I bought myself flowers from Trader Joes last week. White hydrangeas, little yellow daisies, and long, green, leafy filler. I arranged the bouquets into a mason jar and instead of placing it by the kitchen sink or on the entry way table, I set them beside my bed. I’ve never done this before.
Flowers aren’t cheap and die quickly. All three bundles cost me $12. Flowers should be enjoyed by the most people possible. They should grace the dining room table or greet guests as they walk in the door. I don’t deserve to horde their beauty all to myself. But this time I took them to my room. I even arranged the books nicely on my little table and put the random legos back where they belonged.
Every morning and evening, these flowers smiled at me. Their petals bent back and forth almost as though they were waving good morning and good night to me. The daisies delicately peeked at me with bashful glee. Beauty mirrors beauty. It’s true. It is almost as though beauty chases beauty in a jovial game of tag. When I see the glory of God manifest in nature, creation, people, art, or sound, I see God. When God sees me, He sees Christ covering me, and beauty abounds.
I felt slightly selfish buying myself flowers and arranging them just for me. But on this side of things, I don’t think it was. As much as I was chasing beauty, I think God was chasing after me. He was giving me something beautiful to enjoy. He was loving me.
We chase after a lot of things in life: influence, youth, security, peace, and control. I chase the need to be right, noticed, and admired. I want God, but I want all these other things too. I can really complicate things. I can make my relationship with God about all the things I am doing. I serve, work, sacrifice. I meet with Him, give and pray to Him. I can start to feel really good about myself when I look at all the things I’m doing for God. I so easily chase after God’s approval and praise. I make my relationship with God harder than it needs to be. I treat God like a distant relative whose attention I’m trying to get.
I forget these key words — love relationship. I get to have a love relationship with God. It’s not a give-and-take relationship. It is based on love. He wants to pour out grace and peace and freedom. When I have experiences with God like I did with the flowers, I receive a gift. I open my heart and let God’s love pours in. I am a child of God. I am His daughter. Imagine the most tender relationship between a father and daughter. Now, imagine this is how God desires to relate to you.
What if we were love chasers and receivers? What if we chased love and beauty like we chased kids at school recess — just for the fun of it? What if love-chasing circles endlessly around like a merry-go-round? What if we received love like a kid on Christmas morning? Joy is contagious. God loves play. We see it in the way the waves tackle each other on the shore, the way birds tease each and the stars shoot like fire crackers across the night sky. God loves to play with us. He loves when we participate in the play of beauty, and He loves to love us.
Delight, dear sisters. So often we make our relationship with God a task, duty, or check list. Delight in His love today. Open your eyes and be captivated by His beauty set out on display for you. And go buy some flowers — just for you.
So often we make our relationship with God a task, duty, or check list. Delight in His love today. -Anjuli Paschall: Click To Tweet Leave a Comment
Anjuli,
What if we received love like a kid on Christmas morning? … Indeed! I don’t remember Christmas gifts coming with a caveat of what I must do now that I’ve received the gift. There were no strings attached – just a gift given to give love and joy. I can be like you, Anjuli, thinking that if I do, earn, strive, I then “earn” the delight of the Lord. He loves me, even on the days when I feel like all I do is take up space on this earth. So true that it’s a relationship, not a give-and-take. I think we’re so used to human relationships that often get mixed up with expectations. God doesn’t have expectations, especially ones where he becomes disappointed if we don’t meet them. God is love. He can’t deny Himself. Heeding your challenge to just bask in His love for me today…I might even pick up some flowers 🙂
Blessings,
Bev xx
ps. For those of you prayer warriors who have been praying for my relationship with my grown kids…I had lunch with my son and his girlfriend yesterday. It was our first get together in almost a year. I believe God is growing hearts and mending fences. Not sure where this will go, but thanking God for answering my earnest prayer. Your prayers are heard and felt. God bless you…
Love and thanks,
Bev
Oh, That is incredible Glory to God!
So happy for you dear sister in Christ!
Appreciate your faithfulness to pray & sharing with us…God does answer prayers!
Blessings
Brenda
Brenda,
Thank you for your prayers and I love being able to share when prayers are answered in a tangible way!
Bev xo
That is wonderful news Bev!!
Continuing to pray for you and your children ❤️
Tanya,
Thanks SO much…you don’t know what that means to me!
Bev xo
Amen! What a blessing! I’m so happy for you, Bev!
Thanks Elizabeth!! Continuing to lift YOU in prayer as well. God is faithful!
Bev xo
BEV!
This is amazing news!
May God use this tiny step forward in HUGE ways to mend and rebuild!
Michele,
Yes, it’s a tiny step, but my heart took a huge leap! Thanks for your encouragement!
Bev xo
Bev,
Sweet sister so happy for you. God’s timing is not our own. May He continue to work on their hearts & change them. I pray they call you more & get the conversation rolling. I will keep praying for your family. Again happy for you!
Blessings 🙂
Beth
Beth,
I’m so thankful for (in)courage because it made our paths to cross. You are the ultimate in prayer warriors!
With love and thanks,
Bev xo
Praise God! Continuing prayers for complete healing and growth in your relationships.
Gail,
Thanks for those awesome prayers!! They are being heard and answered!
Bev xo
Bev, this is great news! What a blessing.
Robin,
I wanted to be able to share a thanks and praise…especially after so many prayers!
Bev xo
What an answer to prayer!!!
Heidi,
Thanks for sharing in my joy in prayer being answered!
Bev xo
So pleased God is working here in your life Bev xx He certainly loves you and hears your heart. Praying this is the start of many lunches. Walk prayerfully Bev xx
Jas,
Thanks so much for sharing in my joy and for being such an awesome prayer warrior!! Praying for you…that the enemy of doubt and guilt would flee from YOU!
Blessings,
Bev xo
Anjuli,
God earnestly desires a relationship with us. So often we think Phariseeical. We believe we must follow all the rules, do so much work & behave a certain way for Him to love us. All He asks of us is to communicate with Him. Churches don’t always preach about relationships. You don’t hear talk about baptism & God’s great love for you simply because He made you. To often we hear about rules to follow or things to do/not do & ask God for anything like He’s a genie. Little children get it. They see Jesus like a daddy. Someone who loves them deeply & dearly. We need to go back to our youth when we were giddy for Christmas. Gifts given because they love us. We did nothing to earn those gifts. That is the same way with God.
John 3:16 God SO LOVED the world that HE gave HIS only Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. No strings attached. He doesn’t ask a thing of us. Just believe that Jesus died for you sins. Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God is with you, He is a Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” That same God who died for you also rejoices over you with singing. Again no strings attached.
Blessings 🙂
This is so beautiful. My flowers are always in my living area. Might just have to change that. There are times I bought them for myself and had my husband ask to pay for them. I said “no, that’s okay”. I wanted to say, “sorry bud, ya lost your chance”. Flowers are God’s creation and buying them for myself is a sign of HIS love for me. His UNCONDITIONAL love unlike people in my life.
Hi Anjuli,
Great message. It was so refreshing because this life we live always causes us to come to God with demands and desires. But, to just spend time in His love with no agenda or task encourages “true” intimacy. Thanks for the reminder…. Charisse 🙂
Amen! I love this devotion you have shared. So simple and so sweet. Thank you Anjuli. Have a blessed Monday sisters \ 0 /
love the write up. I think any small reminder of God in our lives is perfect..seeing the beauty of his creation in those flowers and seeing how much more WE are his creation is connecting with God.
I love to go for walks and just enjoy the things he created..he made them out if love for us to enjoy and in this busy busy world..to remind us he was here long ago setting it up for us.
enjoy your flowers and the beauty of the gift of God . thank him daily for all he has made , pouring out love only takes a few minutes but changes our day completely.
Anjuli,
What a great reminder to delight in His love! Thank you friend!
Erin
Some people who have never been given the type of love like some children are given and therefore, using myself as an example, we struggle to see and understand that in true love there are no expectations, just pure love.
I am still struggling with equating love to myself as being without performance or duty of some kind or another, but yet I am able to be openly and gracefully loving to others. I am knowing how to be forgiving, graceful, kindhearted, generous with even my own enemies, but not to myself.
But this week I am choosing to bless me. I am taking a calligraphy class, working on my arts and crafts that bring me joy and I am signing up for the Christmas Choir.
As a Survivor of lengthy Childhood abuse and neglect, Domestic Violence, and in a second long Marriage with a Special Needs Man whom is mostly noncommunicative its been a hard struggle to get to this point.
I am so proud of my success in being Brave enough to just love me for me.
Praying for you Karen that you will see yourself as Jesus sees you, as God sees you. His creation, fearfully and wonderfully made. Amen
I saw this in the your version bible app today a declaration to self and thought of you.
My Faith Declaration
I believe that my life was perfectly designed by God in every way! I affirm that all the intricate details that make me who I am—my body shape, my personality type, and my intellect—were purposefully woven together by Him. No matter what I have been taught, what has been said to me, or what sin I have committed, nothing can change the fact that God loves me and beautifully created me to bring Him glory!