It’s springtime and that means tulips. When I lived up north, they would emerge from their dormant state and bless the landscape with color as it emerged from winter’s sleep. Daffodils and hyacinths would join them and create a fragrant display of beauty.

In Central Florida we don’t have the privilege of looking for the first signs of them peeking out of the hard soil. But I still get excitement from that first glimpse of them in the grocery store.

I was doing my reading in A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 and I paused and enjoyed the view of my vase of tulips that was sitting on the table in front of me. I got up and viewed them from several different angles. It occurred to me that they were like a flock of flowers. All of them were placed in the same vase but some bloomed before others. Some blossoms kept their prime phase longer than others. Some never seemed to open all the way. Still others lingered in those final stages much longer than I thought possible.

From a distance the flowers are a lovely bouquet. You have to get close to see their individual loveliness at every stage of their lives. Each stage is different and offers beauty and interest, especially when placed together.

I had another vase of tulips on my dining room table. These I had cut from a potted plant that my son and his wife gave me. They had gotten pretty gangly in the pot so I cut them. They were happy in their new, fresh water. So happy in fact that I forgot they need a daily rotation to help them to grow straight. Tulips like the light and will bend towards it.

All of this is amazing to me. God, our Creator, made these lovely, delicate flowers. Yet they are not so delicate that they cannot force themselves out of a dormant state and lift their arms toward heaven. How about you? Have you ever felt like you were in a dormant state? God calls us to himself. He is the light. Even our slightest bend toward him should fill our hearts with hope and joy and gratefulness.

Matthew 5:6 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Until we meet again,
Bonnie