on (kind of) missing winter

I never thought I would say this... but the other night, I started to miss winter.

Well, sort of. Let me back up.

Tuesday night, Brett and I were able to have a “Date Night In” and enjoy a live performance by one of our favorite musicians. I know that sounds like Andrew Peterson performed a private house show for us, and as cool as that would be, that’s not what happened. Instead, AP live-streamed a performance. So, thanks to technology, we were able to watch from our living room as AP and his family performed in their living room. So cool.

It was an especially moving performance as it was an Easter show and many of the songs had themes of resurrection… and it got me thinking about spring. (To be more specific, the last line of "Invisible God" was the catalyst, for the other AP fans out there). I started thinking about how spring is kind of an annual reminder of God’s power over death.

I think winter is pretty awful. Sure, there are some nice parts (I do enjoy looking at snow from the inside of a warm house, preferably next to a fireplace and holding a mug of hot chocolate), but mostly I think it’s awful. Things start to die – grass, flowers, insects. It’s cold – so cold that you hardly want to leave your house. And it’s dark all the time; it’s easy to forget what the sun even looks like. And that lack of sunshine (i.e. lack of Vitamin D), can mess with your emotions. It can make you lose hope that you will ever again see the sun. That winter will never end. Maybe it’s all just hopeless.

And then.

The snow begins to melt. You see a small patch of grass begin to peak through. Sure, the grass is dead but you remember that it’s there! You remember that it can grow. And then it does! Maybe you see a flower bud on a tree. And you hear some birds singing. Spring. The sun returns, even just for a short time during the day. But it’s welcome. It’s bright. It starts to warm up. You spend time outside and the fresh air reminds you that you’re alive. That things are alive again.

It’s a beautiful picture of the resurrection. A reminder that Jesus was once dead and now is alive. A reminder that Christians will die, but will come alive again. A reminder that God has conquered death. How sweet that we get to celebrate Easter as life is springing up all around us!

Every year, without fail, even years with particularly long winters… spring returns. Every year, without fail, God reminds us that He is powerful. He is in control. And He can resurrect us, if we choose Him.

But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. -Romans 8:10-11

This makes me miss winter. Not because I think winter is awesome, but because winter makes spring that much more magical.

Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf of springtime. -Martin Luther