“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.”  Ecclesiastes 3:1

My Favorite Flower

Walk His Way Revisited

First posted in February, 2014

My favorite flower has always been the carnation. It has such a beautiful fragrance and it lasts a long time. It is scientifically known as Dianthus, roughly translating to “flower of love.”

When my husband’s workplace was near mine, one Valentine’s Day I ran down to the local flower shop and bought two carnations, one red (deep red represents love and affection) and one white (represents purity) and wrote out a card. I took it to his workplace and gave it to the man at the front desk to take back to my husband to surprise him after I left. When he got home that night, he had those flowers and something written on the back of my card, which he gave to me. We ended up doing that for a few years until he didn’t work there any longer. Our children always thought Dad was bringing home flowers for Mom!

During those years as our children were growing, we went through seasons. Some were warm like summer and fresh like spring, and some were cold like winter. There was “a time to weep and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:4a). We had our ups and downs. There was “a time to mourn,” and during that time we ended up coming to the church for Christian counseling. We had to be reminded of why we got married and the importance of the marriage vows and what they mean. We had “a time to break down and a time to build up.” It was like a new beginning of our marriage and we came out stronger than we ever thought possible. We could finally exclaim, “This is my beloved, and this is my friend” (Solomon 16b). Not long after that, we had the opportunity to renew our vows for the second time (the first time was in a church ten years earlier). Now it was “a time to dance”! 

We still have our seasons, but most of them are warm like summer, fresh like spring, and the winters are warm now. I think I will buy a couple of carnations for Valentine’s Day and leave them for my husband in the morning. Can’t wait to see what I get when I get home! My marriage is full of love like the carnation and is still going strong.

Father, thank You for helping us in our marriage. I pray that those who need counseling will seek You for guidance. I also pray that no one takes their marriage for granted but is grateful to you, and will think about buying some carnations. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.