God's Garden

I see so many beautiful, wonderful, accomplished and caring pictures of people my friends love here on FB! This reminds me of a beautiful garden. Each flower/person is unique. Each one is different in shape, scent, and color. Some may have thorns or prickly stems. some may have deep roots, others shallow. Some are considered weeds to others. Some act like they are better than the others. some are complicated, some are simple. Oh, such a wonderful variety!

The point is that I think the most beautiful gardens are the ones with all of us together, side by side, being the best of our unique selves and making room for others. I also think that this is the kind of garden that delights our Creator God.

I think we must remember that the pictures of people are not all that they are. Thier outward appearance is not the only thing that God sees. He sees our hearts (yes, all of our hearts.) His garden is one that is not only pleasing to the eye, but also to the heart. He cares for all and places us in the place we belong. It may be in the sunshine or the shadows.

Our only purpose is to please Him.

Holy Gardener, Good Father, Great Creator, You are our only purpose for being. You have given us so much and we have lost sight of who we are in Your eyes. Forgive us for our arrogance. Thank You for making each of us different and putting us side by side so our differences would shine. Teach us Lord to recognize You for who You are and ourselves and others for who You created them to be. We need You to pour out Your living water over us because it is only in You that we can be all we were meant to be.

Random Thoughts

Today I can't seem to put a finger on what to write about so here are some random thoughts going through my head.

My son turns 28 today. He is a good man. It seems as if the difference in age between us is growing shorter. I don't feel as old as I am or as old as his Mom should be! Happy birthday, David!

It seems odd to me that most people I talked to this past week were surprised that I had mixed feelings about my son, Joseph, moving to Colorado. Seems I shouldn't want to have him near. I shouldn't be sad about not seeing him on a regular basis. The thing that surprises me is that they don't understand how much fun our family has together and how much we like being close! Of course these are people who don't know us well, so I guess if they haven't experienced this bond then they couldn't understand. I will miss him. He had a hard time pulling away also! He, too, had mixed emotions! Our family is just like that. We really do like each other!

Politics is evoking in me strong emotions and fervent prayers. I believe it is the same for most Americans. I know how my vote will go. What I do not know, is which way the country will vote. It seems as if we are in the dating period of getting to know the candidates. For me, I like one more than the other, but don't like everything my favorite says, does or stands for. Come November 4 the country will decide which candidate to whom we will be betrothed. Then January will be the official ceremony that will wed us to the leadership of that man for the next four years. I am certain that either way, we will find our country more divided than ever before! We already are!

I am reminded of Jesus' prayer that His followers would be in unity. Oh, may we find a way to be unified in spirit. The world is on the brink of something new. The signs are there. Christ's followers must pray and seek His face. We must walk humbly before our God. Most importantly we must look to our own hearts to examine our selves. Whatever we find that goes against God's standard is wickedness. We must turn back toward Him and repent of those wicked ways.

So what does God stand for? It is all found in the scriptures. What do we stand for? It is found in our checkbooks, our daily schedules, our leisure activities, etc.

Lord, show me Your ways! Give me strength to do Your will even if it is against the world. Stay near me, Lord, for you alone are my rock! May I conform to Your will in all things.