Fuqua Conservatory

Fuqua Conservatory

One of my favorite Bible passages is Matthew 6:25-34. It is my go to passage to share when a friend or relative tells me they are anxious or worried about their life.

This weekend I was in Atlanta with my daughter Meredith and we spent two hours wandering through the Botanical Garden in Piedmont Park. This garden is rated in the top 10 of best Botanical Gardens in the United States, and is simply magnificent.

As we started our tour, we walked on a 600-foot-long skywalk through the city’s only remaining urban forest and from 40 feet in the air we were able to view the woodland garden below. Meredith and I had fun trying to guess the names of the flowers, and having lived in the northeast we got many of them right. We then moved on to the Orchid Center and the Tropical High Elevation House which have precision heating and cooling systems to maintain the environment that allows these plants, native of Asia and South America, to thrive. It was this habitat that took my breath away and jolted my memory of those verses in Matthew.

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

The perfect formation and color combinations of these exotic orchids were a feast for the eyes. But it was the leaves of some of the larger plants that almost brought tears to my eyes and had me breathe the words, “Lord, the whole earth is full of your glory,” (Isaiah 6:3). These large leaves, some two feet long and almost a foot wide, were dark green with either horizontal or vertical white stripes and not a single imperfection in any stripe. Others had large white polka dot centers, again each leaf flawless. Still other plants had hundreds of tiny patterned leaves all identically perfect. I stood there in awe, seeing the divine nature and power of God (Romans 1:20). I couldn’t help but stop and pray, “Lord, thank you for this amazing reminder of what a perfect and loving Father you are and how very present you are in my life.”

So when life gets hectic, stop and smell the roses – or look at the leaves! Be thankful for the precious gift of faith in a Lord who is sovereign over all creation. Let the beauty in His handiwork remind you to seek Him out and to put your trust in Him. Because when you seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, you can be sure He will take care of everything else that you need.

Pin It on Pinterest