Beautiful in Time

This time of the year is when the truth is revealed to us in a couple different ways. We see truth in the nature of life and spiritually during this Easter season. There is beauty, after the bare. There is beauty after the struggle. Everything becomes beautiful in time.

This is only our second spring here in Minnesota. We just endured another cold winter, full of snow and below zero temperatures! Our yard was covered in snow in early November and the last bit of it melted away in early March. The cold weather lasted well beyond those four months and continues to be cold today in April with threats of another snowstorm this weekend!

I strongly dislike cold weather. I should tell you that we moved here from Florida. I thoroughly enjoyed the constant heat and humidity that consumed us there. I dreaded the idea of living in a cold state and feared I’d never feel warmth again.

I have a different attitude toward all that snow and cold this year. See, I planted some crocus bulbs and tulip bulbs in late fall! It seems crazy to me that they should be planted in Fall, to lay dormant in the cold ground through the Winter, so they can sprout when the weather warms up in Spring.

I knew that the cold had to come for those bulbs to grow in Spring. As it snowed this winter, I whispered a quiet, “Do your job, snow. Take care of those bulbs.” I just knew, they had to go through the painful cold process for my plants to grow beautiful in time!

You see friends? This is what God does for us! We go through painful events in our lives, but when we look back on what we’ve been through, don’t we see the good that comes from it? Maybe we’ve grown spiritually or mentally, maybe even physically? Maybe we were forced into a new path in life where the adjustment seemed impossible or treacherous? But now we can look back and see how we’ve grown and realize this path adds some new blessings to our life!

I pray that you can see that growth. I pray you can find the blessings.

Good things can come from the pain and struggle. Sometimes it takes longer for us to see that good. God makes everything beautiful in its time!

We read this in Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

We know we’re supposed to grow through our struggles. We at least know we have the potential to grow beautiful in time, but it’s hard! Are you struggling right now?

Many of us entered quarantine with pre-existing struggles. This pain remains and quarantine and the threat of sickness only make it worse, right?! Maybe you’re a mom with no paycheck now, your kids are home so you have entertain them and to be their teacher. Maybe your family is driving you nuts. Are you a teen who thrives on the social aspect of school and you’re missing your friends and the regularity of a schedule. You’re also stuck at home with family who might be driving you crazy. No prom to go to, no gradation celebration, no final days of senior year? These are hard times we’re in.

When will this end?

When it feels like death and pain and sadness surround us, friends, please remember the tulip bulbs! Please remember they have to go through the painful cold to become beautiful in time. God created those flowers to be beautiful and His people are His absolute treasure, so He will care for you even more! He has a plan and he will make it all beautiful in His perfect timing!

Life goes on.

Life continues.

New life. New growth. New beginnings.

See God’s hand in your life! He’s making things new for you and He will watch over you and protect you and you may never know the depth of God’s plan for your life right now. You can not see the future and how this all turns out. But remember that He has a plan for you and it’s to make you beautiful in time!

The Truth is Revealed

May I remind you this Easter season, that a lot can happen in three days. Jesus suffered and died on Friday and rose from the dead on Sunday. He conquered death and the devil. He did this to take away the sins of all people. That includes you and me! He did this to show His great love for us! What a glorious change of events in a matter of days. God can do that for us in our lives as well. Embrace the change!

Find Him. See Him. Know Him.

Know that He makes everything beautiful in time. In His perfect time. He knows the full story and sees the whole picture.

Prayer

Dear God, I’m being challenged right now. I know you can make good come from the bad. It’s been hard to see any good. Please give me the strength to get through the struggle, so I can see the blessings soon. If it is your will, give me relief and give me patience while You make my life beautiful in time. In Jesus’ name. Amen.