Losing a job is a BIG deal, but what about smaller events, details that matter to me, yet are miniscule in the overall scheme of life? I’ve had countless reminders God cares about those too . . . like the presumed demise of my prized trillium.

Two years ago, some friends came over to assist with yard work. Things had gotten ahead of me, to say the least, so the extra help was greatly appreciated. I tried to supervise the various activities as my helpers diligently labored on their assigned tasks. Nevertheless, there was too much going on for me to keep track of everyone and, in spite of good intentions, a few things were damaged. During my post-work session walkaround, I was especially dismayed to find no sign of my trillium, a cherished wild flower salvaged years before during a plant rescue. One of the fellows used a leaf blower to clear several of the beds, not realizing my spring ephemerals, including the trillium, were too fragile to be subjected to the gale force winds created by that piece of equipment. Not only was I heart broken, I’d have to wait until the following year to see if it would come back.

Exhibiting one of my favorite characteristics of plants, perseverance, the trillium did indeed return the next spring, even bigger and more beautiful than before. However, imagine my surprise and delight this year when not only did the mama trillium reappear, but a number of babies came up in the woods. The most logical explanation for the presence of those new trilliums, located below and many feet from the mother plant?: “seed dispersion by leaf blower”! Once again, God took something I thought was a loss and turned it into a gift, a cause for joy and celebration.

I know Almighty God will handle the big things. After all, He raised Jesus from the dead, makes the sun rise and set and holds all things together. Yet this all-powerful God sees me, loves me and repeatedly stoops to bless me in tiny, intimate ways. Each time He does so, I’m humbled and amazed that Almighty God is also Abba, Father, “Daddy”.