IF you have shopped at Morrisons recently, you may have been given a little sachet entitled ‘Seeds of Hope’. You may have even planted them in your garden and are now waiting, in hopeful expectation, for the cornflowers to emerge into all their bright blue splendour. Although, in this instance, waiting in hopeful expectation means letting ‘nature takes its course’, you may still have diligently followed the instructions on the packet to ensure optimum conditions for optimum growth. Soon you will be able to appreciate the beauty of the cornflower which, for Morrisons, symbolises ‘hope for the future’.

Richard Jeffries, an English nature writer in the nineteenth century, suggested that ‘every blade of grass, each leaf, each separate petal, is an inscription of hope’. But how can they be? The beauty of creation, of even the cornflower’s petals, reminds me of the work of God in creation. This, in turn, reminds me of God’s other work that enables me to understand the truth of the following Bible verse: ‘for I know the plans I have for you…plans to give you hope and a future’ (Jeremiah 29:11).

In God is my hope for the future because with Him, and through Him, lies the message of hope that never fades away. This message of hope brings peace and security in troubled times and, in fact, in all times. It declares ‘what a God we have...Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven and the future starts now!’ (1 Peter 3:4).

I do hope that this message of hope fascinates and excites you. I also hope that this thought for the week inspires you to think what the optimum conditions would be for your optimum growth in the living hope of Jesus; reading the Bible would be one ‘condition’, being part of a church family another, alongside many others. May a new seed of hope be planted in your heart today and may you come to realise that it points to something even more magnificent than the splendour of the cornflower’s bright blue petal.