Happy Little Dahlia Moments

“If I had known what the Father was going to do for her… and how quickly… I would have taken a picture of her when I got her.  She was so dead and dried up.  You couldn’t even tell what color her bloom was.  The leaves were papery….dry… translucent. But look what the Father did for her!  All she needed was a drink, and a little sunshine.”

Look at this gorgeous bloom!  Pretty impressive for a plant that was hanging out on the discount/clearance rack.  Overlooked… Dried up… Unloved.

But when tender hands picked up this unwanted flower and decided to take a chance…. Something incredible happened. 

I received a call from a friend who was telling me about her trip to a local feed and seed store.  During their trip she meandered over to the discount rack to see what plants had gone there to die.  She knew they would be there… Drying up and shriveling away.  But she just needed to see if there were any she could save.  So she found one little dahlia that was shriveled up to just a stick.  She said the leaves were so pitiful they didn’t even look green. 

Home and with a fresh drink of water, the caring hands decided to put her in the kitchen window where she could soak up the perfect amount of afternoon sunlight… and just… See.

Within a few hours of taking up residence at her new address, this little dahlia began to unfold.  A few buds were visible and the leaves started to un-shrivel.  This morning, a full bloom erupted and there are now 4 buds visible.  She’s standing straight and her bloom is full.  My friend sent me the above picture today as proof. The photo may be a little dark... But that girl is SHINING!

And aren’t we just like that? Sometimes it feels like our circumstances have us sitting on the discount rack at the feed and seed store.  Sometimes just a lack of one on one companionship and the sheer busyness of life is enough to shrivel up the soul… and have our leaves looking dry… brittle… translucent. Sometimes the weight of the crushing gets in the way and we humans just don’t see a way out…

But. God.

With a touch of tenderness… and a sip of Living Water… We begin to transform into the image who we are meant to be.  A drink of fresh hope infused into our veins allows us to stand a little taller… straighter… and the color to comes back to our bloom.   

And the perfect spot for us to succeed and bloom… It exists. 

After seeing the way this girl regained her luster… I just want to imagine myself sitting in the proverbial perfect sunny spot… In the patch of sunlight on the back of the kitchen sink… Overlooking the “real” garden outside.  And soaking up juuuuust the perfect amount of warmth through the glass as I’m soaking up the goodness of my Father. He knows EXACTLY where I need to be.  And He has exactly the right wisdom to provide the water and warmth that I need to thrive. 

You too.

Don’t we all feel a little parched?

In this day and age, just turning on a screen of any kind can feel like a physical assault.  It’s overwhelming at times… Simply overwhelming.

But God.

I’m daily feeling the call to share the refreshing taste of Living Water to a world that is dry… desperate… parched… Thrown on the discount rack to die.  Come and see that there is hope!  Come and see that the water is gentle and kind…. And leads to life!  Come and see!

And I’m feeling the pull to point back to the steadiness of a humble faith.  Look at what faith can do!  It can firmly secure those roots!  And once they are secured firmly in a foundation with the One who created us… We can tilt our heads to catch the light of the Son… Sun… Yes.  He is able to heal.  He is able to pour life back into tired and dry bones.  He is able.

And won’t He do it!

My friend probably has no idea how much her little dahlia breathed life into me this day.  She probably doesn’t realize how important those sweet words were.  “If I had known what the Father was going to do for her… and how quickly… I would have taken a picture of her when I got her.”

And the prayers come as the faces pass before me.  People I know who have been struggling…. People who I know have been hurting… Drying up… Losing their color as the days drag long… as the tests come back inconclusive…. As the answers just don’t come.  So many who feel parched… Dry.  Brittle. Weary.  I see the snapshots of their lives and I’m praying.  Lord move! Move quickly.  Restore the years that have been lost to pain and exhaustion.  Restore the years that were spent with dread as a companion and grief in dried up bones.  Father be yourself… The perfection that the body of believers needs so desperately as we continue walking in faith towards the goal of eternity.  Please restore! 

And as we regain our strength, and see you move... Because we KNOW you'll move.  Please remind us to look to our left and to our right…  along the road… Help us to see the others who are burdened down and heavy right now.  Please speak the words they need to hear through our hands and feet.  Allow us to represent you well as we replicate your love for those around us.

Thank you so much Lord, for the “dahlia” moments.  Thank you for quenching our thirst and turning us towards Your light. Again… and again… and again.   Please continue to be our everything… Our enough.