A Bouquet of Flowers: And Other Stories

By Asantewaa Tweedie

A Bouquet of Flowers and Other Stories is about receiving God’s love, loving yourself, and loving others. The early years of Asantewaa’s life was a period of undivided attention and love from her father. Her parents separated when she was five years old. Her father remarried when Asantewaa was twelve, and her stepmother abused her emotionally. When Asantewaa reunited with her biological mother when she was sixteen, she was exploited by her mother. Asantewaa knew the unconditional love of her father and God. She persevered and excelled in life by studying the Bible and applying the principles to her life. Asantewaa encourages other women to be assertive and face life with divine boldness, intentional acts of kindness, and loving God. Asantewaa has also written and self-published Melting Pot: Ghanaian Cooking with a Twist, full of delicious recipes and nourishing wisdom from her native country, Ghana.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 5, 2023
• ISBN: 9798887511191

Book preview

cover.jpg

A Bouquet of Flowers

And Other Stories

Asantewaa Tweedie

ISBN 979-8-88751-118-4 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88751-119-1 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Asantewaa Tweedie

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Biblical quotations are taken from the New International Version, New Standard Version, and English Standard Version from Bible Gateway.

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

To women of all races, especially black women

Acknowledgments

1

Book Description

2

A Bouquet of Flowers

3

Attitude of Gratitude

4

Adversity—Is It a Burden or a Bridge?

5

Tasty Treat

About the Author

To women of all races, especially black women

Acknowledgments

I dream of a world where there would be respect for every human being regardless of profession, ethnicity, academic status, and wealth. I want my children to be free from the suppression of the American racial bias. This book is to encourage my children, Jacob, Michelle, and Stuart, to remember where their mom is from and how she was raised. I want everyone who has felt insecure to find courage in love. I am thankful to my mentor, Joyce Meyer, who teaches the Bible with a practical sensibility. Joyce encourages studying the Bible for oneself and building a personal relationship with God.

My special thanks to Dr. Charles Stanley, who captures my mind with his prayer at the end of each teaching of the Bible: And, Father, we are thankful. How grateful we are.

1

Book Description

I believe that a balanced lifestyle is the best investment in life. As a result, I like to encourage other people to enjoy their life also. I wrote this book when I realized that the majority of the people I encountered daily were experiencing the same issues in life and I was repeating the same encouraging words: Love God, love yourself, and share your love. If you know who God is and search for his ways, it makes your heart strong in knowing who you are, which encourages you to become generous to others. You become appreciative of every little privilege in life. You do not take anything for granted. You discover soon that generosity is beautiful and gratitude is powerful.

My passion in gardening caused me to view God in plants. I felt God was communicating to me through flowers. He was teaching me to be patient and watchful, to carefully attend to each plant and cast my care to him. God affirmed this several times. For instance, the morning when the hummingbird visited a ground cover in late April. I never knew there was nectar in the black scallop flower. I felt the spirit of the Lord saying to me, Thank you for feeding this little creature.

God encouraged me to share his love by growing flowers. My husband transformed one side of our front lawn into a flower garden, and the side of the house where two trees were cut down was also transformed into a flower garden. The house is on a busy road. There is an elementary school up the hill, and schoolchildren walk by daily to and from school. The community is predominantly white. I am African.

My husband is white, and we have three biracial children. I strongly believe God positioned me in the perfect spot for his glory. Flowers are admired by all who have sight, and the joy of beautiful colors of flowers is contagious. Adults share their admiration of my garden with me. I was caught by surprise when school was dismissed two hours early one day. The children were walking home with their parents, and I got an honest feedback from the children.

Hi, I like your garden! one of the kids said to me.

I thanked her. And she stopped to show me which ones were her favorite. Her mother showed her favorite flower. I was happy, and I thought that was the end of the children conversating with me. But no, there were more coming. One kid admired my hat. He asked where I bought the hat from.

It's really nice, he told me and then he asked if I got it at a discount.

I was surprised that a schoolkid knew about such details. I laughed, and I confessed that I got it at a discount. There were adults walking by, listening to the young boy.

I knew God was in it. He was expressing his delight in working with me to share his love.

I felt the need to rekindle the love of nature and wonders. Flowers have meanings. I decided to write how we could all give back to God through flowers. I chose these flowers at random.

Type of flower and their meaning:

Red rose: Love

Yellow rose: Warmth and affection

Chrysanthemum: Honesty (this flower can withstand cold)

Lavender: Devotion, relaxation

Hibiscus: Delicate beauty (tastes delicious in teas)

Cosmos: Order and harmony

Calla lily: Attraction (beauty inside and outside)

Hyacinth: Truth and prophecy

Freesia: Friendship, trust, thoughtfulness, and innocence

Delphiniums: Encouragement and joy

Pink rose: Grace, happiness, gentleness, motherly figure

Gladiolus: Integrity, strength, and victory

Rosemary: Remembrance and love

Sunflower: Adoration, loyalty

Hydrangea: Gratitude, grace, and beauty (its colors symbolize love, harmony, and peace)

Some flower meanings may contradict, but my point is to encourage blessing others with kind words and gestures.

2

A Bouquet of Flowers

It is time to present to God a bouquet of flowers.

He is a lover waiting patiently for affection. I can imagine him hoping for his loved ones to wake up and show him our gratitude.

Love is action. I am encouraging this analogy to every act of kindness as a flower. Whatever act you choose to share is a flower. Our attitude of gratitude can be collected by how we treat ourselves and other people. And at the end of each day, we can approach him with our bouquet. It doesn't matter how much effort we contribute.

Each act of kindness is like a flower. Whatever flower we select and present to God, he will receive without fault finding. But I will advise you to be mindful of what you present to God. The Bible is filled with men and women of faith who gave their best sacrifices to God. They showed thanks and gratitude for the blessings of God. The story of Cain and Abel is a perfect reminder of how we ought to show our utmost respect to God. Abel, by faith, brought to God a better offering. And God was pleased. Cain's offering was unacceptable in the sight of God. Read Genesis 4:4.

May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, be with us, as you and I apply our faith.

By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offering. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. (Hebrews 11:4)

The hint is leaving a legacy.

There are over 1,800 mixed flower bouquets. They come in many colors. A bouquet is described as this:

An attractively arranged bunch of flowers especially one presented as a gift/carried to a ceremony.

It has the characteristic scent of wine or perfume. The aperitif has a faint bouquet of almonds.

I love the word aperitif! When I