We typically think of January 1 as a time for making changes, setting goals, and looking at the year ahead with hopeful eyes. Life is full of new promise, but as winter sets in along with daily routines, those goals fade away and hope wanes.
I don't think a calendar date should be the driving force behind change. Change can happen at any time and at any age, but perhaps spring offers a visual reminder that change is ever present.
As plants come back to life and flowering dogwoods and Bradford pears hold the promise of warmer days ahead, it is an ideal time to look for signs of spring in our personal lives. Students are anticipating the change ahead when school dismisses for the summer, but it is not too late to make changes at school to improve those final grades. Baseball and softball fields overflow with young people and their supportive family members who cherish each moment, knowing these years will pass quickly. Churches hold spring revivals and special Easter services in an attempt to draw members and those outside of church to a closer walk with God. Those who can afford to do so anticipate their much-needed vacations, and those who cannot afford to do so look for recreational opportunities closer to home to relieve the monotony of routine.
Spring can be the time to set new goals, just as we do on January 1. The warmer weather can encourage us to be more active and lose those pounds that are adversely affecting our health. As fresh produce is sold at farmers' markets or grown in our own back yards, we can make wiser eating choices. The extended daylight lures us out of our homes and causes us to be more sociable with our neighbors and friends and hopefully more ready to help those who can't help themselves, like the elderly, the sick, and the financially-struggling.
On this Good Friday, the Christian world is focused on the death of Jesus and the resulting despair and grief felt by His followers, but on Sunday, a celebration of His resurrection will remind us once again of the hope to which Christians cling of a spiritual life after death in which there will be no more sorrow, no more tears. Jesus's resurrection meant a new beginning, an anticipation of the time when the burdensome laws given to Moses would be lifted and a new law, under Christ's domain, would give the entire world hope for a home with God.
Let spring be a time for new beginnings, whether they be physical, spiritual, or simply eliminating a bad habit and replacing it with a good one. Blessings to all.
