Sometimes winter can last a very long time. Here in the Western New York region it can come early and stay late. As someone recently said, “This winter lasted years!” It seems that way because just when we have a day or two of warm, sunny weather, the next day shows up with cold wind and falling snow! And so with anticipation we wait for spring’s arrival.

That is the one good thing about this world. There are always sure to be more springs. –Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery

Spring is my favorite season even if it can take a long time getting here! I love it, because it is the beginning of warmer, beautiful weather. Bulky winter coats get packed away along with the hats, scarves, gloves and clumsy boots. As the snow melts away, trees begin to blossom and flowers start to grow. Spring is a season of hope, a declaration of better things to come. Out of the cold hard, dormant ground, new life pushes its way through!

Photo credit: Eva Marie Husted

There is a chorus we sing that declares: “Up from the ashes hope will arise!” Spring gives us a glimpse of that kind of hope!

Hope is an encouraging word. It helps us to look for the positive and to face an uncertain future. Hope gives courage! It has been said that “Where there is life, there is hope.” But it has also been said that “Harsh reality is better than false hope.”

Hope is a tease designed to prevent us from accepting reality. –from Downton Abbey

It’s a sad fact that in this world, hope can disappoint us. Things don’t always work out the way we want them to. When I was a teenager I was a patient in a hospital for children and young people with disabilities. Because it was a long term hospital (Some of the patients had been there for years!), some of us were permitted to go home for weekends and holidays. It was dependent on our physical condition and recovery from surgery. Every week, someone would read to us the names of those who were allowed to go for the weekend. I was recovering from several surgeries, but had hopes that I would be on the list to go home for Thanksgiving. I was not. My disappointment must have shown, because I was told that they wanted to make sure I was completely recovered and strong enough, so I could go home for Christmas. That made sense to me and my hopes were raised. I would rather be home for Christmas than Thanksgiving anyway. But it didn’t work out that way. I didn’t get to go home for either holiday! I felt betrayed. I was given false hope!

Hope deferred makes the heart sick… –Proverbs 13:12

But there is a hope that will not disappoint! The Bible calls it a blessed hope, a confident hope, and a strong, trustworthy hope! It is not a hope given to us from the people around us; it is a hope held out to us by God Himself! This hope comes to us through Jesus Christ and is made available to us because of the Easter story.

Celebrate with praises the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has shown us his extravagant mercy. For his fountain of mercy has given us a new life–we are reborn to experience a living, energetic hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. –1 Peter 1:3 (TPT)

How appropriate it is that Easter is celebrated in the spring! As spring is a season of hope, bringing new life into a barren world, it symbolically depicts the new life and hope we can find in Christ. The hope we have through Christ promises us not only a new life, but an eternal one as well.

When our souls lie barren in a winter which seems hopeless and endless, God has not abandoned us. His work goes on. He asks acceptance of the painful process and our trust that He will indeed give resurrection life. –Elizabeth Elliott

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