The other day at the store I spotted some pots of daffodil bulbs and excitedly picked them up for my patio table. Their little heads bobbing in the breeze make me smile. I love spring flowers – in previous homes, I’ve planted upwards of a thousand bulbs, literally. Their colors energize me after winter’s stark palette.
As the earth is waking up from its winter slumber, I’m reminded that winter serves a purpose in a garden. Bulbs need cool temperatures in order to survive. Freezing cold kills insects and keeps their population under control. Frost stops diseases that spread from plant to plant. Snow delivers water to the earth in a way that allows it to sink in and refresh the water table instead of running off to the ocean.
In a similar way, God uses winter seasons for our spiritual benefit. We long for nothing but sunny days and clear skies, but God knows that we would quickly become dry and parched. He nips the bud of our expectations that would have produced poisonous fruit. He freezes the things that we delight in other than Him so we can see that they’re barren. In our discomfort, He drives us to seek the warmth of His all-consuming fire.
Just as winter is necessary for a healthy garden, so God orders soul winters for our benefit. But winter won’t last forever. He establishes the length and duration. He erects barriers and hedges that protect us even when the world seems bleak and barren. We can take comfort in knowing that if the Lord has sent a winter season, He also has a spring on the horizon. One day He will say to you, “Arise, my beloved, and come away with me. For the winter is past, and the rain is over and gone. The flowers are springing up, and the time of singing has come” (Song 2:11-12).