Hope in Empty Places
Photo by Mary Catherine Meirink March 5, 2024
I found myself annoyed because the empty jar was… empty. It no longer matched the hope within my heart that yearned to fill it.
Yay, for Me! I did it…
The photo I took above is a cleaned out jar that contained olives a few weeks ago. Flowers within are from an inexpensive bouquet at Walmart. The liquid is the cheapest baby oil I could find.
What does that have to do with anything? Well… it goes back to the gist of, Yay, for me. I’ll explain.
I had been looking at posts for quite a while on social media with lovely jars of preserved flowers in oil. Each time I would think, Some day… I am going to do this.
Some day turned into days upon days until the days turned into more than a year. I kept putting it off. Regardless of how simple it seemed, simple still seemed difficult because I had never done it before.
For some reason, Today was the day when Some day became Today.
For weeks I had stared at the empty olive jar and imagined it filled with floating flowers. I found myself annoyed this morning because the empty jar was… empty. It no longer matched the hope within my heart that yearned to fill it.
Don’t ask me why. All I know is… something got up inside me. Faith moved my hope into action. I drove to Walmart, got a small bouquet and baby oil, and returned home. Soon, the empty jar was filled with living hope in the form of floating flowers.
My hope and faith collided as beauty exploded in what was once an empty place.
The used olive jar could easily have been discarded. Flowers might have wilted alone in the store. I could have kept dreaming for some day, but fortunately, I cooperated. My Some day turned into Today.
Look again at how beautiful it is! I shall call this jar… Hope in Empty Places!
Oh! Dear, Reader.
May the Lord fill You with living hope.
May you have eyes to behold inVisible beauty that longs to fill your empty places.
May the dreams of your heart once discarded be refurbished into containers that display the goodness of God.
May the joy of the Lord be your strength.
Today