Lenten reflection…
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels–a plentiful harvest of new lives.
John 12:24, NLT
For months I have inattentively tended a grocery-store orchid perched on the shelf of my bathroom window. I do not pretend to know what will help this fragile flower bloom other than the basics: light, water, soil. Debby Kelly told me to place an ice cube near the flower’s tangled roots although for the life of me I cannot imagine why a tropical plant would enjoy a weekly ice bath! I sweep away the cloud of steam frosting the bathroom mirror after my morning shower and I notice a string of pink-laced dark green pearls dangling from a necklace branch, so velvety to the touch that I exhale softly in surprise. Such delicate jewels outlined against a gray sky laden with a winter’s grief. Today, maybe tomorrow, these buds will open, revealing the hidden secrets of the botany of Divine Joy, the fresh mercies that fill hearts hollowed by a nighttime of weeping.
Prayer practice: Walk mindfully this gray winter day taking time to imagine greening evidences of a promised resurrection.