Spring in Me

I asked God to show me how He is redeeming me. I wanted to see glimpses of how He is turning my ashes into beauty. And He’s showing me something.

 I’m still pondering the depths because I can’t fully grasp them. But He’s doing something.

First, there was the porcupine. Along the road through the bush, I spotted a creature that looked almost like a bear, a dog, or a fisher. We backed up the car and found a gigantic Mr. Prickly waddling along. Either I never knew how large porcupines are, or this was an exceptionally big one. I wasn’t sure I had even seen one before. He tried in vain to cross the ditch, but it being full of water, he scurried across the road into the woods on the other side.

Special.

“Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”

Isaiah 43:19

Then there were the sun rays the other day. Sunlight spilled between cracks in the scoops of clouds, pouring down in waterfalls to bathe everything below in velvet light. Could I see glimpses of heaven through those windows? Was that God’s love beaming down on me?

Glorious.

“To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.”

Isaiah 61:3

There were the northern lights. As I lay in the ditch in the stunning silence of the night, I watched the fantastic display of light in the sky. Pink, purple, and green flitting around like butterflies, exploding like fireworks, rolling like sea waves. God was showing me more than northern lights. He was showing me Himself.

Rapturous.

“He hath made every thing beautiful in his time.”

Ecclesiastes 3:11

There were the two birds. Mom and I sat by the table, discussing plans for the day, when a stranger appeared outside the window. We entirely lost our conversation to gape at the exotic bird. It could be none other than an indigo bunting, a bird I had never seen before and that is not at home in our area! A moment later, the first goldfinch of the year popped in at the feeder, dazzling yellow in contrast to the bright blue bunting and red finches.

Thrilling.

“For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

Psalm 30:5

There was Psalm 126. The day we read it in our morning family devotions, verses 5 and 6 flashed out at me. Redemption? “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” Later that day, as I was reading, I suddenly shook the book and slapped my head. There was the same verse, blinking at me like a stop light. Chance? Not at all.

Profound.

There was the song All Things New that played in the car. I didn’t remember hearing it before, but I drank it in.

“Light after darkness, gain after loss

Strength after weakness, crown after cross;

Sweet after bitter, hope after fears

Home after wandering, praise after tears.

 

“Alpha and Omega

Beginning and the end

He is making all things new

Springs of living water

Shall wash away each tear

He is making all things new.

 

“Sight after mystery, sun after rain

Joy after sorrow, peace after pain;

Near after distant, gleam after gloom

Love after wandering, life after tomb.”

All Things New by Elaine Hagenberg

Precious.

And then there was the chickadee. Hiking along trails sprinkled with buttercups and violets, I paused to hold out my handful of seeds. His teeny feet landed on my fingers and his downy feathers brushed my palm. He snatched a seed and flitted back to his perch, before returning for the second time. Delight tickled my soul. I huffed and puffed down the trail, trying to catch up with my fellow hikers. But soon I heard a persistent chipping behind me. Was it a bird? I stopped and turned to see the chickadee still coming after me! I held out my hand again and he happily fetched another seed. And then another. The sunlight filtering through budding trees seemed warmer and brighter than before. It wasn’t just a nice spring day or a charming chickadee friend. It was God speaking.

Incredible.

Yes, God will do a new thing. I can see it around me as spring awakens the earth. I can feel it beginning to spring within me too. He is making beauty.

“For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.”

Isaiah 61:11

P.S. Here is a recording of All Things New.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MGNU0Wz2ors