I learned a new word in my devotional this morning. It is “qavah” and the definition according to the online Hebrew dictionary is “To wait, to look for, to hope, to expect.” (https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6960.htm) Isn’t that a perfect word for what happens in winter? Everything looks dead, standing or lying around in a state of dormancy while actually waiting for new life in the spring.

I think that is what we are supposed to do all the time. We may not actually be busy doing a lot, but we should all be actively waiting for the return of our Savior, the One who brings Resurrection life to all who believe in Him. Meanwhile, we need to listen for God to give us our marching orders for what to do while we wait. Just as the trees and flowering bushes know what they are supposed to do as they wait for spring, we know, too. We are to serve the Lord with gladness, come before His presence with singing and tell all the world about Him.

God is keeping us safe, even when the days are long and the ice and snow continue to fall. Imagine being enfolded into His arms and told to just wait for spring…good things are coming! Yesterday, I asked God specifically to show me someone with whom I could share His love. God, who never does things halfway, prompted me to share with my arthritis doctor that I may not be able to move well on earth, but one day I will be running in Heaven. He looked at me askance and rolled his eyes, but I think I planted a seed. Then my husband and I stopped at the Dollar Store to get cards and a few snacks. I checked out and rolled the buggy outside to unload. That is when I found an item in the bottom of the buggy that I forgot to unload at the register and pay for. So, I grabbed in, walked back in and apologetically told the clerk what had happened. She couldn’t believe that I would return to pay for something that she didn’t even notice I had. She informed me with a smile that I could have just taken it and no one would have noticed. So I told her, “But my God wouldn’t have liked that.” Her eyes got big and she replied that was a different thing to do, to come back and pay. So, another seed planted And these seeds were planted in winter!

It is not in my nature to be a patient in waiting. But good things take time, and God’s plans are the best ones. So, waiting it is, through the winter in which all looks dead. But God and I (and you, too) know that life all around us is not dead. It is sleeping and preparing for a wonderful spring! God made all of the seasons on earth and they have a purpose. We can learn from them, can’t we?