This week, leading up to time change and spring break, we have noticed the trees blooming white in our neighborhood.
This is one of the early signs of spring. Most everything else around it has not started blooming, but these trees are beautifully white. We have started noticing them all over town.
I wasn’t sure what type of tree it was, but we looked it up. These are bradford pear trees. (My first guess had been dogwood because I knew they have white blossoms, but they don’t bloom until later.)
I took a walk in the field behind my house to get a closer look at the low hanging flowers. What struck me is that I could easily identify these bradford pear trees in the woods. But all the rest of the trees blended together, barren. And just a few weeks ago, I would not have been able to identify which trees were the pear trees.
The rest of the woods – not yet “bearing fruit”
The passage in the Bible that says, “you shall know them by their fruit” really came alive to me this afternoon. I can identify these pear trees. In the coming weeks, the other trees will bear their distinctive fruit (and leaves), making them possible to identify. When the pear trees loose their white blossoms, they will not be so easy to identify . I might not remember which ones were pear trees later this year. Yes, I might remember that the neighbor three doors down has one, but the masses of trees in the woods behind our house will blend together.
So the spiritual lesson became more clear to me on my short walk. By our fruit (the fruits of the spirit) we will be recognized. When we stop bearing fruit, the former fruit isn’t there. Only our current (on-going) fruit is recognizable.
Nature Conversations
There are many spiritual lessons in nature. Sometimes, like the thoughts above, Scripture teaches something using nature as an example. At other times, we just stand in awe of God as we see and appreciate what He has made.
I have a whole section on Nature Conversations – including printable Scripture cards, a guide to using the web resources, and 20 Nature topics with ideas for conversation, journaling, and study.
Get the Conversation Going: Nature Topics!
Purchase the Nature Conversation Starters (Printable Resource) by becoming a premium member of ClassicalbutRelevant. For a limited time, I am offering a FREE download for subscribers – nature conversation starters.
Other Signs of Spring
Another sign of spring around here is the bugs. They are beginning to come out, especially since we had a February full of rain.
Unfortunately, ants have been a problem at my house.
But again, there can be spiritual lessons from the ants as well –
Nature Conversation: Ants.
Here (in Texas) we are enjoying getting outside. I would be curious to know what are the signs of spring in your area?
I encourage you to enjoy God’s creation in these days of Spring – have conversations with your kids, explore nature, study and observe what God has made.