“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are.”

(Matthew 6:28-29)

Have you discovered beauty where you never suspected it would be? Perhaps you traveled far away and marveled at an eagle soaring high or a sunset that melted into the ocean. Have you gasped as a child passionately sang “Jesus Loves Me”? There’s hidden beauty in God’s work.

Clippers in hand, I grabbed a bucket, put on my garden gloves, stepped up to one of the 26 rose bushes in my front yard, and began snipping. All the while, talking to my roses, “You are so beautiful! Lord, thank You for this one.”

I work myself around to the back of the bush. “Lord, even when we don’t see it, beauty surrounds us. Praise Your name!”

Where God placed the roses didn’t matter. They rested where they were placed, and God delighted in their colors and different shapes.

“Rain-drenched and smiling!”

“Ruffled petals, awaiting to bless the bees.”

“Spirals of red and yellow, blessing God … and onlookers.”

The rains in Southern California have blessed us with bountiful flowers and beauty galore. I can’t imagine Solomon’s clothing as beautiful as these blossoms.

The roses don’t care whether anyone sees them. They don’t work hard to be noticed. They rest in the nourishment of the bush and display their beauty where they are planted. Whether they are in the front where people can see them from the front or whether they are hidden, they open their petals wide as if praising God.

Unfurled petals and basking in the dew drops and sunshine, the roses display their beauty before God. Their way of bowing before His throne.

My roses spoke to me today. Wherever God has placed me, may my hidden work open up to the Lord, and like the Psalmist, may I sing.

“One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in His temple.”

Psalm 27:4

Father, thank You for the beauty that You have created in nature and in people. You are beautiful and Your works are glorious. The hidden beauty in Your works points us to You. May we see the hidden beauty in Your works and glorify You. Amen.

May you stop today and gaze upon the hidden beauty in God’s works in nature, in people, and in yourself.