St Peters RC Church Hamilton

An orange glow
Like the setting sun.
Who knows why
God likes to reveal
His love for us?
Orange oh so warm,
Invitingly cheerful,
Enticingly lovely.
Orange may be tinged with yellow,
Or touched by crimson,
Or deepening to amber.
And orange looks wonderful when set
Against contrasting purple,
Or clashing against shocking pink.
But whatever the particular shade or tone
Remember, God shows His love
In many a variety.
Let your eyes scan over
An orange glow
And what can be known, is being shown,
Is something of God’s love for us.
For orange is a particular focus,
Warming, storming the senses,
Remarkable, memorable,
And certainly worthy of praise.
Let us amaze then, at an orange glow
And know God is near us.
Let us see this in the Fritillaria family,
Especially in the rich orange glow
Of the magnificent Crown Imperial,
An attention demanding, commanding flower.
A dramatic spring flower
With up to twenty flowers per stem.
Stately, regal, imperious almost,
This flower is splendidly dominant.
In the spring palette of colour,
Always set against a fringe of bright green
A distinctive tuft of leaves at the top.
An orange glow, a show of real colour,
The Crown Imperial is a reflection of the warming sun,
Another of the works of God’s hands
We can entirely depend upon.

Lord, I thank You for the stately beauty of the Crown Imperial, so different from the bell shaped, dainty
Fritillaria. They do share the form of six petals per flower, but there the likeness ends. Thank You for the
variety and the beauty. How magnificent it is to see this flower shooting up quickly to its full height,
overlooking the spring garden. Perhaps the characteristic could remind us of Your majesty evidencing
throughout the manifold wonders of the natural world, supreme at all times, in all things. Thank You for
making this known. Let the dramatic crown imperial invite us to come and see Your hand at work. Amen.

15.05.15