i"m Looking for my Leaves

  "The greatest moments of your life are those when through all the confusion God got a message through to you plain and certain."

Bertha Munro, 1907-1986

 

 

Last week I was speaking to a friend and my baby leaves story came into my mind. Most of you have heard it before, but it's something I always consider in the Spring when the baby leaves are seen for the first time.

 

Following are excerpts from the original article titled, There's Life In Winter:

 

"The blistering wind hit my face as I opened the door. Winter was here. 'Come on, Sparkie,' I said. 'You have to go for a walk.'

 

"The wind slapped my face and tears dropped from my eyes. 'It's been a difficult year, Lord, I thought. Winter has harbored in my heart leaving me cold and dead, just like the trees.' My eyes traveled around the yard taking in the bleak appearance. 

"Yes, the year had left stains, and the ache in my heart hurt. 'I know I should be thankful, Lord,' I whispered . . . My eyes fixed on the maple tree behind our home. Stripped of all its colorful clothing, it looked dead. 'Just like my heart,' I thought. And then I remembered the baby leaves.

 

 

"Last February, I began watching the buds develop on the maple tree. I couldn't remember ever taking the time to watch leaves grow, and decided I'd see firsthand how God gave them birth.

"Sparkie and I would stop every evening on our walk to look for any development. It was a slow beginning, but finally--one day in April--the buds opened

"Long tentacles reached out, as many as 10 or 15 from each bud, as I remember. At the end of the tentacles were blossoms and at their base were leaves. The leaves were bound together, just like the cold buds had been. As the weather warmed, they began to unfold.

"My heart tingled with excitement when the leaves began to open. My husband, Jerry, was at the garden and I remember yelling excitedly to him, 'Come quick! The leaves are opening.'

"Half-inch baby leaves, perfectly shaped, stretched their little frames for all the earth to see.

"In one week, some leaves had grown to 3 inches in length. My eyes couldn't believe the transformation. As the leaves grew, the blossoms were blown to the ground. I walked on yellow drops of sun splattered all over the place. I had witnessed the birth of one of God's creations.

 

 

"The cry of a lone bird brought me back to the present. Chilled, I headed back to the house, shivering. But my heart was no longer cold.

 

"You see, it's February now--just the time I began watching the frozen buds last year. When everything looked dead, and no life was visible, God was working. And now I knew God was working in me.

 

"It's been a long year, but I know my heart will feel the warmth of God's love again. Why, in just a couple of months, He'll bring me baby leaves."

Spring is always a reminder that God is working all the time and never stops. We can always know that God cares and in His time He'll bring new life to your soul. There is life in winter.

"There is not one life . . . which is not so near to God that whatever touches it

touches Him with sorrow or with joy." 

Phillips Brooks, 1835-1893