Your Heart, His Home What my crocuses know about Easter

May 10, 2019

A few weeks after I had a rather alarming lump removed in a somewhat unexpected surgery that was insanely expensive, even with insurance, I learned that my business accounts had been hacked to the tune of one hundred thousand dollars in fraud. To put that in perspective, an average transaction on my website is about twelve bucks. Apparently, when random charges started coming in for $26,000 and the like, this raised no alarm bells. It was pretty impressive, actually. The hacker got into my email and was replying as me and had changed out my bank account for his (or hers, let's be fair). No one caught this until almost two weeks had passed and, at which point, about twenty-three thousand dollars was unrecoverable. 

I frequently and with some anticipatory amusement pray for the conversion of my hacker.

A week later, to make matters even more ridiculous, my husband was attacked by a dog. He was running on a public jogging path blocks from our home when a huge beast, perhaps one-hundred and twenty pounds, leaped up and sunk his teeth into my husband's abdomen. The dog was on a leash but his owner could not control him. Later, when my husband reported the incident to the police, he was made out to be the instigator of said attack by the dog's owner. As if my husband, out for a jog, would stop to randomly provoke a pet. Two weeks later the police called to let us know that the dog did not have rabies, (for which we were tremendously grateful) and was now "free to return to his normal dog life." Well, what a relief, that the dog could return to his normal dog life. 

The world is mad. 

Like the Crocus, We Shall Blossom.

I think this might be why God bothered with the hearty spring crocus. I planted a few bulbs some years ago next to my house and every year, without fail, despite the snow and cold and ice that may yet await its arrival, my crocuses valiantly reach skyward to pierce the surface of the frozen earth, green and savory and ready to blossom. The crocus knows: beauty and goodness and life often spring up from darkness. The crocus reminds us: evil will not win, it can never overcome what has been achieved through the Passion and brought to fullness on a Good Friday afternoon. Do not doubt it for a minute: evil may take a bite out of you from time to time, but it can never undo what has been achieved by El Shaddai. 

Let the world go mad and go buy yourself a crocus. And live with abiding, unshakable joy in the reality of Easter.

Father Almighty, Creator and Sustainer of all that is, the earth manifests your glories and sings with joy of your wisdom and might. Let my every word and work join in this eternal and triumphant song that proclaims the unstoppable truth of your victory over sin and death. Amen.

For the image: 

Isaiah 35:1-2

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
    the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly,
    and rejoice with joy and singing.

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