Stop and smell the roses.

It’s greening!  This is as exciting as, “It’s snowing!”  It’s just a different season.

There are so many buds popping you can almost hear it.  I drove between a couple of orchards last week on the bike and the sweet perfume of pollen was rich in the air (sorry, allergy sufferers).  There are shades of white, pink, rose, and yellow.  There is the tulip farm on Seventh Ave that has an entire field ablaze in colour.

After that damp, blah, snowless winter, even the colour of dandelions is a feast for the eyes.  There is little beauty in grey and chilly.  If we are going to have winter, let’s have one with the beauty of fresh snowfalls. crunchy steps, and rosy cheeks.  But I digress.  Back to the wondrous spring.

The beauty we are all appreciating became a useful teaching tool for Jesus.  In His famous “Sermon on the Mount” (Matt. 5-7), Jesus refers to the flowers of the field as examples of God’s creative care.  Jesus repeats the imagery of flowers as symbolic of God’s care as He approached the end of His time on earth (Luke 12).  It isn’t just that God likes flowers and thought they would “pretty up” His creation, the beauty of flowers is an expression of both His creativity and providence.

The phrase, “Stop and smell the roses” holds great wisdom.  The phrase was coined by Walter Hagen in his book, The Walter Hagen Story, published in 1956.  A 2012 study by psychologist Nancy Fagley (published in The Journal of Personality and Individual Differences) confirmed that being in awe of nature contributed to one’s sense of happiness and satisfaction with life.

There is a bigger point here.  This isn’t just about feeling happy or being satisfied.  This IS about living with confidence that no matter how I may perceive my current reality, there is a Heavenly Father, who is also the Creator of all things, who is concerned for and caring over every detail of my life.  Often, though, that care and creativity is difficult for us to perceive directly.  When life is going sideways, we need a more tangible reminder.

Enter the flowers.  Whether it is a simple dandelion or a rare orchid or a common garden-variety tulip, the beauty - visually, olfactorily (smelling the flower), or being mesmerized by the botanical details, a pause to interact with a flower can reset our perspective.  Jesus’ exact words are:

 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?  And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (Matt. 6:27-34 ESV)

Do you want to do something super-spiritual today?  Here it is:  go for a walk.  Look at the beauty of God’s created order.  Pause, and listen to the sounds of nature.  Walk over to a flower and look at it.  Take the time to study and observe it.  Perhaps you will experience the added bonus-blessing of seeing a bee doing its thing (don’t be afraid - the bee just wants the pollen and nectar).  Take the time to watch and observe.  Allow your mind to be absorbed by the beauty of this single, simple detail of God’s creation.

And now, consider this:  if God can craft such a beauty into an object whose existence is that of a few days or weeks - months at best, how much more does He craft purpose and value into us, His image-bearers?  How much more is He caring for us, the ones for whom He willingly gave His Son?  How much more does He embrace us with His love and grace?

I know it can be challenging to put all of this into context.  But it is essential to our overall well-being that we do regularly pause to “smell the roses.”  It is just one of the many ways God expresses His care and love for us.