It was exactly two years ago when the world as we knew it came to a screeching halt. One day I was working with a group of teachers in Houston, Texas, and the next day our corporate offices were closed. At first, I was overly optimistic. It was my firm belief all of this would be over in a few weeks. I’ve quit making predictions.
To be honest, I’m not thinking about the pandemic much anymore. I think the sheer magnitude and longevity of this worldwide crisis has forced me to develop an attitude of acceptance. This week as I was walking around my yard looking for signs of life, I was reminded how growth often comes after seasons of dormancy. My plants, buried beneath layers of soil, are starting to spring toward the surface seeking nutrients from the light. It’s what they do to survive.
I finally feel like this spring is our opportunity to spring forth and blossom! The past two years have been challenging, to say the least, and our lives as educators have been forever changed. Some may feel like they have been buried beneath layers of heavy dirt for a long time. However, if you are like me, you sense the sunshine. You know spring is coming, and I am here to tell you it is time to blossom!
I looked up the term spring in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, and the first definition listed was “to dart, shoot, be resilient or elastic.” In order to blossom, we can’t remain dormant. We have to push our way out and up from all that has been holding us down. We have to move past frustration, regret, unhappiness, resentment, and discouragement. The gateway to growth is a process that requires our active participation, and as the definition notes, we have to be resilient in the effort.
How can we lay aside the exhaustion and heartache of the past two years? How can we spring forth and blossom as believers? We have to follow Paul’s example; we must walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Notice Paul doesn’t say watch by faith, listen by faith, learn by faith, rest by faith, or run by faith. He says WALK by faith. Walking implies purposefully moving forward. The walk Paul is describing is a daily walk. As believers, we walk by faith one day at a time. As we do so, we must choose to trust Him, take Him at His word, and BELIEVE His promises!
Walking by faith day in and day out isn’t easy. In fact, this may be one of the most difficult principles of Christian living. Yet, we will never blossom as believers without the daily push and the daily discipline to walk by faith. Let’s take a look at what God promises to us when we walk by faith.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6
Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Psalm 37:4-6
But blessed are those who trust in the Lord, and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8
And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. Hebrews 11:6
Did you notice in these verses how our blossoming is directly related to our springing forth into action (i.e., walking by faith)?
When we trust and seek, He will direct.
When we delight in Him, He gives us our heart’s desire.
When we commit to Him and trust Him, He helps us.
When we make the Lord our hope and confidence, we are fruitful.
When we come to Him believing, we are rewarded.
As believers, we don’t have to stay buried beneath the weight of the pandemic. We don’t have to let the past two years crush our spirit or derail our passion. Spring is coming, and all of us were meant to blossom in the light of God’s goodness! Let’s display the beauty of Christ as we reach for His light and walk by faith day after day after day!
For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. 2 Corinthians 1:20
Spring forth and blossom!
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