One day on a stroll through the woods behind my house, I felt the closeness of my Lord and I walked with Him in my thoughts. His Holy Spirit has been a close companion of mine throughout my life and on this path that day, I stopped to pick a purple treasure hidden among the fallen leaves. My wounded heart, indeed, saw a chance for healing.
There had been many trials in my own life and now I was troubled with rumors of wrongdoing within the church. Our beloved minister was accused of having an affair with one of the young girls in the congregation and many lives had been affected. None of us are immune to temptations and try as we might, there comes a time we do fall victim to a weakness within. This young man, so admired and loved by the congregation was being condemned. I felt so torn between my compassion for him and the knowledge that what he had done was certainly not right. He had a lovely wife, two young daughters, and a wonderful life ahead of him.
God used him to speak to His people, through his eloquence of and his magnetic personality. This young man had been responsible for many lost souls to turn to Jesus, to attend our church, when other churches rejected them. It was like accepting the death of a beautiful thing. I knew that losing him would be a loss for God and a change in our lives. God be with you, Barry, wherever you are today.
"The Wood Violet" is one of my favorite poems God has given to me. The reading of it always gives me comfort and restores hope.
THE WOOD VIOLET
My heart within me cries out
As it weathers the storms of life.
It takes my wandering mind through the Forest.
Winter's cold is just behind us,
Signs of spring show under my feet.
I stoop to pick one of Nature's Treasures,
And I behold the beauty of THE WOOD VIOLET.
It brings tears to my eyes as I recall
The beauty of our love.
Tender and delicate petals of violet
Curve outward from a center of perfection
Formed by God.
A picture perfect creation set here in
The middle of a forest to remind us that
God never forgets the least of us -
In the darkest hour, from the very worst time
And darkest day,
God can create something so perfect
That just by seeing the Glory of its Beauty,
Our hearts can have the Hope of Healing.
Sara Gardner Blow