we give. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

A Call to Plant

Posted on by Wendy
What we plant can last long after we are gone.

 

In the spring of 2023, my hubby and I planted some sweet potato vines that I picked up at Lowes. I knew absolutely nothing about growing sweet potatoes. We picked one of our raised beds to plant them in and hoped for the best. The vines spread out, but our trusty guide, the internet, said that it wouldn’t be time to harvest them until the fall.

The tricky thing about potatoes is they grow underground, so you really don’t know what’s going on. We waited patiently to harvest them, but unfortunately, some deer beat us to it. When we went to check on them one day, the vines had been eaten, the dirt was dug up and there was nothing left but  six scrawny potatoes.

I wrapped them in some newspaper to cure them, put them in the barn and forgot about them. When I found them the following spring, they had little sprouts on them. I was going to toss them, but my hubby assured me that the sprouts were even better to plant than the vines. We picked a different bed;  he took out his pocket knife and cut off each little sprout and we planted them.

We had finally installed a fence to keep the deer out and the vines went wild. I had to cut them several times to keep them from taking over the garden. When all of the other vegetables were done for the season, those vines kept growing into the fall. I kept trimming them and waiting for them to turn yellow to harvest them.

Some time after my hubby passed that October, I was mindlessly wandering through the garden. When I got to the bed of sweet potatoes, I found the vines were still green, but upon closer inspection, I could see a potato just grazing the surface. I reached in and gently dug it out.

I was shocked to find a large, fully formed, sweet potato. I began to feel around the bed and to my surprise, found many more. I dug a few and then went to show my Daddy. He excitedly got a hoe and dug more.  In the end, we probably had 50 or so sweet potatoes that all came from those shriveled up few that the deer left behind.

Needless to say, they were the best sweet potatoes any of us could remember eating. We shared them with friends. We ate them for Thanksgiving. We ate them for Christmas and we still had more

I knew even then, there was a lesson in the amazing bounty that came from what seemed like useless trash that my hubby saw potential in planting. There was also a faith lesson in trusting that growth is going on even when you can’t see it.  But, the most significant lesson for me was that he was no longer here, yet what he planted was still feeding us and I knew in a larger sense, it always would.

It was a beautiful reminder that we are all in the seed planting business. While we often don’t get to see the fruit of many of the seeds we plant, we can rest assured that in God’s hands nothing is wasted and sometimes what we plant will even lead to a bounty that will feed many generations to come. After all, all things are possible with God.

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

A Message from a Zinnia

Posted on by Wendy
When the days are dark and chaotic, a little light can make all of the difference.

 

It’s been raining and overcast for days and days here in the Peach State. While I’m sure that we will be praying for some of this rain in July and August, right now, in late May, my garden has had too much. I’m losing some tomatoes to blossom end rot and fighting with some pests that come from everything staying wet. What we really need is some sunshine.

Then, there’s my mood. My sincere condolences go out to folks who live in places that don’t get much sun. For me, long stretches of gray skies make this glass half-full girl convert to a bit of a grouch. I always find so many God glimpses in my garden, little bits of encouragement that I like to pass on, but when there’s non-stop rain, they are harder to see.

Yesterday, as I trudged through the tall wet grass, that needs mowing if it ever get dry enough, I spied a bright pink zinnia, standing tall among the climbing bean vines. I rushed right over for a closer look. Although I have planted zinnias all over the garden. I didn’t plant that one and I have marveled at its tenacity as it fought for light against some very aggressive vines. Its perseverance had at last paid off and and its bright pink petals beckoned like a light house amongst all of the green foliage and against the dreary gray sky.

I’m not sure how it was able to succeed where it was or how it could bloom with so little sun, yet there it was and its bright pink petals made me smile. I felt my half-empty glass begin to fill as I snapped a photo.

While I don’t think most of us can agree on much of anything these days; we can agree that those dark skies reflect that we are living in some dark times. Most people seem to stay on the edge of angry, fearful and upset. It can even feel pointless to try to shine the light of Christ into a world that seems so hostile to the message, but perhaps we should ask ourselves, are the days any darker than when Jesus, himself shared the Good News?

I suppose every generation in some way believes that they hold the claim to greatest challenges, so I guess that doesn’t make us any different. What I know for certain, is that God still holds everything in His hands and with that knowledge I feel called to join that bright pink zinnia and point boldly to heaven.

A lone zinnia reminded me to shine my light even when the days are dark. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂