The Sunday Sermonette – Spring Always Follows Winter.
Around this time each year, I notice the silent changes that show Old Man Winter is releasing his grip on the Coast and that Miss Lovely Spring is not far away. My azaleas are overflowing with tiny specks of pink, a sign they’ll soon be in full bloom. Meanwhile, Mom’s sixty-year-old camelia bush is dropping its “Winter’s Roses” by the hundreds, their magenta petals resting beneath it as natural fertilizer for next year’s blooms.
Each season—Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall—leaves its mark on the earth due to the movement of the sun, moon, and stars. Father God placed them in the solar system for this purpose, as stated in Genesis 1:14: “And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years.” The seasons are not whimsical events. They are God’s heavenly clocks—reliable and never-changing,
In the Good Book, there are many references concerning the seasons. King Solomon wisely reminds us in Ecclesiastes: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” In Genesis, the lawgiver, Moses, states: “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.” Even when life feels uncertain, these words promise a steady rhythm to God’s creation. We can trust that, just as the seasons persist, so does His care for us.
The ever-faithful prophet, Daniel, proclaimed that God “changes the times and the seasons. He removes kings and raises up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.” The Apostle, Matthew, stated: “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.”
These verses, and others in the Good Book, show that nothing remains the same. The earth changes. The weather changes. The seasons change. People change. They also reflect God’s design that life moves forward through cycles of growth. The seasons indicate that God controls them and that their timing reflects His wisdom and purpose.
Old Man Winter, with his plunging temperatures, snow, and ice, teaches Believers to be prepared for his onslaught. It also reminds us to find sanctuaries of love and faith during tough times. By embracing the winters of our lives, both literally and metaphorically, we should draw closer to Father God, assured that every season has a purpose in His plan. This winter, has your heart grown cold toward God or others in your life? If so, renew your commitment to rely on God and rekindle your love for those closest to you.
Miss Lovely Spring, on the other hand, is a time of warming weather when she comes back to life. She gives Believers renewed hope after a period of cold and dormancy. We should let gladness spring up in our hearts again. As daffodils and tulips push their multicolored heads through the ground, blooming in all their God-given splendor, they remind us to start living a new, renewed life, leaving the old, dead parts behind. Even in the coldest, darkest winters, Believers should remember that Spring will come and new life will appear.
A final thought. The seasons of your life, good or bad, may change you, but they do not change Father God. He can use His seasons to change you. Just as the earth moves from one season to another, God can move you to your next season at the right time. When He does, everything will make sense. Hold on to Him. Trust Him. Obey Him. His reason for the seasons in your life is working for your good.
Ponder this and go forth.