Moss

As always, as usual, as the ever constant norm for me, I was arriving LATE last night to meet up with a group of people to pre-pray before the Friday night service at church. As I was hurriedly emerging from my car and walking across the parking lot something green caught my eye. Where the black asphalt thickly overlaps the white concrete curb there was bright green moss growing on the edge of the inky asphalt. I stopped and ewww and ahhhh with delight and spied that all along this edge the lovely little mounds of moss grew. This particular part of the parking lot was shaded by a row of trees planted in the median. I wondered for a moment what all ideal climatic conditions must have occurred to let this little crop of vivid green lushness flourish on the black rocky pavement.

I then scooted off and rushed into the church only to realize I had somehow in my hustle left behind my beloved water bottle. I waited until we were done praying and my friend Beth accompanied me out to the parking lot to retrieve my necessary H2O. When I pointed out to her the moss she responded with delight just as I had. She confessed that when she had tried to grow moss in her house she couldn't get it to thrive or survive. I inquired had she misted it often, since I know that many delicate and high maintenance plants require oh, so many puffs of aqua from the ole' spray bottle. She said she misted away and coaxed and cajoled but the moss did not deign to live.

I thought to myself, Wow, I picked the perfect person to point out the prettiness of the moss because only someone who has actually tried to grow this, could truly appreciate what a wonder it was to see it growing there in the un-likeliest of places. Nobody was cultivating this glowing, green softness with loving care, nobody other than the Lord was providing it all the necessities to facilitate its life sprouting out of the tary rocks of the blacktop.

Sometimes it only is the Lord that is sustaining our lives, sometimes only He can provide us the nutrients, and mist our very souls with His love that gives us life. And it can be in the most obscure and bizarre places that the Lord can reveal His glory to us. I mean seriously, I saw it in bright green moss. Much later in the evening when I was finally leaving the church and I was walking back to my car with Mr. B, I said, “Oh, there is some moss growing on the pavement...” and before I could finish my sentence, He said, “I don't care about trying to see some moss right now, it's late.” I wasn't planning on showing it to him exactly because at that time of night the parking lots amber lighting would not have been conducive to full appreciation of the other worldly color of the green growth. But I didn't even finish my sentence and I realized that sometimes people don't even want to really see God's hand in things, sometimes it's to late, I'm to tired, I don't care or I don't feel like it...get in the way of even trying to see the miracles of the Lord's goodness all around us.

Isaiah 44:23 “Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.”

So Lord we ask that you reveal to us today and everyday your goodness, love and the miracles that you do through us and in us and all around us. Thank you for them and thank you for misting this moss here and giving me life and love especially in the un-likely places of my heart. Let nothing stop your glory from growing on me and in me, to me and through me. Thank you for all that you are and will be forever.

Heaven helped me on 5/17/08