My message is very simple: Jesus Loves You!

I JUST LOVE ROSES!  As a child, I remember peeling the thorns off my grandmother's roses, licking them and then sticking them all over my face and arms.  But, I've come to realize that I love the rose much more than its thorns. 

For years, it didn?t occur to me that most flowers have an unpleasant scent or none at all ... but not the ROSE ... it has a delightfully sweet fragrance.  And it should ... because it represents love.

I have a special rose garden nestled in my back yard. One day, I placed a freshly cut rose from my garden into an old watering can.  I removed the old withered rose that I had previously placed in a crystal vase.  A funny thing happened as I compared the two.  When I looked at the beautiful rose in the old watering can, I was consumed by the beauty of the rose.  But, as I looked at the withered rose in the crystal vase, I was captivated by the beauty of the vase. 

Sometimes, people overlook the beauty in the lost and outcast ... seeing only the tattered, worn out body and not the beautiful rose that we each are inside.  Just like roses, we ALL come in a beautiful array of colors and sizes.  We each have our own unique fragrance.  All of us are important because each of us has something to give ... with our own unique blend of gifts and talents.

I've noticed that some of us will become bitter when tried and tested, while others, even though they have been crushed deeply, will become even sweeter.  Some of us will wilt along the way, while others will put their energy into blooming.