Sunshine honeys the rain-washed oaks. Clover patches huddle among blades of rye grass. The breeze whirls across varied shades of green, stirring the earth to behold the infinite blue marvel overhead. Jasmine blooms near the mailbox, drawing brilliant hummingbirds to visit my lawn. I search the landscape, but fail to pinpoint the hue I seek. Nature’s kaleidoscope erupts before me on this magnificent spring afternoon. Yet, all the colors in the world fall short of a ray of hope.
Sparrows twitter alongside the doves’ cooing. A tree frog resounds from the puddle near my doorstep. Wind-strummed reeds complete the melody. Yet, all the world’s harmony falls short of the song of hope.
Sourdough bread delights my palate. Creamy chai mingles spices across my tongue and warms me to the core. Bits of chocolate swimming in cream whirl me into a decadent food buzz. Yet, all the world’s culinary treats cannot satisfy my hunger for the flavor of hope.
I miss the brush of a baby’s cheek against my face. Orchid petals slide against the tip of my nose,reminiscent of that infant silkiness. I savor the grip of a friend’s hand and cherish a lingering hug. Yet, all the world’s most precious touches cannot compare with the embrace of hope.
Resurrected souls bear witness to a broader spectrum of color, music, and comprehensive joy than our experience on earth permits. Scripture promises God’s glory illuminates heaven, so we will require no other light than His presence. Creation’s majesty remains a mere echo of the true satisfaction for which our spirits yearn.
I long for hope, but won’t find it in the world around me. I must search beyond the tangible to attain true fulfillment. The Creator sculpted these surroundings as arrows to point my gaze toward Him, after all.
“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse” (Romans 1:20).