Dear Friends,
Last week, I turned the corner while walking around the neighborhood and came face-to-face with the most stunning thing. No, it wasn’t an iguana, or even one of those famous Palm Beach rats (that was another walk). This was an exotic-looking plant with showy, bright red clusters.
I immediately snapped a picture and posted it to Facebook with the caption, “No idea what this is, because I know nothing about tropical plants (okay, any plants really), but wow!” Within minutes, I had a number of folks commenting that it was Heliconia rostrata, aka hanging lobster claw aka false bird of paradise. Maury Wolfe, our Flower Guild chair, even let me know they usually add some to the altar arrangement on Pentecost!
Being new to living in a sub-tropical climate, I still have lots of “Wow!” moments. In time, I’ll surely have fewer of them. But I hope we all retain a sense of wonder and awe when it comes to God’s creation. It’s easy to stop being wowed, not just by nature, but by God’s love, grace, and compassion. If we aren’t careful, the miraculous becomes merely mundane.
So this summer, I encourage you to be wowed by God. It may be the result of encountering a unique tropical plant, or a beloved hymn text that appears on your lips at just the right moment, or a sudden awareness that a deceased loved one is still very much present with you. Our God never ceases to amaze and inspire, as long as we have eyes to see and ears to hear.
Peace,
Tim+