When you see the new bud blossom into its radiance how does your smile react? What does your heart do? For me, the corners of my mouth turn just a slight upward and my hart gets warm as I pause. INHALE. EXHALE. PONDER. What a radiant gift to take in. A small token of God’s glory sitting right on my table. This makes me glad.

But my gladness for growth is not just limited to blooming flowers. It extends to all kinds of things, but reaches full capacity when I see a person learning and growing, especially when a child has an intellectual aha moment. Their eyes are the give away, revealing the thinking process, the revelation and then the celebration.

In that second, my heart leaps, as the learner recognizes their golden moment as the pieces aligned to clear away any muckiness. Now we both have gladness for what as been learned and can be used to grow more. This is one way to imagine flowering gladness. When the glad we feel is a shared moment of celebration for the lessons or experiences of life.

Can you think of any occasions in your life when you have shared flowering gladness with someone? Can you think of a time when maybe God shared flowering gladness with you?

This is what I hear in Jeremiah 31:1-14. God desiring a celebration of flowering gladness with you, celebrating the growth of your life as you blossom into the fullness of who you were created to be.

Will you allow God to celebrate your life with you?

Let us pray. God of all circumstances. As we muddle through life we turn to you as our great teacher. As we learn and grow help us to remember to celebrate faithfully the flowering gladness not just with others but with you. In Jesus name. Amen

ADVENT CHALLENGE FOR THE DAY: Read Jeremiah 30:1-14. Take a picture of “glad” post your picture to social media #messiahlutheranpc #signs4life #AdventPhoto