I promised I would share a part of our devotional from Saturday. The theme for the day was gardening...Bless the "thyme" of sowing, watering, and growing. The final thoughts being that God uses some people to sow the seeds, others to water, but He is the one who causes the growth...the increase...the beauty. Several flowers were chosen by me to represent those who had and still have a part in making my life beautiful.The red rose usually stands for love. Gram Carlson was a beautiful picture of love in action. Her greatest desire for her children, grand-children, and great grand-children was that they know Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour.
The pink rose represents gentleness and gracefulness. My mother is one of the gentlest people I know. Through the trials of life, she has been an example of God's grace in her life. She has been my prayer warrior during times when I didn't know how or what to pray. We laugh together...we cry together. She is my mother...she is my friend...she is my encourager.
The purple snapdragon was chosen to represent my sister. Mari has such a "snappy" bubbly spirit that is refreshing to be around. She makes me laugh and "stand a little taller" in the hard times of life. Now that we are grown and live far away from each other...we understand what Mom meant when we were little..."be kind to each other, love each other...someday you won't be close to each other and you'll wish..." Mom was and is right...as usual!
The gebera daisies always seem to have their faces lifted toward the sun. They are bright and cheery like my aunties. In each of their lives and ministries they look to the Lord for His guidance and strength, and then they share it with others.
The mini-daisy spikes were chosen for my cousins, who stand above the crowd by using their creativity and talents to serve the Lord and be a blessing to others.
The white hydrandgas signify spiritual love and purity. Two ladies that stick out in my mind are Nel Barlow and Eileen Hinkel. They served the Lord in churches that we were in and ministered to our family by opening their home and hearts to us many times. They were involved with teaching children in our church...caring for our souls...challenging us to do right.
The tiger lilies are for the college girls that came and stayed with our family every weekend on extension. They treated us like little sisters and spent time with us...and we wanted to be "just like them" when we got big.
The purple zinnias stand for thoughts of friends...who make the days brighter and the burden lighter. God has blessed me with some friends who are "the iron sharpeneth iron" kind and I am grateful. He has also blessed me with a friend who has taught me to laugh...even if I am having trouble finding the humor in the situation...she helps me find it!
The yellow rose stands for friendship. It is a picture of the friendship I have found in my mother-in-law. God has blessed me with a wonderful "mother of my husband". She accepted me as part of her family...another daughter...right at the beginning. With four sons and one daughter, it is always nice to add another female to the picture! On Friday, when she picked up Teddy, she told me she was praying for me...and has been...as I prepared for our day together. She is a great help and encouragement to me as a wife and mother.
And finally, the yellow daisies represent the daughters that God has brought into our lives. Daisies stand for innocence of youth. What a joy they have been to us...Ashlynn and Alisa! A reminder to me that God is still making "everything beautiful in His time"...
"The ones that I love and hold dear to my heart are just borrowed, they're not mine at all. Jesus only let me use them, to brighten my life, so remind me, remind me, dear Lord...
Draw back the curtain of memories now and then, Show me where you brought me from, and where I could have been. You know that I'm human, and humans forget. So, remind me, remind me, dear Lord!"
