The Promise of Spring

Today is the first day of spring!  Here in South Carolina the sun is shining gloriously, the sky is a beautiful azure blue, birds are giving a free concert for everyone, daffodils and jonquils are waving a happy "good morning" to passersby... but someone today has not even noticed all this beauty and promise.  Perhaps their heart is heavy with grief.  Maybe they are consumed with worry over financial problems.  The argument they had with their spouse last night may still be weighing heavily on their mind.  It's possible that they are harboring unforgiveness in their heart toward someone who has hurt them.  The list of contingencies is endless, but the result is the same.  For some people this day, the first day of spring, has lost its glorious promise because they choose to remain captive to the "winter" in their lives.

God has ordained that this world will function on a seasonal cycle.  Each year is predictable.  Summer will eventually bow to autumn.  Autumn acquiesces to winter. And winter always gives way to spring.  Spring renews the earth with fresh rain, sunshine, and warmth.  The great promise of the glory of summertime is revealed in the budding of the trees and the gentle comforting breezes that carry the intoxicating fragrance of the wisteria and the jasmine.  In the harshest months of winter we can always know that beyond the ice and chill, beyond the barrenness, beneath the drifts of snow lies the promise of a gentler day.  Spring is that promise realized.

And so it goes with our lives.  Not every day is filled with cheer.  Some days bring sorrow; some bring illness; some bring financial troubles; some bring angry words and wounded hearts.  Those days represent the winters of our lives and they sometimes feel as if they last forever... but they don't have to.  Although we cannot control the forces of nature, we can control the winters of our hearts.  We can choose to create the renewing power of spring in our thoughts and our lives by the things we say and do.  Scripture tells us, "This is the day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24)  Probably the most effective tool we have is that of generosity and concern for others.  There is always someone whose situation is more grievous than our own.  When we determine in our spirit to seek out others who are hurting and to bring some encouragement into their lives, we will find our own discouragement and hurt begin to give way to the warmth of the Son.  It doesn't take a lot of looking, either.  A glance around your church family will reveal many who are in need of a kind word or a gentle act of love.  A trip to a nearby nursing home will yield a bounty of hurting, lonely souls.  There may be a neighbor near our home who is in need of what we can offer.  The bottom line:  When we reach out in love to bring healing into the lives of others, we will always find that the benefit becomes our own.

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort we ourselves have received from God."   (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

As you look out your window today, see beyond the temporary limitations of whatever season you are experiencing in your part of the world.  Choose to embrace the promise of spring for yourself and for others.  Make a list of two or three people you know who need encouragement, then determine a way in which you can reach out to them with the love of Christ to bring the Sonshine of Christian compassion their way.  Be creative.  Perhaps an invitation to a special tea or luncheon would be appreciated.  Maybe you can offer some financial aid as a result of God's blessings on you.  A hand-written note on pretty stationery always touches the heart of the one who receives it.  Even an afternoon drive in your car and a stop for ice cream along the way can yield a bountiful return on the investment.

Today is the first day of spring, 2014.  Hallelujah!  The long winter is past and summer is just around the corner.  Resolve today to celebrate the promise this day holds and to share the good news with those around you.  Winter never lasts forever.  There are brighter days ahead.

"So then, whatever you desire that others would do to and for you, even so do also to and for them, for this is the Law of the Prophets."

(Matthew 7:12)