Hidden Promises

Lying beneath the soil are hidden promises of pink, yellow, purple, red, and orange.  The promise might be tall or small, large or small, fragrant or not, and it is there just waiting for the right time.  I'm talking about the flower bulbs planted in a distant season (maybe many years ago) that reappear at just the right time.  They have no timer on them, no expiration date, and no on/off button.  However, at just the right time, they push through the ground and begin their beautiful show of flowering the landscape.  A bulb is really a gardener's dream!  After hard work of planting the bulbs, a gardener then just sits back and waits for the bulbs to do their magic, year after year.  The reward is not seen until a later date when they're almost forgotten.  Following the coldness of winter, as we're all longing for a taste of spring, out pops the first crocuses and the beginning of daffodils.  Regardless of how many more snowfalls or "cold snaps" may still surprise us through early spring, we know that warmer days are really just around the corner.  No special groundhog is needed to know that winter is ending when the first bulb bursts through the soil.  It is a hidden promise, which repeats each year, at just the right time.  The bulb is God's way of showing us that life continues, He's in control, and the "winter seasons" in our life will always come to an end with a beautiful display that only He can provide.