From Strength to Strength...Consider the Lilies

“… Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”   Matthew 6:28-29

It’s August and the summer days are waning. If you’re anything like me, you are still hanging onto the season…feasting your eyes (when you can) on the beautiful lush landscapes…and still enjoying the long daylight hours.  As I’m writing this I’m sitting outside and also smiling at the sounds of neighborhood children playing a crazy game of kickball next door.  There are a couple squirrels running along the back fence and a brazen little rabbit, is poised in the yard, taunting my golden retriever.   The birds are chirping their evening melody and I’m still noticing the faint aroma of someone’s charcoal grill…and evening meal, nearby. 

My senses are taking in all the peace and it becomes a prayer. 

Some have called this a prayer of consideration: one in which we purposefully raise our minds and hearts to God, while still steeped in the concrete circumstances of our world.  It’s a prayer of awareness, acknowledging what we are experiencing and sharing it with our God, Who is within and around us.
 
Jesus did this a lot as He used His awareness for object lessons in His teaching.  Here He contrasts the magnificent beauty of field lilies, wild flowers much akin to our colorful anemones…with our needless worry over daily provision. 

What are you seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling right now?  How about earlier today or during your morning run or walk…or even your drive into work? 

I have a dear friend who worships many mornings at the magnificent sunrises she experiences on her way to the office.  She then snaps phone photos of them.  What a wonderful reminder later, during a low point in her day, as she’s able to once again gaze upon the images she had captured that morning. 

What simple ways can you incorporate prayers of consideration into the concrete circumstances of your world?  They’re all around you. 

 “Consider the lilies…”  

Resources for Going Deeper:
​​"Busy Lives & Restless Souls" by Becky Eldredge