The story of the passion flower

I keep saying I'm not a reader currently, due to limited time but that just isn't true.  My reading just so happens to take place in the non-fiction sense more often than not.  Earlier this summer A Million Little Ways rocked my world.  Like, tears in the eyes, heart pounding, hearing from God, rocked my world.  Then appropriately enough, Emily's next book Simply Tuesday just came out and it is rocking my world also.  

In Simply Tuesday Emily writes about "small moment living in a fast-paced world."  She explains how she's learned to celebrate her smallness and dives into the depths of the idea that the kingdom of heaven is one inch above ground.  Friends, I get it.  I'm totally getting it.  

One afternoon I wasn't "getting it" though and had a terrible attitude.  I grudgingly went outside to move the toys from the yard so Brett could mow and this little stunner caught my eye.  Mostly because I'd never seen a flower like it on our farm before and when I say I know my flowers out here, I mean I know my flowers.  I might not be able to recall the names of everything but I'm as good with flowers as I am faces.  I don't forget and this one wasn't ringing a bell. 

I brought it inside, styled it like a story and captured it for Instagram.  A few minutes later an IG follower of mine responded that it was a passionflower. 

Okay, cool I thought as my fingers quickly typed "passionflower" into Google. 

What came up on the screen delighted me, surprised me, and took my breath away. 

The kingdom of Heaven, one-inch above ground. 

"In 1569, Spanish explorers discovered passionflower in Peru. They believed the flowers symbolized Christ's passion and indicated his approval for their exploration." 

It then went on to say the chemicals in passionflower have calming, sleep inducing, and muscle spasm relieving effects.

I don't find it a coincidence this particular beauty "just happened" to show up, right behind my back fence.  This was like God had written in dust "God was here!" just for me to stumble upon, just for the hairs on my neck to stand up, just because he's so close and I'm so close to forgetting it sometimes. 

I carried on with my exploration early the next morning, only the insects and I around.

Feeling, seeing, hearing God everywhere. 

Maybe you're a country gal like me or your feet hit the city streets and pound the pavement instead. 

Whatever the case, I pray that you stumble across the kingdom of heaven today and that it is so obviously God the hairs on your neck stand up.