My beloved spoke and said to me, "Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me. See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me." (Song of Songs 2:10-13)
Why do I love spring so? Why does my heart beat faster when I notice so many budding trees lining the streets, or when I catch the fragrance of those flowers as I coast by on my bike? Why do I get giddy when birds are peacefully chirping when I wake? Why do I ache to be in the sunshine as often as possible?
I've been contemplating this, and I think this is the answer: the essence of spring is the hope of new life.
Of course, we love spring warmth after prolonged months of snow and nastiness (at least in the Midwest, and especially this year, when spring's taken so long to arrive!); we're ready for shorts and flip-flops and tans. But it's deeper than that. The cold bitterness has ended. We embrace life anew.
Redbuds are everywhere in Omaha. As I write this, their fuchsia blossoms are fully open. But a few weeks ago, just before the trees budded, you could see this pink/purple hue coming from the trees. There weren't flowers yet, but you could tell that the life inside these trees was just about ready to explode into vibrancy.
That's what I'm hoping for from my own spring season. The areas where I've become dry, cold and bitter are ready to burst into new vibrancy. I have decided to embrace life afresh. Out of the muddle I've made, I cry to God for help. He speaks truth over me: It is for freedom that Christ has made us free.
Freedom carries varying connotations for different people. For our friends in India and Bolivia who are leaving the sex trade, it might mean independence from pimps, brothel owners and a dark occupation. It might mean being free from the lies that they have believed for too long-like that they are worthless.
For many of us, the prisons in which we find ourselves are locked from the inside. We've been freed in Christ, but we entrap ourselves to other lies and sin and false safety nets. We need to remember that it is, indeed, for freedom that Christ has made us free. He wants our liberation as badly as we do-or more so!
At the post-board-meeting party at the Heuertz' house, we celebrated life together, even danced. I danced. Please understand: I never dance, recognizing the awkwardness I embody when I try. But, this time, I danced. I felt comfortable among the people there. I just didn't care anymore. I let go. I was. And I danced.
So, here are some truths I'm [re]claiming about who I am: I am fun. I laugh loud. I cry for silly reasons. I love with abandon, even though I get burned more often than I'd like. I seek truth and to be truthful, even when it's ugly. I am passionate. Yes, that can mean enraged when I'm angry, depressed when I'm lonely, ecstatic when I'm joyful. And that's who I have been created to be: alive! I am free to be fully alive. I live vibrantly and, as of now, without excuses.
Prayer letter
I've been trying to include more prayer requests the last few months, but sometimes the timeline limits my projection of what needs prayer. I will still include prayer requests in these letters, but I'd like to make an e-mail list of prayer partners to whom I can send pressing prayer requests. If you'd like to receive these e-mails, please either send back the response card included here with your e-mail address on it, or send me an e-mail at mandy.mowers(AT)wordmadeflesh.com. (I don't think I will send these e-mails more than once or maybe twice a month, if that's a concern.)
Please pray:
-Several of our staff members' children have been ill. Please pray for these dear ones.
Much love,
Mandy