A Tinge Of Green

I saw it.
I noticed it as I was driving home.
I saw it as I drove past the tree line.
It was a tinge of green.

Can it be?
Is spring really around the corner?
Will the brown, that seems to be winter’s signature, finally disappear?
Will everything  that appears dead come alive again?

I was just thinking about the transition between winter and spring.
I was remarking, in my head, how dirty things appear right about now.
Instead of clean white snow or fresh green grass, there is only mud.
I am very tired of mud.

A quote I read by A.W.Pink, convicted me.
When we complain about the weather, we are, in reality, murmuring against God.
Ouch!
I really do trust Your sovereignty over the weather, God, but I still do not like mud.

Mud reveals things.
The trash, that has accumulated during the winter, is buried under the mud.
Bottles, soda cans, crushed milk jugs, and paper are scattered along the roadside.
I have seen groups, wearing neon colored vests, picking up trash, though not this year.

I pick up trash if I see any on my morning walk.
When I walk in my neighborhood, I take a vested interest in its beauty.
We all live in these homes.
It is only right that we care about them.

The trash on the side of the road made me a bit sad.
The trash on the side of the road made me dislike mud even more.
That is why I was so excited to see a tinge of green.
Spring is coming, green will cover all of the brown.

New life will appear again.
What was dead was really just asleep until the warmer temperatures woke it up.
What looked so dirty will soon be lush with new growth.
I still pondered the trash on the side of the road.

Some people think that the trash may have flown off a recycling truck.
It is possible, since the few milk jugs I saw were crushed.
Could it perhaps have been a driver who opened the window and discarded their trash?
No matter how the trash got there, it needs to be removed.

It is a good feeling to rid out.
Spring cleaning happens right about now.
It happens because new life is obvious all around us.
The tinge of green reminds us that winter is over and spring is awakening.

It is a good feeling to sort through our things.
We make piles: a keep pile and a give away pile.
In our house, the give away pile had to be bigger than the keep pile.
The things we give away still have much life in them.

Some people accumulate much more than they need.
They know they have too many things, but it is hard for them to part with any of it.
This is the season for sorting, and piling, and giving away.
Just as mud reveals the trash buried there, spring cleaning reveals what is buried in the closet.

 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete.  Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along.  As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat secure,  so the men hoisted it aboard. Then they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Because they were afraid they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship be driven along.  We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard.  On the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands.  When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved. (Acts 27:13-20)

The apostle Paul was sailing to Rome.
Paul had been in prison because of the Gospel.
Paul and other prisoners were on a ship when a violent storm came up.
The ship was being tossed; they could do nothing except be carried by the wind.

When the storm battered the ship relentlessly, they began to throw the cargo overboard.
All the things that seemed so important, were disposable.
All the things they thought they could not do without, were not as important as their life.
When their life was at stake, everything was easily tossed, without thinking twice.

What do you consider disposable?
Mud reveals those things that are hidden.
That tinge of green is the signal for new life.
Time to sort and discard; time to toss what is unimportant.

Trash needs to be disposed of properly.
Throwing things out the car window is not acceptable.
The trash will be cleaned up eventually.
The green will take over the brown; what is dead will come alive again.

Is there trash on the side of the road of your life?
How long has it been there?
It is time to remove it.
Throw it overboard for your life’s sake.

Look for that tinge of green.
New life is ready to burst forth.
Get rid of your trash.
The only proper way to dispose of that trash is to take it to the Lord.

God sees what is hidden under the mud.
God disposes of our trash properly.
Our trash was nailed to the cross.
A tinge of green is our Hope in Him.

 

2 responses to “A Tinge Of Green”

1. Wonderful word pictures!

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   • Thank you, Sue!
     I always hope the word pictures make God’s Truth known.
     Gina

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