As I was tending to the beautiful flowers on my deck, I was reflecting on the marvelous ways our Lord works in us

"And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. "But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Matthew 6:28-30

It is always sad when someone we love dies and sadder still when the person who died did so unexpectantly. When it happens, most of us are filled with the heaviness at the pit of our stomach and an endless supply of tears that seemingly never end. 

 This year, I learned a valuable lesson in the way God delivers his kindnesses, his love, and compassion through the simple routine of tending a garden. I purchase several pots and planted some beautiful flowers in each of them, a combination of different colors that when they bloomed would burst out with colors as if their attempt to communicate was simply, 'Praise be to ourFather in heaven, the giver of life.' 

When I read from 1 Corinthians 3:6-9, I see the connection of what I planted in those pots and the connection to God: " So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.' 

One morning when I looked out at the flowers I noticed one particular plant looking flat and sickly. I grabbed the watering can and began sprinkling all of those plants, including the one that looked sickly and on the verge of death. The very next morning I looked out and saw to my amazement that same plant bursting forth with brightness and color!

Then, I paused. I reflected on the sadness of loss and the emotional pain all of us feel as we travel the journey of missing somebody.  As I applied this thought to my life, I'm reminded that just as God is the source of hope for what we water, He is also the source of hope as we embrace the pain of loss.

 I glanced at the journals I've kept through the years of my walk with Jesus and can testify each time I spend with God while reading from God's word, I come away from that experience with renewed hope as if I were that wilted flower brimming back to life. 

Through his Son Jesus, God provides a never ending source of 'living water' that permanently sustains us.

Losses will always occur in our lives and the pain may always be there, but God assures us, He will bring us back to life with a brimming hope as we spend time reading His word and lifting heavenward our prayers.