Those who enjoy the pleasure of springtime most live in areas where winter is cold and harsh with lots of snow and ice. Springtime seems a long way off when the long, sharp icicles are hanging down from houses and barns, and the trees (except evergreens) are standing leafless.
But what is the new sound that we hear this morning? There's water dripping somewhere outside. Searching around, we find the rooftop snow has begun to melt and is running down the gutters of the house. Drops of water are forming on the tips of icicles and are dripping to the ground. Let's hurry and pull on our boots, put on our jackets, pull up our hoods and head outside. We're going to look for other signs of spring!
When we get outside we discover the snow and ice are slowly melting from the warm wind that has been blowing from the south during the night. As the day warms up we notice the frozen stream is beginning to show signs of melting. Water from melting snow is seeping around the edges of the ice. Soon the ice will break away from the shore, and as the melting continues a jumble of small ice floes will crash along, rushing faster and faster downstream.
But most signs of spring are silent. One of the first is a plant called skunk cabbage. As far back as January its roots started growing again, and before the snow has all melted its yellow flower and leaves appear. Many insects that are coming out of hibernation are attracted to it. In the flower garden crocus plants push their bright colorful flower buds right through the snow. Pussy willows display their soft, fuzzy, gray flowers. Many birds soon appear, returning from the south, but we've been hearing the cardinal's beautiful springtime call since early February. All nature seems to be coming back to life.
Sap rises in the stems and branches of bushes and trees, and we see their leaf buds are swollen and beginning to burst open. Soon the trees of the orchard will burst forth with their beautiful blossoms. Farmers start preparing the soil for planting, and the newly exposed earth smells so good.
What a wonderful miracle springtime is! It is God's way of reminding us that in His power life can come from death. It is a beautiful picture of the change in every person's life who has accepted the Lord Jesus as his Savior. The Bible assures us, "He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life" (John 5:2424Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)).