GESTATION

 

Gestation

After 11 months

we're happy to make a fuss

as it's been a loooonngg wait to see

something that will please you and me.

All through long days or weeks when too much rain came

and other weeks when there wasn't enough rain,

they wait and wait as we count the months down

when this delivery is seen in our town.

For each new birth is something to be celebrated

after we wait and wait through the gestation period.

All through long weeks when it was too hot and humid

we impatiently waited as they silently hid.

Hidden in a dark cocoon,

morning, night, and noon, a womb

protected them

during gestation.

And still they waited,

activity bated,

as it wasn't time

for them to shine.

Through the final months, though,

they waited under snow.

This wait seems like it is taking too long.

Each new day feels like a week prolonged.

This incubation

or hibernation

continues through January

and all through February.

Will this long pregnancy ever end?

Everyone's counting the days until when

this new birth

arrives on earth.

Then one day, through the snow,

new life begins to show.

The 11 months is nearing completion.

It's almost time for their presentation.

Who will be born

one chilly March morn?

Who waited 11 months

and arrives with a fuss?

Tiny white snowdrops

and crocus' will pop,

daffodils add to the array

when spring gives birth this glad day!

Their debut

creates a view

that is worth the wait

no matter which state.

Look for hyacinths,

followed by tulips,

alliums

also blossom.

Celebrate

spring's due date.

A time of rebirth

upon planet earth.

* * * * *

What a long wait to see the newborns!

It seemed like spring would never be born.

Winter’s temperatures and snows repeatedly reappear

despite the calendar’s proclamation year after year.

But after winter is past

spring will begin with a blast:

a celebration, a show, a gala

with brightly colored flowers.

They couldn’t wait to unfurl

from under the earth’s furrow.

They couldn’t wait to bring forth hope

for spring is a season of hope.

A season of hopefulness, of new beginnings,

a time of anticipation and expectation.

A confident assurance that God keeps His promises.

Biblical hope is much, much more than simply a wish.

Remember God’s definition of hope: confident assurance -

for God works in the background, despite outward appearance.

Partnered with faith and trust, hope inspires our spirit and soul.

Spring is the season of hope, where both plant life and our soul grows.

See! The winter is past;

the rains are over and gone.

Flowers appear on the earth.

Song of Songs 2:11-12

I went down to the grove of nut trees

to look at the new growth in the valley,

to see if the vines had budded

or the pomegranates were in bloom.

Song of Songs 6:11

We wait in hope for the Lord;

he is our help and our shield.

In him our hearts rejoice,

for we trust in his holy name.

May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord,

even as we put our hope in you.

Psalm 33:18-22

Those who hope in the Lord

will renew their strength.

Isaiah 40:31

I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord...

plans to give you hope...

Jeremiah 29:11

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:21-23

O prisoners of hope,*

even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you.

Zechariah 9:12

Be joyful in hope,

patient in affliction,

faithful in prayer.

Romans 12:12

May the God of hope

fill you with all joy and peace

as you trust in him,

so that you may overflow with hope

by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13

We have put our hope in the living God.

I Timothy 4:10

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul,

firm and secure.

Hebrews 6:19

Faith is being sure of what we hope for

and certain of what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:1

*Notice Zachariah 9:12: “prisoners of hope,” which means those who have hope in spite of circumstances that seem hopeless. Hope is a confident expectation of what God has promised, based on trust in God’s goodness. (Both definitions paraphrased from google.)

As a prisoner is kept captive, a prisoner of hope is kept dedicated to a positive outcome in relation to God’s promises.

Believer, hold onto the promises of God. God is always for you, with you, your rear guard, going before you, your faithful provider. Remember, when God seems silent he is working in the background.

Hope involves patiently waiting. Waiting includes peaceful resting. Hope is both a noun and a verb. (Hope as a verb is active; as a noun hope is realized.)

As you know, waiting is not easy. Years ago my friend, Karen, taught me “thank God before receiving.” That puts a positive focus on waiting, as waiting comes down to “in God’s time.”

Thank God before receiving.

Life Is a Garden Party 

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