August brings an abundance of tomatoes. They are all unique: different sizes, shapes and colors.

I was given a truly unusual tomato. It looks juicy and ripe, but I am reluctant to slice through it. I enjoy opening the door to my fridge and seeing this one-of-a-kind tomato peering up at me. So, this silly tomato has consumed a lot of my thoughts. When this happens, I often ponder what God might be trying to say to me, this time through a tomato.

Look carefully at the picture of this tomato. Marvel at how uncommon and rare it appears to be.

Settle Yourself and Release

Find a quiet place to relax and meet God. Send all of your current thoughts down a river and watch them float away. Still yourself inside. Breathe deeply.

Encounter: Feast on the Word:

Read this passage over several times. Knowing that shepherds teach each sheep to recognize their own distinct name and to respond when called, let the words take shape inside of you.

To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
John 10:3

Contemplate: Abide in God’s Presence

God knows us from within ourselves, not as objects, not as strangers, not as intimates, but as our own selves.
Thomas Merton

Prayer

Get quiet again.
First thank God for how He created you uniquely.
Ask Him how He wants you to celebrate your uniqueness in your daily life.
Listen to how He might want your uniqueness to contribute to the larger Body of Christ.
Journal about what you feel Him saying to you.