Bring spring to the lives of others and sunshine to our own

DAVID JONES on how the Bible says that life is made up of times and seasons

I’M not much of a gardener, but at this time of year I always look forward to seeing the daffodils and other spring flowers push their way through the hard ground.

Well, here we are mid-February and they are doing just that, a good sign that spring is nearly here as we look forward to some warmer weather following the plummeting temperatures and stormy weather of last weekend.

The weather forecast, however, is not that promising and it looks as if the next few days are going to be much the same.

Regardless of this, spring is well on the way and that’s something we can all look forward to.

I suppose we can equate the changing seasons to the pattern of life.

The Bible says that life is made up of times and seasons, and our own experiences can often prove that to be right.

Yet, as unpredictable as things may seem we can have a real sense of optimism when we believe that God is love and that we are valued by the creator of the universe.

It may well feel like winter in our own lives and summer seems a long way off. It’s then we need to remember that the daffodils are just about to bloom and nothing is going to change that!

John Bunyan, who wrote the world classic Pilgrim’s Progress, once said: “You have not lived today until you have done something beautiful for someone who can never repay you.”

There’s a ring of truth in that because by helping and supporting those less fortunate our problems may well fall into a totally new perspective.

Lord Jonathan Sachs, leader of the Jewish community in the UK who sadly died earlier this year, left a lasting legacy when he wrote of bringing light and hope to the lives of others. “So, I urge you,” he said, “to do one totally unpredictable act of kindness in the next 24 hours and show someone that the world is a little better than they thought it was going to be.”

In the words of a well-loved song “If I can help somebody as I pass along then my living will not be in vain”.

In doing so we may well bring spring to the lives of others and a great deal of sunshine to our own!