One of my neighbors, Jen, works at wedding venues, various meetings and gatherings. Often after the beautiful wedding or gathering is over and lights are dimmed “a star of the night- a flower”might just be a galore of beautiful but maybe tired and droopy flowers left on tables. And, their “purpose” is over.
Often, a Bride, Mother or other will still be around as the tables are being cleared and goodbyes are being said and they will ask, “is there someone that can use these flowers?”
My neighbor, Jen, will say, “I would like to take them to my neighbor that I know will repurpose them”. Interestingly, I’m the neighbor and I was never asked about my new duty. I woke up one Sunday morning with a porch full of beautiful flowers wondering what is this?
I found out pretty quick that I had been gifted with beautiful flowers to do as I pleased.
I bathed in their beauty, danced with delight and thought how could I be so blessed to be gifted like this? I was told it was midnight on a Saturday night when all were very tired and workers looking and yearning for their beds yet stopped by my porch and left vases and boxes of flowers. What must I do with them?
My prayer went something like this, “Oh Lord. What am I to do with these? They need some work to survive!” Of course call Debi, she works in flowers all day. Why give her another job I thought? And, who are they for? Then peace came when I whispered, maybe half-hearted, “who are they for? “
Another neighbor had recently loss her husband. We didn’t know them well and had watched the funeral party coming and going and thought, comfort her Lord and went about our days. To be honest *1)he wasn’t a very likable old chap to some of us.
Oh yes, yet Debi made his widow a gorgeous vase of flowers. She conditioned the flowers and arranged them like only designer Debi could do. We wrote a card sending our prayers and words of condolences to a grieving widow. They were delivered to her door just at a moment when encouragement was much needed. We received a beautiful response. 🙏
Yes, a vase of repurposed flowers has opened a flood-gate of many more flowers and we have added *2) spiritual-purpose written notes to soothe the soul and heal the bones.
New ideas and various venues for their use. Some not able to keep fresh but dried and used for teaching children in various organizations among other deliveries of surprises when one just needed to know, “God always cares”!
*1) “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”
Proverbs 16:7 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/pro.16.7.NKJV
*2)“Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.”
Proverbs 16:24 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/pro.16.24.NKJV
It’s been such a joy to be a part of repurposing flowers for the purpose of being used as the hands of Jesus to encourage one another. I hope I will often call to remembrance the following scripture when wondering how to help others when gold and silver are not readily available. Or, at least amounts I’m willing to part with.
“Acquiring wisdom is much better than gold, and acquiring understanding is better than silver.”
Proverbs 16:16 CEB
https://bible.com/bible/37/pro.16.16.CEB
thedailylily.com 
What I see throughout the blog that Sara expresses so well as a master wordsmith and a weaver of words and truth is, …” when one just needed to know, “God always cares”!
It seems He knew and cared about all His purposes and had a purpose for each thing and person, which seems to relate to this scripture, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1. These are words of wisdom from wise Solomen, which reminds me of Sara’s scripture thoughts, “Acquiring wisdom is much better than gold, and acquiring understanding is better than silver.”
Proverbs 16:16 CEB”
It seemed God wanted nothing wasted just like the lesson Jesus taught His disciples in John 6: 12, “And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” And givers and gatherers Bride, Mother, Jen all responding to God’s plans and purpose for them.
God purposed for the receivers too, bringing to mind this scripture, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” Jeremiah 29:11
“God always cares”! Reading all Sara wrote above, really shows and confirms this.
Thanks Debi, for sharing confirming scriptures of God’s love and care for His children. So encouraging to be reminded of His promises. Beauty and Hope shines through hHs promises. The one you shared from Jeremiah is so encouraging to share with ourselves and others. Jen, the flower girl in our blog read the blog early this am and I’m sharing parts from her response.
“Oh WOW Sara !! That is just so amazing.
Made me smile. And even gave me shivers of joy!! I cant wait for the next chapter!! I always wanted to write a book, but I never had the right words to put down on the paper… I could’ve given you a story and you could’ve put it into the right words and we could’ve been book authors together.
Debi has done such a great job with everything she is doing with the kids.”
Sharing is beauty. Think a bit on this; “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”Romans 10:17 NKJVhttps://bible.com/bible/114/rom.10.17.NKJV
*1) “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”
Proverbs 16:7 NKJV
The footnotes for this verse says: (NLT) “We want other people to like us, and sometimes we will do almost anything to win their approval. But God tells us to put our energy into pleasing him instead. Our effort to be peacemakers, will usually make us more attractive to those around us, even our enemies. But even if it doesn’t, we haven’t lost anything. We are still pleasing God, the only one who truly matters.” 🙏
Tammy, aren’t these words encouraging and soothing to the soul. Please God and all will be well for those that please Him. This is truly freedom for us since maybe some of us often try too hard to please or impress others to no avail.
Yes, these words are “encouraging and soothing to the soul,” Sara. 🥰🙏
Sara, you wrote above“…Some not able to keep fresh but dried…”
Today, my high school Plant Science students that I teach got to experience working with many of these ‘re-purposed’ flowers that had been dried. Some students filled the ‘re-purposed’ glass containers with sand that the masonry class provided, and then arranged the bouquets that had been hanging to dry (pictures above) in them, adding special touches such as ribbons. Others decorated baskets with the dried material of leaves, and whole flower heads. Petals from roses and other flowers were used to learn to make potpourri with orris root powder as a fixative and essential oils to add fragrance.
The learning opportunities that these flowers provided was a wonderful addition to the class and the students enjoyed it very much! Many thanks!!