HOPE!

  Water Lily Photo by Jay Castor on Unsplash.

The water lily pictured above floats on the surface of the water.  The two-to-three-foot stalks and leaves contain air spaces that make this possible.  The leaves of lily pads have a waxy surface and are notched to help them shed water.  These pads have thorns on the bottom of the leaves which help protect them from fish who might otherwise decide to make them their evening meal.  

The beautiful bloom has a few tricks to make sure it gets pollinated.  Some are thermogenic!  They have the ability to raise the temperature within their petals helping to disperse their amazing sent and attract cold blooded critters to their nectar.  Once inside the bloom, it closes and keeps the bug, usually beetles, inside for 24 hours.  The beetle gets massively covered with pollen.  When released, it goes to another bloom, and it gets pollinated!  Clever!!! 

Water lilies also play an important role in the aquatic ecosystem.  The flowers and pads provide shade in the water which keeps it cooler and prevents excessive growth of algae which thrives in heat.  They also provide shelter for fish who would otherwise become dinner for predatory birds. 

I remember the water lilies in the cove below my house.  Even as a child their beauty and wonder filled me with a kind of reverence.  I couldn’t pick one, never did.  How could such beauty rise untouched out of the mud and murky water?  Others have noticed them too!  In fact, the white-water lily is the national flower of Bangladesh, and the blue water lily is the national flower of Sri Lanka!  The Buddhists and Hindus believe that the water lily represents resurrection and enlightenment because the plant emerges from the mud and murky water into the light to produce one of the most beautiful blossoms in the world!  TRUE!  They know how to read ‘the book of nature!’  What about Christians?  It should be our National Flower!  It is the perfect representation of resurrection!  ‘He brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock and established my steps.’ Psalm 40:2. NKJV. It is a powerful symbol of hope!

Shall we start a national campaign?

There are so many people who have found this hope and risen above the muck and mire of life to blossom like the beautiful water lily!

I recommend that you read, ‘From the Foster House to the White House’.

The book is described by Amazon ‘as the poignant and triumphant story of Terrence K. Williams, who was born into nothing; neglected, starved, abused, and beaten, a product of the foster home system. He grew up without a table to sit at, let alone food to eat, yet today is endeared by millions of fans and followers…and welcomed at the White House!

A heart-wrenching yet ultimately victorious story, you’ll cry and laugh as you experience his life through Terrence’s eyes. With the odds stacked against him, Terrence believed that a hard life is still a valuable life. He let his deprived upbringing shape him, not destroy him. Surrounded by a victim hood mentality, he pushed himself to reject the acceptance that his life would never be better. Today he’s a popular voice for common-sense and a defender of freedom.

This is the story of being let down by a system but not letting yourself down. If you’re facing challenges and obstacles that seem insurmountable, Terrence’s story will inspire and motivate you to find opportunities to grow in whatever situation you face. You’ll discover how you can join Terrence as a part of the American Dream!’

Joyce Meyer the Charismatic Christian author, speaker and president of Joyce Meyer Ministries often shares her testimony of how God raised her up out of the miry clay of sexual abuse by her own father to a beautiful life of forgiveness, redemption and ministry!  If you have listened to her, I’m sure you will agree that she is indeed a beautiful flower and a major blessing to people all over the world!

Here is a partial list of famous people who came from foster homes:  Pierce Bronson, (007), John Lennon, Eddie Murphy, Steve Jobs and Cher!  

President Abraham Lincoln was raised in a one-room log cabin!!!!  

Next time you see a water lily, this symbol of hope, pray for those who are still stuck in the murk and mud of life that they will call upon the name of the Lord whose water lily promise assures us that He is able to lift us ‘out of the miry clay’.

Did you know that in the Amazon, there is a water lily, Victoria Amazonica, whose gigantic floating leaves measure 10 feet across, will hold 66 pounds on their surface and are held in place by a stalk that is 23 to 26 feet long?!!!  It is another of GODS WONDERS.  It reminds me of the scripture from Job 5:9: 

‘He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.’ Aren’t you glad!  What a God He is!!!!!!

Do yourself a favor, click on the link below and watch the video ‘A Lilly Pad You Can Sit On’! 

https://youtu.be/efBWJHIrulo