Winter's Garden

If I were to show you my garden right now what you would see would be a collection of dry brittle sticks. In the Spring, Summer and even in the Fall there is color and life. There is still life but you can't see it, it looks barren and dead. God created every season for a purpose. The Winter season in life is a time to live by faith. It is an opportunity to experience hope. In the Winter many people who have gardens sit by the fireplace on cold dark nights and look at seed catalogs and plan for the flowers of Spring.

God allows Winter seasons to come into my life as well. When I was younger I viewed this very differently than I do today. When all I could see was a season that felt cold and lifeless I would let the chill penetrate my being. However, through the years I experienced again and again the truth that everything God has created is beautiful in it's own way.

In the Winter times of my life I find that like the plants whose roots are seeking nourishment deep within the soil so my soul is seeking nourishment from God. The beauty of this season is not often found in gay colors and music like it is in the other seasons. The beauty of Winter is in it's call to quiet contemplation. In the Winter season of my soul I look at the promises of God and warm my spirit by His fire. I look no longer at what I can see with earthly vision but open instead my eyes of faith to see His word fulfilled.

When the days are short and the cold it drives me inward I find myself opening the books of the Prophets. Yesterday I look at Ezekiel 36, the final siege had taken place. Jerusalem once a city of great rejoicing had become barren and desolate. All her inhabitants were taken captive. What messaged did God have for His people in this Winter of their soul? It was not a message of despair but a message of hope. “I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all you filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you...”

Heavenly Father, in this Winter season when I cannot see beyond the barrenness help me look at life with eyes of faith. Thank You for the promises that I see in Ezekiel. You are the one who brings the cleansing, You are the one who gives a new heart. You are the one who has put Your Spirit within me. You are the gardener of my soul.