Last fall, my family and I planted bulbs around our home for the first time. I anticipated their arrival all through the winter months. And sure enough, this spring, small green plants began to shoot up out of the ground, and shortly after, beautiful flowers bloomed. Such a fascinating process! It seems odd that something planted in the fall and cultivated through the freezing winter produces flowers in spring.
And yet, I experience similar seasons in my mothering. In the winter of my soul, God feels distant and I am unfruitful. My kids seem more rowdy and my patience more thin. But as I consistently stay rooted in him, he continues to nurture the soil of my heart, bringing forth blossoms for others to see.
Sometimes it takes many cycles of winter to see new growth. And it can be hard to let go of the disappointment that arises when flowers don’t bloom. But that doesn’t mean God isn’t at work, cultivating me into the woman he wants me to be. Time spent on the floor in a pile of Legos or on the couch with books is an eternal investment that will bear long-term fruit. It may not seem like much now, but bulbs buried under winter’s barren landscape don’t look like much either. God will bless my faithfulness. He will bless yours. And our flowers will be beautiful—no doubt about it!
