A Blessing as Flowers Bloom

And for new life that happens in our hearts

Every springtime when we visited the farm, I used to look at my husband’s grandmother and say, “Gran Gran, I just love your flowers!” The vibrant fuchsia, crisp white, and deep magenta flowers were such a stunning display out her old windows. They were always one of my favorite things about visiting the farm. She’d smile, huff a little, turn to my husband and say, “Now Bobby,” she’d declare in her deep Georgia accent, “You need to buy Bri some azaleas!” I’d always laugh at her enthusiasm and then my husband’s eye roll to follow.

Little did Gran Gran know, that her beloved farm would one day be my home. I never thought that I’d get to look out the window and see such beautiful flowers blooming.

I guess my husband did get me azaleas after all.

The blooming of flowers is an invitation to see the beauty of God’s presence in His creation.

The view from my front porch in the spring!

---

The prayer that I offer today is an invitation to slow down, look around you (and inside your heart), noticing if there’s any hope starting to bloom. The winter, metaphorically and literally, can be a deeply lonely place. There are so many times I’ve looked out the window of my own home, and soul, wondering when the coldness will ease and blooms will begin to show.

I’m no gardener, but what I do know is sometimes it takes years for flowers to bloom for the first time.

All is not lost.

There is always hope.

Hope often doesn’t come in the way we anticipate. But when hope does bloom—the exquisite display of beauty catches our breath and reminds us that we are deeply loved.

May we be surprised today by the hope blooming from places we thought had died.

May we be invited to bask in the smile of Jesus upon us.

May we be reminded that hope is held for us when we cannot hold it ourselves.

A Prayer for the Blooming of Flowers

---

Oh God, the winter of life has felt so long, barren, and cold.

The longings of my heart have been hidden away in you—

packed in dirt, and taking deeper root.

The cold nights have felt so long, but were a necessary preparation for where you have brought me today.

///

But what I thought was dead has now pushed through the earth to be seen—

the shoots of life coming forth in full force.

The buds I have witnessed form, are nothing but a miracle on full display.

There are blooms that have started to unfold their delicate petals—vulnerably showing their life to the world.

///

Oh God, as I look at the marvelous flowers out my window,

as I dig my hands into the depths of the dirt to plant and weed,

as my children bring in blooms squished between dirt-caked hands—

may I remember that You are always forming and creating.

You always hold life.

You always hold hope.

You always draw us into the beauty of creation that dances gloriously of your love.

You are all.

Thank you for the gift of experiencing You in the presence of a newly bloomed flower.

May we continually be invited into the posture of celebrating new life—no matter how small it may bloom.

Amen.

---

Substack always offers their writers the option to open up for paid subscriptions. I know many writers on this platform offer this to their subscribers, but for me, I hope to always keep what I offer here in this space free of charge. My husband and I serve in support-based missions work in diaspora ministry, specifically in immigrant and refugee care. If you want to support my writing—you could give a one-time or recurring donation to our ministry and that would be a huge blessing.