The Japanese anemone presents an abundant wealth of softly hued pinkish-lavender blossoms. In July, many tight blossoms first appear on open stems above the dark green leaves; by August, some of these elegant blossoms have opened while others wait until September, resulting in two months of profuse flowering.

During this time, countless numbers of honey bees enthusiastically flit from blossom to blossom, seeking to be filled with the anemone’s nectar. The flowers have no discernible fragrance, yet its food is God-given life and power for the bees.

Just as the nectar from the anemone fills the bee, Paul wrote of fullness in his letter to the Ephesians:

Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God (Ephesians 3:19).

That fullness is the divine presence of God, manifested as a flood of God’s Holy Spirit. How do we receive this fullness? Paul explained in that same verse: "May you experience the love of Christ … [so that] … you will made complete with all the fullness of life and power" (Ephesians 3:19).

To the honey bee, it experiences this fullness from the nectar. To the Christian, we experience it through Christ’s love.

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God (Ephesians 3:16-19).

Lord, help us to understand how wide, how long, how high, and how deep your love is. We can think of width, from side to side; of length, from front to back; and height, from top to bottom. Depth, on the other hand, is not a dimension in the same way – it allows us to look beyond the geometry, into the unique and endless attributes of God’s creation.

The Japanese anemone shows depth in its soft colors of pink to lavender; in its sweet nectar for the honey bees; in its fresh dew in the evening; and in its persistence to keep on growing. The roots of the anemone are among the hardest to remove from a planted area because the roots are so persistent. This, too, is part of depth.

The depth of God’s love has endless applications: to a bird, depth is experienced in various wind speeds; to a farmer, the smells of spring are different from those of autumn; to a life guard, the blue sky of morning is different at mid-day; to a skier, the snow on a warm day is different than when it is frigid; to an owl, the light at night is preferred over the brightness of day. Wherever we go, whatever we do, God’s love is evident.

Paul’s prayer for fellow believers in Ephesians 3:16-19 is hope that we might experience the depth of the love of Christ, dwelling richly with him in glory. In this way, we become like the anemone, a representation of deep, true love.