Watching for Spring

Some people are gifted with a green thumb. I am not one of them. I love the beauty of flowers, but I don’t have the best record for keeping them alive. Late last spring I moved to my current home and found that I had a lovely hydrangea bush. The hydrangeas sat right outside my front window and with no work on my part they provided me with a beautiful view every time I looked outside.

Then, as happens every year, winter came. The blooms faded, died, and dried up. Even with my limited gardening skills, I knew that I needed to trim off the dead blooms. After a little online research, I trimmed my plant. Many months passed and the bush remained the same – just a bunch of stalks that appeared dead.

A few weeks ago I was walking around my yard, appreciating a warm day. I saw daffodils blooming and everything coming to life, but not my hydrangeas. They still looked exactly the same, dead. Now, remember, I am not an expert gardener and I started to wonder if I did something wrong. I was hoping I did not inadvertently hurt my plant. I was hoping that life and beauty were still on the way, but as I looked at my plant, there was absolutely no sign of life.

Then, just one week later, I walked out my front door and happened to glance at the hydrangea stalks. This time, something new was happening. Now, on the plant appeared little green shoots. If you looked closely, the entire plant was covered with these signs of life. After a long winter season, life was finally was breaking through. Spring was on the way.

It may sound a little funny, but as I looked at my hydrangea bush that day, my heart was filled with hope. Just like that plant, sometimes I go through the winter season. The season where there are no signs of life, no signs of growth, and death seems to have taken over. In those times it is easy to wonder if spring will ever come. Will I see God work? Did I take the right steps or did I get it wrong? Will I see the beauty again?

One of my favorite verses is Isaiah 61:11, “For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.” As sure as when I plant a physical garden it will spring up over time, when I plant a spiritual garden, righteousness will spring up. As sure as the seasons follow the same pattern every year, I can trust that God is working. As sure as the flowers will bloom and the grass will grow again every spring, I know that God’s work is springing up.

The work of God is so much bigger than me. Even though I was only paying attention to my own hydrangea bush, spring was bringing life everywhere. In the same way, God brings life not just to me and my circle of knowledge, but to the entire world. God is spreading hope to every nation. He is proclaiming the message of life and salvation. Even in the times when winter is long, and there are no signs of spring, we know that the new season is coming. Even when we see tragedy and hardship and seemingly no signs of God or His love, we know He is at work among the nations. His praise is filling the earth.

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“Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.”
Galatians 6:9 NASB