Recycling in hand I went towards the front door and before I got to it I looked out of my living room window and saw a girl getting up from where she had been crouching down just to the left of and in front of my hedge as she had inspected something that she had spotted in the strip of grass that runs between the road and the pavement. As she got up she had something about her that spoke of joy - that spoke of happiness - that spoke of those moments when we simply appreciate what is around us. She had a sparkle about her as she walked on in the early evening sunshine - the sunshine that seems to be more normal here than in anywhere else I have lived.
And in her hand was the source of her joy - one bright red wild poppy - a weed growing in the right place to be seen as a flower. It sparkled in the sunlight and glowed on her face..... and I longed to feel her moment of joy with her. It made me smile. It made my emotions rise to the surface as I saw the joy she had in God's creation - in that wild poppy - that weed growing in the right place at the right time.
It was the only poppy in the grass to the left of and in front of my hedge - I went out to look, a little disappointed that there wasn't one for me too. I wanted to hold onto that moment of joy she had, as, after a hard couple of weeks, I am craving a little bit of simplicity, a few moments of that simple pleasure of finding a bright red poppy amongst the grass that really could do with a cut - that bright red poppy that probably wouldn't even exist if the grass had been cut.
As Trump arrives in the UK and as we are reminded of all the broken relationships that occur because of buildings of barriers and walls; as we hear of another act of violence that leaves someone in a critical condition or even dead; as we hear the horrific stories of people who have been left with nothing because of the brokenness of the Government implementing universal credit; as we face waiting for results and tests and the next dreaded piece of information, we need those bright red poppies that grow in the grass that nobody has cut.
Because those small moments of joy - they are what keep us going. Those moments of joy when we find ourselves laughing at what seems an inappropriate moment, smiling like a reflex at what we have seen or heard, bursting into song when nobody is listening.... those moments of joy are what bring hope in the most difficult of situations..... those moments of joy show that it is not always going to be like this.... those moments of joy... they sparkle and the shine and they punch holes in the darkness.
Those moments of joy give us hints of what the Kingdom of God is like - treasure buried in a field that is more than enough to change the world, a tiny mustard seed that grows into something so big the birds can nest in it, yeast that changes the flour so much it becomes the most beautiful loaf of bread, the tiny bit of dark chocolate that makes a chilli into a taste sensation, the little seed from a wild poppy that scatters and becomes the red poppy that brings joy to a girl walking up my road......
Look out of the window, because you never know what you will see. Seek out those moments of joy, because however small, they begin to make the challenges of life just a little bit more bearable, and as we collect them, as we gather them, as we share them, as we embrace them, they build up.....and those moments of joy will grow and be scattered amongst the brokenness - making bridges across divides, destroying barriers that stop us in our tracks, comforting those who are mourning, restoring what is shattered and falling..... and pointing the way to the one who promises a day when all of this will be no more.
And in her hand was the source of her joy - one bright red wild poppy - a weed growing in the right place to be seen as a flower. It sparkled in the sunlight and glowed on her face..... and I longed to feel her moment of joy with her. It made me smile. It made my emotions rise to the surface as I saw the joy she had in God's creation - in that wild poppy - that weed growing in the right place at the right time. It was the only poppy in the grass to the left of and in front of my hedge - I went out to look, a little disappointed that there wasn't one for me too. I wanted to hold onto that moment of joy she had, as, after a hard couple of weeks, I am craving a little bit of simplicity, a few moments of that simple pleasure of finding a bright red poppy amongst the grass that really could do with a cut - that bright red poppy that probably wouldn't even exist if the grass had been cut.
As Trump arrives in the UK and as we are reminded of all the broken relationships that occur because of buildings of barriers and walls; as we hear of another act of violence that leaves someone in a critical condition or even dead; as we hear the horrific stories of people who have been left with nothing because of the brokenness of the Government implementing universal credit; as we face waiting for results and tests and the next dreaded piece of information, we need those bright red poppies that grow in the grass that nobody has cut.
Because those small moments of joy - they are what keep us going. Those moments of joy when we find ourselves laughing at what seems an inappropriate moment, smiling like a reflex at what we have seen or heard, bursting into song when nobody is listening.... those moments of joy are what bring hope in the most difficult of situations..... those moments of joy show that it is not always going to be like this.... those moments of joy... they sparkle and the shine and they punch holes in the darkness.
Those moments of joy give us hints of what the Kingdom of God is like - treasure buried in a field that is more than enough to change the world, a tiny mustard seed that grows into something so big the birds can nest in it, yeast that changes the flour so much it becomes the most beautiful loaf of bread, the tiny bit of dark chocolate that makes a chilli into a taste sensation, the little seed from a wild poppy that scatters and becomes the red poppy that brings joy to a girl walking up my road......
Look out of the window, because you never know what you will see. Seek out those moments of joy, because however small, they begin to make the challenges of life just a little bit more bearable, and as we collect them, as we gather them, as we share them, as we embrace them, they build up.....and those moments of joy will grow and be scattered amongst the brokenness - making bridges across divides, destroying barriers that stop us in our tracks, comforting those who are mourning, restoring what is shattered and falling..... and pointing the way to the one who promises a day when all of this will be no more.
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