After a year of tending to it, one night she went to get a glass of water and a wonderful fragrance caught her attention. There in the darkness, it had finally happened. Epiphyllum oxypetalum, the Queen of the Night, had bloomed. The flower was lovely and ornate and filled the space with a beautiful smell. She sat down and enjoyed it knowing that by morning the blossom will have wilted to nothing. Though fleeting, this moment was powerful. It reminded her that somethings only bloom in the darkness.

This story, which we share with permission, comes from a supporter in Canada. As their family walked through a difficult season, a friend had bought them a plant that everyone thought was just leaves and would never be anything more than leaves. But in the darkness of night, and in the darkness of pain, something unexpected and beautiful filled the space.

The world has been plunged into a time that is dark for millions of people. It is a difficult season that has created ripples and waves, both acknowledged and still unseen. It’s okay to be okay right now. It’s okay not to be okay. It’s okay to not be sure how you’re processing all of this. There is grief over events cancelled and dreams unrealized. There is anger over people responding differently than you would. There is loss as thousands have said their last goodbyes to loved ones. There is confusion and the inevitable bravado, bickering, and fear that accompanies the yet-known of something new. Whether you’ve had your world rocked or simply inconvenienced, the fact remains that this pandemic has changed your life.

Not for a second do we think that God has done this to the world. This pandemic is not a divine time-out for His wayward wee ones. It is dark though. It is hard. It is not without soul searching. Whatever shape the darkness has taken in your thought life, whatever voice is whispering in your spiritual life, whatever questions are screaming in your emotional life, we believe that something beautiful can bloom there. We don’t think this pandemic is necessary – we don’t need to suffer to learn – but experience has taught us that somethings only bloom in the darkness and we have every intention of walking out of these dark days with a bouquet in hand.