Cee’s FOTD Challenge
As if she needed a late afternoon shower to freshen her up, this tiny marigold emerges with golden pistils blazing, her scarlet gown lined with gold.
So too does hope emerge out of the dark clouds of the day.
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation
Psalm 42:5
What we wouldn’t do to have a steadfast friend, true and faithful through the seasons of our life. Sometimes those who seem most frail in our eyes to share the storms of life prove to be the most true and steady, bending with the winds and holding strong where others break.
This tree has stood on the periphery of our walks through early spring, summer and now at autumn’s slow appearance. It never allows us to pass without acknowledging it, standing alone as it does, but somehow reassuring, like a cross on a hill. Whereas the Cross bears testimony to an eternal significance and a love eternal, this little tree somehow reminds me to take the temporal at the pace of eternity, one day at a time, knowing He whose eyes are on the sparrow watches over me and holds tomorrow in His loving hands.
So let us be, steadfast and true to Him, trusting, one day at a time.
How wonderful yellow is.
It stands for the sun.
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890)
See more at Cee's Flower of the Day Challenge.
Some of you have noticed the tagline to my site title “This Jolly Beggar”: “In Absolute Joyful, Dependance on the Grace and Love of God.” The story behind that is on my “C. S. Lewis on Jolly Beggars” page.
So when I saw these tiny sparkling blue flowers in an out-of-the-way patch of dirt down an alley, I recognized in them this quality of joyful dependance on God. Nothing dimmed their sparkle. And eyes that were open to their presence were blessed beyond all reason. Why? Because languishing here in this little patch where no one noticed them, these little stalks of blue stars, these jolly beggars boldly testified to God’s faithfulness.
Today I read of another “jolly beggar,” Rika Theron, who lives in South Africa. As the author of the article on Rika writes:
This. This is a life of suffering. And this is a life of breathtaking beauty. . . . .
In a world that worships fame and productivity, indulgences and self-sufficiency, Rika’s life may seem unbearably difficult. She has not enjoyed the fleeting pleasures afforded to most people and has spent her life in relative seclusion, in pain and dependent on others. Yet watching Rika live in joyful dependence on God, touching the seen and unseen world, I realize she’s changing the universe as she fights her daily battles – perhaps having a greater impact on the kingdom of God than celebrities with large ministries. In heaven, the people who have suffered alone, in a small corner of the world, will shine more brightly than we can imagine.
Vaneetha Risner, “A Remarkable Life”
Rika knows that she is seen and known and loved by God. Do you have this same knowledge and joyful dependance on the God who suffered and has offered Himself for you?
Bear pain for one moment at a time; there is patience enough in Jesus for the next moment. You cannot exhaust God; and your work is to be, not in your might or power, but by his Spirit. — F. B. Meyer
For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Romans 10: 13
Photo for Cee's Flower of the Day (FOTD) Challenge. Be sure to visit Cee's Photo Challenges for amazing photography and fun photo challenges.
Taking time out to reflect on the natural beauty around us is a gift that photography, if it’s done right (like Cee’s) gets you up out of your chair and outdoors exploring. Hope this weekend there are colorful spots like this in the woods or fields or gardens around you and moments of pleasant reflection.
"I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees." -- Henry David Thoreau
For Cee's Flower of the Day (FOTD) Challenge. Be sure to visit Cee's Photo Challenges for amazing photography and fun challenges.
Cee’s FOTD Challenge
These were growing by a deer trail underneath a bridge. The trembling water and pale orange blooms just made for a magical discovery. No trolls here.
For Cee's Flower of the Day Challenge. Be sure to visit Cee's Photo Challenges for amazing photography and fun challenges.
Cee’s FOTD Challenge & Jude’s Saturday Symphony #7
Green is the color of my stonecrop’s leaves
And leaves are the petals of its flowers.
The sun on my stonecrop shines fairest
Whilst summer roses fall by and by;
Its rose-bloom leaves gleam like emeralds
With a fire that will never die.
If I give you an emerald rose, dear,
As a promise my love will stay green,
Tell me weathered years will never dim
The love light in your eyes;
Else I shall be like a twice-doomed rose
That falls to the ground and dies.
Dora A. K.
If a man could pass through Paradise in a dream, and have a flower presented to him as a pledge that his soul had really been there, and if he found that flower in his hand when he awake – Aye, what then?
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Something about ferns cheers me. Like seeing dandelions growing in pavement cracks, spotting ferns in bursts of green under shady trees or hanging under shady porches is like seeing familiar friends. This one hangs out on our deck enjoying the summer sun.
