Look Around You!
Look around you: Winter is over; the winter rains are over, gone! Spring flowers are in blossom all over. The whole world’s a choir—and singing!”
— Song of Solomon 2:10–12, The Message
As with all Scripture, there is life within its words and truths meant to be experienced. So let’s take a moment to consider what this passage is saying to us.
This descriptive passage begins with a simple command: look around! It implies pausing in the middle of daily life to observe where we are and, just as importantly, to recognize the season we are in and how that season is giving way to the next.
Have you ever noticed how easy it is to move from one thing to another, constantly chasing what’s next? I often remind myself that the Lord uses natural things to help us understand spiritual realities. Jesus consistently used nature to teach spiritual truths.
I’m not simply a saved person living aimlessly with a ticket to heaven in my hand. No—I am a recreated person. My spirit has been joined to the Lord’s Spirit, and we are one (1 Cor. 6:17). I’m living this born-again life as a new creation in a personal relationship with Father God, walking with Him day by day. He loves doing life with me—and trust me, He loves doing life with you too! And if you aren’t sure about that relationship or haven’t entered into it yet, please click here.
One way we can stop and look around is by taking time to consider where we are in everyday life and thanking the Lord for every good thing we can see, because every good and perfect gift comes from the Father above (James 1:17).
Then take another moment to tell the Lord, in your own words, what you see and what it means to you. I call this looking for “the fingerprints of God” in my life.
One of my favorite things to do is stay attentive to what He is doing and “catch” Him doing something good. I actually love saying, “I see You doing that!”—almost as if I’ve caught Him in the act. Of course, I mean it like a little child thrilled that He has intervened in my life. I challenge you to try it, and before long you’ll find yourself on your own adventure of “looking” and “thanking.”
The next part of this passage is life-changing as well: “Winter months have come and gone.” On the surface, that sounds obvious—but is it really?
Here, the Lord’s exhortation to “look around” is joined with the importance of recognizing seasons. Natural seasons have a specific duration and continual cycle, backed by His promise (Gen. 8:22).
Whatever the last season has been—for you or for me—it is now behind us. We are not simply entering a new season because spring has arrived in fullness. As born-again creations, we experience new seasons as we embrace the truths the Lord reveals to us through His Word, even when our circumstances may appear unchanged for the moment.
The truth we embrace and declare over our lives will produce the change the Lord desires for each one of us. Daily life can lull us into routines that feel endless. That is why this simple command is so powerful: look around!
Take a moment to reflect on what has been sown in past seasons—where you have been—and what is now beginning to blossom within you—where you are going. Doing this helps renew our thinking and keeps us moving forward. And now is the best time to begin.
Let’s look around and talk to the Lord about what we are seeing, thanking Him for every good thing. Then let’s consider what season we are in, asking Him to show us where we are now and what our next step forward should be.