The Upper Room 30th September 2022 || Daily Devotional

Topic: Last Year’s Lilies
Shawn M. Wilson (Maryland, USA)

TODAY’S READING
Revelation 21:1-5

The one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” – Revelation 21:5 (NRSV)

Last week I noticed something in our yard that had escaped my attention for an entire season. In all of my comings and goings from home, I had failed to see several lilies that were on the verge of blooming.

The lilies were from last year’s Easter service. My wife and I had brought them home and diligently cared for them. However, instead of discarding the lilies when they died, we planted them near the entryway of our home. Somehow, they survived the cold, hard winter. Then with the spring sun and the rejuvenating showers, last year’s lilies bloomed again.

We have all had to bury something in a season of hardship and uncertainty. In doing so, perhaps we yielded to the spirit of loss. But we can all find strength in the fact that God has the power to revive, restore, renew, and even resurrect. Indeed, God can turn tragedies into triumphs and what we perceive as failure into freedom. Now even if I do not see the beauty of last year’s lilies, I cannot escape their delightful fragrance. It is the aroma of God who makes all things new.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, help us to perceive your power to create and recreate in every season of life. Amen.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
I will trust God’s power to make all things new.

PRAYER FOCUS
To care for God’s creation