Armored Lily of the Valley

May 2025

we seem to always strive for mountaintop views

a cool breeze flitting off their rocky cliffs

all to escape the heat of the valleys of our lives

How, God?

When, Lord, will You give me that fervor to sound off over your hills,

to shout Your praises so they may echo for all to hear?

Suddenly,

I realize:

all this time, I had my eyes on the sky,

my eyes fixed on You and our goals and how hard it would be to make it to those peaks.

All the while, Your flowers bloomed in the valley,

and I,

in anticipation of Your provision,

left a trampled trail of buds behind me;

tears from heaven rain down

washing away their petals

crying eyes for the joy in my epiphany

that Your presence is found in the present

our provision is a guarantee,

we need only to take the next right step

and then the next

and the next.

we seem to always strive for mountaintop views

but haven’t you ever noticed

the abundance of flowers

in the valley?