Unexpected Blessings

Yesterday I got flowers! And not just any flowers. Probably the most beautiful bouquet I’ve ever received. When Cindy, our receptionist, called to tell me they’d arrive, I really couldn’t imagine who would have sent ME flowers. I couldn’t think of any reason why anyone would. . .

Then I remembered that just a few days ago I’d thought, “Boy, I wish I had someone in my life who’d send me flowers.” God’s response to this idea was to remind me, “You have me.” My reaction, “Yes, but. . .you don’t send flowers.” I pondered this while walking to the reception area, thinking, “That’s silly. God doesn’t send flowers!”

With growing curiosity I opened the card, and found a beautiful note from a sister in the church who I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of meeting with weekly for the past few months. I was moved to tears by her sweet words of encouragement. And the flowers. . .a most beautiful arrangement of purple irises (my favorite flower) and purple and violet roses, which I’ve never seen before. Their beauty gripped my heart, even as I was thinking, “She didn’t need to do this.” Fleetingly I wondered how she could know about my love of the purple iris, and mildly enjoyed this coincidence.

Only later did another lady in the church point out to me that the flowers looked just like the photos of irises I had hanging on my office wall. Mystery explained. . .or was it just the beginning of the explanation. These photos had been given to me by another church member very dear to my heart, only because we’d talked earlier about my love of irises.

As I reflected on these events last night, I thought again of how alone I’ve been feeling. How I’ve been struggling to feel what I know to be true, that my Father cares for me; that truly I am not alone. Especially as I deal with my illness, and look forward to the move to Guatemala, I am increasingly aware of being a single woman, alone in making decisions, and alone in facing the future. And I’ve been whining to Him about this. . . sure, God, I want You to be enough for me, but I could use someone with skin on to walk with me. Or at least could you give me some sign You’re in this with me?

And I began to inventory the signs He’s given me in the last week while I’ve been processing this with Him. Some seem downright silly—easily explained by chance.

Last Friday we got take-out Chinese. As I was about to open my fortune cookie, I thought, “God, I really need to hear from you. Too bad you don’t write fortune cookies.” You can imagine how taken aback I was when I opened mine to read, “God will bless your ways,” or something like that. Actually, after being startled to see the work “God” I’d quickly thrown it away in fear of being superstitious—after all, God does NOT write fortune cookies, just like He doesn’t send flowers.

I could quickly come up with about ten explainable “miracles” in the last week—including tonight when a friend gave me two tickets to a concert (which I’d forgotten to get tickets for!). So, there’s the question. Is a blessing any less a gift from Him, just because it comes by way of a human being? I’m grateful for the those who care enough to bless me, but I’m even more grateful for their willingness to be used by Him, even if they didn’t know it!