After a dear late church member introduced lithops to me I have been fascinated over them ever since. They are taproot plants found in African deserts. After maturity they would shoot out delicate flowers that would open during the day and close at night over many days. In extreme dry African days, thirsty animals would scavenger them for water. Every lithop is different just like every one of our fingerprints is different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A few weeks ago, I found a stick insect with 8 legs living in my lithops. I took a picture of it and shared it with my grandchildren telling them that I now have a little pet bug. As surprisingly that I saw him, he suddenly wasn\u2019t on my lithops anymore. I found him dead on the floor. I wonder if when I pushed back the drapes to let the sun come in that I might have accidently brushed him aside to his demise. I wonder if he would have survived in an inside environment even though he had lithops to be with. I wonder if his natural life span came to an end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As I write, I see out my window hummingbirds going from one flower to another even when it\u2019s late December in California. If we didn\u2019t have such Mediterranean climate, the hummingbirds would have gone someplace else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s been said that the flutter of a butterfly\u2019s wings affects the weather on the other side of the world. I confess that my pushing back of the window drapes may have caused the death of my pet bug. One discipline of life is to pay attention and become aware of how our actions affect the world around us regardless of how big or small these actions may be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Every kind word we say adds to the hearer\u2019s life. Every piece of litter we pick up on a trail beautifies God\u2019s creation. Every stranger we meet brings the human family closer together. Every time a man speaks up against sexual harassment and assault another woman is fulfilling her dream. Every time I call out against injustice I am a more faithful disciple of Jesus Christ. Imagine the healing and reconciliation we can do when we take responsibility for our actions and mindful of the blessings or injuries our actions can do to others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Being on top of the food chain or believing that we are more superior to any other living life form on this planet requires us to \u201cdo justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God.\u201d (Micah 6:8<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n During this holiest of seasons as the result of God\u2019s coming in love and mercy, may we all sing joy to the world for the Lord has come! Christ is born we have hope. God acted and the result is we are saved. Be Christmas presents today to bring peace in the world. Merry Christmas!<\/p>\n\n\n\n 12.21.2017<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After a dear late church member introduced lithops to me I have been fascinated over them ever since. They are taproot plants found in African deserts. After maturity they would