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I have never appreciated spring as much as I did during my two years of living in Nova Scotia,
Canada, because the contrast with winter was so great. To experience Easter during spring instead
of autumn, also added a new dimension to the meaning of new life after death.
After six months of continual snow, the dead looking twigs developed green shoots. The sodden,
bare earth that had looked so uninviting, sprouted grass. Bulbs that had seemed dead and buried,
burst into flower, and birds were singing their hearts out as they prepared their nests. There was no
hiding the fact that renewal and rebirth had come. I could see the evidence, and could say to the
Lord as the Psalmist did, “You renew the face of the earth.”
Change the scene to springtime in New Zealand. The greater warmth and sunshine prompts us to
do some spring-cleaning.
“See my clean net curtains?” my friend asked me proudly. “I cleaned them today.”
The fact that it was night-time and they were hidden behind the drawn drapes was immaterial, for
she knew they were fresh and clean and was revelling in the fact! Alas, I don’t think my curtains are
going to survive this next lot of cleaning, as they will need to be replaced. So, spring can also bring
about change.
The face of the earth is being renewed, our homes refreshed, but what about our inner beings?
Have we any secret sins that make our heart look dirty to God? Has it got stained with
unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred, jealousy, idolatry, or lust?
Some things will need cleansing, others replaced or renewed entirely. Now is the time to do it, but
only God can bring that about.
“The blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, can
cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! ” Heb.
9:14
King David had a time of spring-cleaning when he prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and
renew a right spirit within me”.
The words “cleanse” and “renew” are the key words of spring, but we also need to make them the
key words of our spiritual experience on a daily basis, throughout the year
E-mail:
Cynthia Rowse
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