Read:  Philippians 4:10 – 13

Verse: “…For I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation…”

                                                                                  -  Philippians 4:12 (NIV)

While I was growing up, my mother had a cross-stitch sampler of a vibrant red geranium sprouting from a sauce pan. The cheery caption read, “Bloom Where You’re Planted!”

She adopted that motto as her creed. Married at seventeen to a military man, my dad was transferred numerous times in his naval career. That sampler was always one of the first things to be unpacked and displayed prominently in our new home.

Many years later, after my dad retired from the military and they had settled into their dream home, she still held on to it, tucked away in a bureau drawer. When she was diagnosed with the brain cancer that would eventually take her life, she brought the piece out again, faded and frayed with age, and hung it in her bedroom. That simple adage, coupled with her unfaltering faith in God, enabled my mother to face her final challenge with grace and dignity.

Now, whenever I find myself in a new or difficult life situation, I remember that sampler and my mother’s example. Bloom where you’re planted!

Prayer: Lord, teach us to find Your joy and purpose in all situations!

Thought for the day: No matter where we find ourselves on life’s path, God is with us!

Prayer focus: Those facing a major life change or transition.

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