Welcome, Spring! I’m Getting Spring Into My Step!

I've been thoroughly enjoying the photos displayed on social media of the beautiful array of bluebonnets that are seemingly opening the doors and welcoming Spring to us Texans! Thank you, God, for your handiwork! Before leaving home for this Spring Break trip to Mexico, I sent a little text message to my Frisco family that I wanted to turn in my birthday gift coupons that they gave me in August. It was an amazing gift that included power washing my screened-in porch, trimming hedges and trees, raking and bagging leaves, and laying mulch. I told them I was dealing with peer pressure because my neighbors were way ahead of me in getting their properties all spruced up to welcome Spring! So, we talked about dates to get it all done. Teamwork will certainly make my dream work!

Of course, here in Mexico, it looks like springtime year round, so that’s inspired me, even more, to get spring into my steps. We’ve been going to the fitness center each morning here and getting ourselves spruced up for celebrating this most wonderful season of new life, new hope, new dreams, and new great expectations for this spectacular soon-to-be Resurrection Sunday! Talk about NEW LIFE!

At home, the trees were already budding, my hot pink phlox was unveiling a carpet of color, and the yellow daffodils were sprouting. All of it was shouting “Springtime ahead!” Old things were passing away and the new was being birthed. I had been hearing the doves cooing in my back yard announcing they were making preparations for the new life of their little ones soon.

In Steve DeWitt’s outstanding book, “Eyes Wide Open: Enjoying God in Everything”, he explains enjoying God's presence this way:
“Creation speaks to us — every day, all the time, constantly shouting truths about spiritual reality. Did you hear it this morning as you got up? Did you feel any truth about God this morning as you took a hot shower? Did you taste any truth as you delighted in your morning coffee? Did you hear any divine reality as you heard a bird singing? Did you see any truth as you saw the blue of the sky? What have you actually felt, tasted, touched, seen, and heard today? The whole earth is filled with His glory. Every day creation shouts to us, God is glorious! God is creator! God is provider! God is love! God is there! Everywhere I look, everything I feel, hear, smell, and taste transmits the beauty of God through the beauty of creation. He is the beauty behind all beauty.”

As for me, I’m gearing up for stepping it up -- getting Spring in my step -- to be filled with vigor and vitality. God saw that His creation of man and woman was VERY GOOD. Shouldn’t we be the evidence of God that awakens Spring in the steps of others, too? The cold, dark days of winter are over. Resurrection Day is upon us. It’s time to take off our grave clothes because He lives -- inside of you and me! Of course, we need to have Spring in our steps because Romans 8:11 reminds us “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who lives in you.” So, step, Stepper, step!

God's Remarkable Color Palette

Take a look at these beautiful “Spring” flowers. Breath-taking – literally! Not just the beauty, but the fragrance is exquisite. Well, these flowers should be – they’re growing in this exotic climate of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico where my Austin family and I are here celebrating Spring break and family love. I was delighted when they invited me to be a part of the fun. There is something about being entertained by God’s beauty in another area of God’s beautiful earth.

As beautiful as this week is for me, it only holds a candle to a little over eight years ago, when I went to Cabo with this family after a whirlwind previous couple of weeks of major decisions to be made, funeral preparations, and all the responsibilities that went with my sweetheart's graduation to heaven. Cabo was just what I needed – to get away – find that place of consolation, peace, and comfort. Everything about the previous few weeks – in fact, the last eight months had seemed quite surreal. But, I had walked through the valley of the shadow of death, and, because of this profound place of peace, I literally feared no evil. God was there to comfort me – that was His promise in Psalm 23 – He had kept His promise. I was comforted.

Of course, I'm nostalgic being back here in Cabo this “Spring Break” week and, I’ll admit, I’m savoring the memories – especially those that were so healing to me. Embraced by family. Embraced by God and His creation. Embraced by the sounds of laughter of my grandchildren. Embraced by the knowledge of knowing that God has given me so much tender loving care during this life-after-death. It was a choice I made early on and it seems the more life I live on purpose, the more life gives back to me in monumental ways.

I assure you, it is possible to feel the loss for a while in those times of life, but NEVER to stay there. To grow and celebrate this season of life, we must pick ourselves up and be willing to go to a NEW SEASON. As Spring is surfacing and the trees and flowers are blooming, we can see God’s reminder to let go of the old things and expect the new things He’s wanting to do in our lives. Expect that there are good and beautiful things to come. As the flowers are being resurrected to new life, the trees are sprouting from what seemed to be a lifeless state, the green grass is peeking through the brown remains of winter, may we SPRING FORTH in fresh, new strength and vitality that comes from taking off those grave clothes, and putting on garments of praise and joy! It's a new day, it's a new season, it's a time for great expectation that this will be the BEST day and times of our lives!

Isaiah 43:19 "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."