“It looks dead out there,” my wife said, looking into our backyard.

And she was spot on correct. From the brown grass to the lifeless rose bushes, the bare butterfly bush and ‘branches only’ fruit trees … it all looked dead. And if I hadn’t seen it happen every spring for many decades I would have assumed that we needed to tear everything out and start fresh this year.

But my plants, trees and grass could agree with Mark Twain when he said “the reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” With the outward veneer indicating “dead!” there is a veritable detonation of life beneath the surface shouting “You’ll see!”

–       Kind of like God-given dreams that lie dormant in the cold winters of waiting for the right season to burst into fulfillment.

–       And like the Word of God hidden away in a heart, out of sight and thought gone from memory … when suddenly needed and anointed and thrust into a situation desperately needing God’s perspective or assurance.

–       And like the aging saint who more and more resembles death … yet inside is host to more life than this world knows what to do with.

This week, don’t be misled by the outward and obvious. Real life is often camouflaged. Lazarus’ life was hidden in a tomb. Daniel’s life was tucked away in a ‘den of death,’ surrounded by hungry lions. The lives of the three Hebrew children were hidden inside a ferocious blast furnace. Elijah’s future was temporarily tied to a dried up brook. Hosea’s ministry potential was linked to the acute embarrassment of an unfaithful wife. Gideon starts his resume hiding from local thugs.

What you see is not always what you get!

Remember this: Despite what it may look like at the moment, life always wins over death for a believer. Light always conquers the darkest of darks. There is within us the pulsating brilliance of a life given by God that knows no winter and whose entire eternity is as sure as all of God’s promises.

May there be great joy for your journey!

Paul Walterman