One of my favorite places is the Oregon Garden, it’s where I go to have a date with Jesus. I walk through Creation, enjoy the beauty of the flora, listen to the birds and to the Holy Spirit. Recently as I was wandering, I found myself getting excited as I approached a certain location and realized it was a spot where I had a treat a few years ago. My friend and I had been photographing a stand of dahlias, and noticed some adorable little tree frogs hiding inside the very large blossoms; it was such a surprise and gave me some of my favorite photos. Since then, I have found them only occasionally in that same area but each time I expect to see something special there. I have also seen them in other types of flowers in other areas, but I know to look and HOPE to be delighted.
As I walked towards the dahlias and felt my excitement grow, I heard the Lord say it was just like prayer. We go to a lovely place to invest time with the Lord, knowing the time itself is an amazing experience. However, since I have had a supernatural healing, I believe and expect there to be the extraordinary replies, like the charming little critters.
I often go to this place physically and spiritually and each time it’s different, but what I heard on my stroll is to not overlook the garden and its beauty while searching for the revelations. I have--right now--a huge Gift of faith and am enjoying His Presence and it is enough to be with Him and know that the heart of our loving heavenly Father is to give beyond what we need, to delight us.
Why are some prayers answered and others not? How do we believe when some people are healed and others suffer and even die? How can we trust when we ask according to the Scriptures but don’t see the expected results? These are big stumbling blocks for so many Christians and since I’ve experienced my own miracle, a topic of discussion that comes up often in my hearing, I’ve pondered and asked how to represent why I got a Gift of healing and my friends still hurt, and I got frogs.
We don’t know what the answers to our prayers will be but when we take time with God and expect the best, sometimes we get to experience the miraculous. I am convinced that when we have the ability to look back on our lives and truly see the trail we’re on we will see how many frogs we missed along the way. They might be hiding in the pretty flowers of blessings or may be in the murky waters of suffering, but they are there and the Creator knows where each is and how it benefits our path.
So keep your eyes open for those frogs.