Two Wooden Roses

Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore! ~Psalms 113:2

4 years ago I underlined and scratched out a quick note in the margin of my Bible on page 510. "Wooden handmade and painted roses". Psalms 113:2-3 stuck out to me in a new way. I had spent some time one afternoon with my Grandma and her friend, Gerry. Gerry was full of gladness and joy. After spending a couple hours with her, I felt like we were old friends. Just walking around her house I could plainly see that she thinks about all the little ways God speaks to her and wants to bless her heart. She loves doing life with the Lord. She had a purpose and a story to just about every little thing in her home…right down to why she placed an item in a certain place. Real home museum. Real grace shown. Everyday belongings didn’t seem so ordinary anymore. I could see how Gerry not only made her heart God’s home, but also the physical roof above her head and everything taking up space between the four walls belonged to Him. She lived in His sanctuary. She breathed in every gift He had given to her. She lives to show that God gives ordinary things purpose. 

As we moved down to her basement we came across her craft corner. She told me she had something for me then reached down in a box. She pulled out a foil package and handed it to me. Inside were two handmade wooden roses. Painted wooden roses. She proceeded to tell me that she wants me to keep them and think about what they represent. She told me, you represent one rose and God is the other. Remember that you were handmade by God. Unique and made in His image. Remain by His side all the days of your life. The colors of the roses remind you of the sunshine. “From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!” ~Psalms 113:3 The foil was embracing these two wooden roses. She challenged me to reflect Jesus wherever I go.

Wow. Two wooden roses were not just two wooden roses anymore. They had purpose. Something ordinary now revealing splendor. We ended our time up in her sun room a.k.a her prayer room. We finished chatting, prayed together, hugged, then Grandma and I made our way out the front door, meandered through her little garden, and drove away, glancing back at Gerry’s house in the rear view mirror.

As I was cleaning my room yesterday, I saw the two roses sitting together high on a shelf. They have become dusty, but their meaning shines on. Although I haven’t seen or talked to Gerry since that day, I've not forgotten the message behind those two roses. She planted a seed in my heart and I’m grateful for that. I was blessed to meet Gerry, a woman who readily seeks out ways to highlight God’s truths and purposes in everyday things. She encouraged me that God wants to be a part of everything in my life. He is our foundation.

Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord! Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore! From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised! The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens! Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? ~Psalms 113:1-6.Friends, may we never stop praising the Name above ALL names. The Lord has done great things. Sun up to sun down, He alone deserves our praise. Remember that you were handmade by the God of the universe. You are unique and God has given you gifts and a PURPOSE. You are not an accident. God has breathed life into you “for such a time as this”~ Esther 4:14. He desires to have a relationship with you. We cannot be satisfied with anyone/anything else, but Him. His presence is what we long for. His love never lets us go. He is faithful.

Be blessed and walk forth this week proclaiming the glory of the Lord- sun up to sun down.