Here Comes the Bees

I cherish the rare moments I go into my backyard simply to get some midday sun. The newly planted Valencia orange tree is finally blossoming, after

consistent watering,
looking like this a few weeks ago:

to this:

When the tree was growing up, few took notice. Now that it is blossoming, some take notice and come to receive the unmerited gift of nectar.

The beautiful thing about this process is that the bees store that nectar until they return to their hive. Then they regurgitate the nectar into the mouths of the house or worker bees. These bees then add enzymes from their body which causes the water in the nectar to evaporate, thus producing honey. After it's stored in the honeycomb, if we wish, we take the honey that they worked so hard for, and consume it for our pleasure.

Jesus frequently takes the majesty of God's creation and teaches us its deeply rooted spiritual lesson. In this illustration, we see God's work in making the tree grow and blossom. We have no power to do that creative work. However, He shares His work by giving us the task of watering the tree to maturity. Can it still live if we did not bother watering it? It certainly can. God plants trees by rivers and other bodies of water and He also sends the rain in and out of season. God does not lose if we don't partake in His work. We lose. We miss out in what God is doing all around us. We miss out in seeing the fruit that comes from that work. We miss out on the pleasure of seeing those bees buzzing from flower to flower collecting nectar. We miss out in the appreciation that honey comes from a beautifully designed process.

So it is with prayer, with our quiet devotion to God, and with our service to Him. He is constantly moving, calling, and inviting us to be part of what He is doing. All this for the glory of His name. May we not be so attached to things that are seen, which are temporary, but look to the things unseen, which are eternal. Praise Him when we are invited to share in His work and may we never regret missing out in what our Father is doing.