Optimist’s Roundtable

By Martha Sykes

“In the cold and snow of winter, There’s a Spring that waits to be, Unrevealed until it’s season, Only God alone can see”. These are words from a favorite hymn that I always think about at the time when our seasons start to change. The song is called Hymn of Promise.

For those who have been having trouble dealing with the shorter hours of daylight, this is a week to look forward to as we turn our clocks ahead an hour!! There are people who struggle with seasonal depression and as we all get a little older, we realize how hard that must be to deal with that disorder that can cause a lot of issues. So at least we have those brighter days to look forward to next week!

When we think about the people of Israel in the Old Testament, they suffered their own type of doom and gloom. They had to deal with exile, the loss of their beloved city, and many other discouraging times, but the prophet Isaiah reached out to them and told them to arise and be lifted up! He tried to tell them that God’s light would lead the way to brighter and happier days. He reminded them that they would eventually witness the glory of God to replace their sufferings in the past!

Well, it is at times like this when we can realize that God’s creation will once again brighten our days as we see new plants growing, buds appearing on the trees, robins and other birds chirping each morning, but most all we look forward to celebrating the beauty around us!!

Season after season, we are given the opportunity to serve a faithful God who never stops surprising us with His glory!!

As Isaiah proclaimed in chapter 60;19, “ The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the moon shine for illumination by night. The Lord will be your everlasting light; your God will be your glory”.