Purple Hellebore

As it was such a lovely afternoon,we decided that a quick lunch after church would be a good idea and then we went out for a walk to a local beauty spot.

It was sunny but quite cold so not many people about just the odd family feeding the ducks and a couple of dog walkers. I wanted to find something that would not only be a good blip but would also show that Spring is definitely on the way and something that would give hope.

We saw several clumps of snowdrops and it was hard to choose between them, but these Hellebore - possibly Helleborus Early Purple - won in the end. After all the rain we have had and the obvious sogginess of the garden, they had managed to push their way through the damp, cold ground, and were now delighting us on our afternoon walk.

It reminded me of some verses in the Gospel of Matthew, which we would all do well to read and remind ourselves of each day - and especially at the start of a new week:

"Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion-do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers-most of which are never even seen-don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

Matthew 6 : 27-34 - The Message

Have a great week, fellow blippers!